Let me do the cliche thing and provide an official definition. Winning, according to dictionary.reference.com, is a noun. The site shows several different definitions, but I thought the following two were fairly accurate: "The act of a person or thing that wins" or as an adjective "successful or victorious, as in a contest: the winning team".
In class today, we were told to write down our own definition of winning for extra credit. Thinking that simplicity would be clever, I wrote down, "Winning is achieving a goal you have set and being satisfied with the results". Was I correct? Was anyone in the class correct? No.
The teacher--once again the teacher who is fond of inspirational speeches--explained, it made a lot of sense. Think of it this way; you cannot always win. The opposite of winning is losing. Therefore, no matter what you do in your life, you will always be a loser in something.
Being a perpetual loser sounds like a fate worse than death! How can this be? Well, our definitions of winning were just not on target. One student said that "Winning is trying", once again, thinking he was clever in a simplistic response. The teacher took the students pencil and put it on the desk in front of him.
"Try to grab the pencil," the teacher instructed.
The student hesitated, fearing a trap or trick question.
"Go on," The teacher said, and as the student went to grab the pencil, it was smacked out of his hand.
"You can either grab the pencil or not. No try," teacher said.
Now I come full circle and try to relate this to ProgressiveU, rather than how my teacher related it to the media field. There's an obvious reason why I'd want to mention the definition of winning for this site. A good deal of us are vying for that scholarship contest, and guess what? Only a few people will "win". So that makes the rest of us losers.
What a thought. Being a loser sucks, right? Why risk being a loser?
Some people give up early. There are some bloggers who come here, post a few times, and quit the site forevermore. Veni, vidi, vici "I came. I saw. I ran away in fright." If you ask me, these are the losers.
I don't like the idea of losing. It sounds so pathetic, doesn't it? If we go with this mentality, I have been a loser for three contests in a row. Three Blogging for Progress Contests. Well, two that I participated in, actually. So I am a loser.
I don't feel like a loser though. After the first contest and the post that declared the winners, I felt a little depressed for a few minutes. I thought I'd worked hard, but really I was quite disillusioned, and I learned through experience how much work you really have to put in.
I've learned so much here, made friends, helped shape my own opinions, and got the chance to do a good deal of writing. That's not losing in my opinion. That's winning in some respect.
Before I reveal my teacher's definition of winning, what is yours? We all have a slightly different definition. I think that understanding such ideas like winning, ideas that seem to be to the point and set in stone, will help us understand ourselves and other people.
My Source is Dictionary.reference.com and my speech-happy professor.
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For me winning means that I have somehow accomplished the goal I set for myself. Not necessarily medals or honors or recognition from others, but the acknowledgment of my own success. I say that winning is subjective because there are many different things that make people happy. If what you did made you happy and feel alive then you have done what you set out to do...therefore you won.
I agreed with 'endlessbendictn'. Winning is when you yourself feel you have achieved a goal, even if it's not winning in others' eyes. But it's more than that. It's everything we do every day. We win when we pass a test or get a response from a blog we posted or even when an aquaintance passes us in the hallway. Too many people place winning on sports or jobs, but that's just proving to everyone else what you can do. I think it's important to prove to yourself you can win at whatever you're good at whether it be reading all of John Steinbeck's novels or filling in the NY Times crossward puzzles.
Winning is just what it sounds like. Coming in first; achieving what you set out to do.
Some people blogging on this website will win the contest. They will be the winners, others will loose. They will be, essentially, losers.
Losing doesn't have to be negative. You don't win this scholarship, you don't finish first in a race, you don't complete the crossword puzzle, or eat the most hot dogs in one sitting? So what? Being a loser doesn't have to be negative.
Losing is motivation to do better and win the next time, or even to just be better. Losing can motivate you to strive for the perfection that the "winner" already may think they have achieved, so maybe the winner stays stagnant because they've already progressed as far as they need, or want, to grow.
Or losing can mean that no one likes you, so you may as well sulk in a corner and nurse your perceived injuries. The taunts of "Go cry, emo kid" may follow you around.
Winning is positive. I think most can agree to that. Perspective is needed, mostly, for losing, and how you decide to handle it. If you chose to use losing in a positive way then, perhaps you haven't won the specific thing you wanted, but maybe you win at life instead.
http://www.progressiveu.org/blog/sawaboof
"...There is a crushing guilt that comes with being a Catholic. Whether things are good or bad or you're simply... eating tacos in the park, there is always the crushing guilt."
-30 Rock-
There is always winning and losing. I think the point is we shouldn't look at ourselves as "losers" for not always winning. In the cliche version of "winning isn't everything", it is all about trying. Not giving up. That doesn't mean you will ever be a winner and it doesn't mean you will never be a loser but you are a contributor. Contributing in this world, participation, that is what is important. Whether it be on a global level, a local level, or familial level. It's all about being a part of the picture. People don't like to think of themselves as losers so they redefine win. The don't like to be reminded that not everything works out, so they redefine lose. I think everyone might be a bit better off if they accept they will be a little of both and worry more about taking part.
I'm seeing three levels of winning.
#1 is the obvious one and in my opinion the most shallow. If someone comes in first place given all the parameters of the contest, then he or she wins.
#2 is when a person or team completes the task that the competition laid out. My clearest example comes from the movie Cool Runnings when the Jamaican bobsled team walks their sled across the finish line even though they had lost terribly.
#3 is when you overcome something within yourself regardless of the outcome of the competition. Maybe you challenge yourself to be more positive. If you make progress, you win. This is the deeper level and the one that matters to me.
The losers are the ones who don't hit any of these levels.
www.progressiveu.org/blog/americangirlinchina