What in the world happened to “It doesn’t matter if you win or lose; it is how you play the game!” Winning a gold medal at the Olympics is terrific, but it is not the only great experience one can have there. Just being on a team to represent the United States in any capacity is an honor!

If you are going to compete in anything, sport or otherwise, then implicit in the situation is the concept that there will be a winner and those who lose. It is a terrible message to give to children that getting a silver medal, a bronze one, or Heaven forbid, no medal at all is some kind of failure.

Here is another related news item with a different spin on competition and success. This one highlights the concept in reference to working in your field or profession.

Woody Allen, producer and director of two recent very funny films Midnight in Paris and To Rome with Love, said, “I save time by never watching my old movies or attending the Oscars for any of my 23 nominations.” When Midnight in Paris was up for best picture, Allen told the Hollywood Reporter that he “made movies for the fun of making them.”

Now that is terrific!