Success is an irresistible drug – everyone wants a piece of it. That adrenaline rush when you beat your competition and come out on top is unbeatable, isn’t it? It makes one feel powerful, even indomitable. Thanks to these benefits and more, winning is idolized and its polar opposite, losing, is demonized by people and cultures all over the world.
But here’s the thing: every winner is also a loser. And every loser is also a winner.
No, I’ve not lost my mind. Let me explain.
First off, winning, just like losing, is relative. Each one of us has certain parameters for personal success, and if we meet them, who’s to stop us from feeling like a winner? No one. And who’s to stop someone with different parameters of success thinking of us as a loser? Again, no one.
Second, parameters aside, no one can win all the time. The most successful people throughout history have seen as many as losses as they have seen wins. In fact, many have tasted success only after they have seen a long string of failures. One might even argue that they had to lose over and over again in order to learn how to ultimately win.
Third, success and failure are not complementary, they are dual. For when you accomplish something, you also give up or lose something to do so. On the other hand, when you lose at something, you learn lessons that bring you closer to your next accomplishment. Plus, failure brings you closer to your loved ones and gets rid of fake friends. If that’s not a win, what is?
Whatever you believe in, it’s important to learn to accept winning and losing because without each other, both would lose their importance. For like it or not, success and failure are two sides of the same coin.
Damn this is so on point! Never thought of it this way.
Thanks, Ravi. It’s kind of like the failure-success relationship, right?