With the start of the World Cup just hours away, I am reminded of the unrelenting competitive spirit that makes such events worth the wait (and trust me, I have been counting every single day since Germany in 2006). God-given talent can make one successful, but without that unwavering fire within the highest plateaus are unreachable. Although Michael Jordan had an amazing ensemble cast to support him, you could see the determination in his eyes to single-handedly turn his team into a basketball dynasty. Lance Armstrong had insurmountable obstacles on his path, yet his blind determination led him yet again to the greatest of success in his sport and his place in history. There are countless stories (in sports, business, life) to illustrate this point, but I digress.
Real estate is obviously a highly competitive field in which individuals are publicly recognized for their accomplishments, everything from Top 40 under 40, to Top 100, to Realtor of the Year, Inman 100, etc. But does it accurately reflect the competitiveness of the rest of Americans as a whole? I recently took my 10 year old nephew to his Tae Kwon Do tournament, in which trophies were handed out, not on the basis of merit or skills, but rather on a rotating basis (the ones who took ‘silver medals’ this time, will inevitably get ‘gold medals’ next time). Or have you been to those soccer/baseball games where they don’t keep score? Sure, every person, whether a kid or adult, wants to be acknowledged as special, a true champion. But in so doing, are we embracing mediocrity? Is there something wrong with accepting being average without unnecessary accolades? Are other competing countries (i.e. China) teaching the same values to their future leaders? Your thoughts/comments are welcomed.
Bret Nida says:
Very good choice of topic! I could probably ramble on for hours about this exact question and how I think the coddling of our future leaders (ka our children, students, Je Ja’s) will lead our country to a path of complacency and “mediocrity”
However, I will put my lecturing stand aside and keep it short and sweet. We are too easy on our future leaders and too quick to worry about hurting feelings, meaning a lesson will be missed. If you set a bar or goal to be met and it’s not, then let it be known that more must be done-work harder! One good example or story of such a lesson, comes from an audio book I recently listened to, “The Last Lecture” http://www.thelastlecture.com (As a fellow Realtor and avid reader, you know time is limited and since we spend so much time in our cars, why not kill two birds with one stone: read, learn and make money all at once!) A particular incident in the authors life talks about an old hard-nosed football coach of his that would get loud and vocal with the him and his teammates, letting it be known that they were slacking and he was not appreciating their lack of effort. Sure, the authors feelings got hurts but he also knew he was disappointing his coach and in turn tried to earn back some respect by working harder. He then points out, and I 100 percent agree, that on today’s practice field, parents would have cell phones in hand, attorney on speed dial and their YouTube camera rolling, all because of a little “character development” by the h coach. In my opinion, this is a great example of how the bar of mediocrity gets set. There is a fine balance here but it’s all about the presentation!
“Some people are born mediocre, some people achieve mediocrity, and some people have mediocrity thrust upon them.” ~Joseph Heller~
Great post! So much for not rambling!
“I’m Bret Nida and I approve this message”
June 10, 2010 — 7:28 pm
Alex Cortez says:
Bret, thanks for the comment.
It kind of reminds of the current state of the military now. I went through Basic Training in 1996 and by that point, political correctness was already taking over (Drill Sergeants couldn’t touch recruits in any way, they were not allowed to use profanity, etc.). I hear that now recruits have ‘time out’ cards to use at their discretion. Seriously? Well, it’s getting late and I don’t want to go into a mindless ramble, I just wanted to take a moment to thank you commenting (glad to see that I’m not the only one).
June 11, 2010 — 12:24 am
Jeff Brown says:
Alex — we’re now reaping what the Kumbaya crowd has been sowing for so long. As a youth baseball coach in the late 80’s early 90’s, I made it clear that if your child was on my team, they would learn what merit-based results meant. Each year 1-3 parents asked that their child not be on our team.
And each year for five consecutive years, those same parents ensured I was a coach on the all-star team. Go figure. 🙂
We told the parents that in real life, their precious little angels didn’t get A’s on their report card cuz they showed up. Of course, even that’s not universally true now.
I wonder what the enemy’s reaction would be to a soldier whippin’ out his ‘time out’ card on the battlefield?
Good stuff, Alex.
June 11, 2010 — 10:33 am
Katie Lance says:
Great post Alex!! As a parent I think of this often too. I second reading or viewing “The Last Lecture” – really powerful message.
June 11, 2010 — 12:36 pm
Alex Cortez says:
Jeff, LOL @ “Kumbaya crowd”. Funny, but oh so true.
Katie, thanks for commenting. I will definitely get “The Last Lecture”.
June 11, 2010 — 4:18 pm