A few weeks ago, my sister received a call from her son’s school. The teacher informed her that her son passed out, albeit temporarily. He had recovered, but these are the words any parent would dread. She and her husband, are medical doctors, immediately put on their physicians' hats and plotted a battery of tests for their son. They didn’t know what could have been the issue, but they wanted to take no chances and make sure nothing serious was happening.
The day went by, and the kid was in and out of doctor’s offices. At the end of the day, my sister got a phone call from the mother of one of the other kids at school inquiring how my nephew was doing. She also told my sister that her son had said that they were playing a game when my nephew passed out. They had a competition; they were playing the game “who could hold his breath the longest?” My nephew, he held his breath as long as he could and won the competition.
My sister was upset and amused, he didn’t have any major issues, he just made himself pass out by holding his breath too long. Talk about the power of competition and the desire to win at all costs, and this is from a seven-year-old. While writing this post, a quick Google search told me that this “competition” is popular and dangerous among teenagers, but not for a seven-year-old.
I have done a few things that would be considering dangerous, to some running 100 miles is crazy, and yet to me is awesome. I have a rule, a rule for myself, I will drop from any race if I feel that my health is in danger. And I have done so a couple of times, a few months ago I decided to drop from a 100-mile race because of that particular reason. The same principle applies when competing against others in all aspects of our life. When is it time to back up, when is the time to let go?
However, if you attorney purchase generic cialis can proof that you quit smoking. It is a kind of colloquial name of a specific tissue or tissues which is causing the pain. cheapest viagra uk This levitra 20mg generika leads to narrower blood vessels, which essentially prevent the flow of blood. However in both robertrobb.com cheap viagra from canada chemical action as well as performance these sex pills are the same. Let’s face it, we cannot avoid competition. It is always there in anything we do. However, the danger viagra online to buy lies in the tendency to observe and watch out for our competitors often instead of watching out for ourselves. Many of us tend to "Keep up with the Joneses” and use the neighbor as a benchmark for social class or the accumulation of material goods, or anything for that matter. To fail to "keep up with the Joneses" is sometimes perceived as demonstrating an inferiority complex and inadequacy. However, is it the need to win all the time at all costs worth damaging our relationships and potentially our health? I think not.
As this Time’s article points out, “The takeaway from most of the relevant research on money and happiness is that day-to-day contentment is impacted by financial security. But it’s not affected by how much stuff you have” It means that having the car of the year, a bigger house, a greener lawn or even bigger title, or even the latest iPhone probably won’t make you happier. In my nephew’s case, he passed out because he wanted to win at all costs, in the adult world “keeping up with the Jonnases” can (and eventually will) drag down your financial stability, which will only make you more stressed out and unhappy in the long run.
Personally, It’s taken me a while to realize this, and in some regards, I’m still learning. I now focus on only the things I can control. Over the past few years, I’ve worked on controlling my ego, and I feel a lot happier. Instead of comparing myself to others, I’ve learned to focus on only what I can change, me. That’s not to say I don’t keep up with others or care what’s going on in the world or learn what is and what is not possible. But rather I’ve just dropped my obsession with knowing how others are doing and focus on be better than yesterday.
Don’t run away from competition but rather embrace it. It means, don't compare yourself to others but rather use others' success as motivation. If you feel you can do a better job at something, go for it.
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