Competitive Greatness – Bring Your Best Self

What is Competitive Greatness?

Competitive greatness, as defined by legendary coach John Wooden, is a real love for the hard battle, knowing it offers the opportunity to be at your best when your best is required. He goes on to say that at the exact moment when the going get’s tough, the thrill of competition gets going for a leader who has acquired competitive greatness. The hard struggle is to be welcomed and never feared. If you are a leader you must teach your team to love the struggle because only in hard competition will you, and they, find competitive greatness. To view John Wooden’s entire Pyramid of Success, click here.

How to Use Competitive Greatness

Simply put, competitive greatness means being at your best when your best is needed. This mindset is not reserved only for those competing in sports. It can apply to work, school, family or just about any situation where you are faced with a struggle.Coach Wooden goes on to explain that the hard struggle is to be welcomed never feared. In fact, when you define success this way, the only thing to fear is your own unwillingness to make the full 100 percent effort to prepare and perform at the highest level of your ability.

So the next time that you are faced with a hard struggle, how will you react? Will you see it as an opportunity to do your best or an obstacle too difficult to overcome? Will your success be measured by the fact that you gave your best or by the win/loss column? Remember that when the going gets tough, the tough get going!

“Never try to be better than someone else. Learn from others, and try to be the best you can be. Success is the by-product of that preparation.” – John Wooden