Sometimes You Have To Lose To WIN!

Jay was 6ft 8 in, 210 pounds. He averaged 29 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 3.3 steals a game. He was recognized in the local newspaper weekly, and the NBA was taking notice. The high school standout was a beast on the court. Jay dominated the court and led his team to many victories and championships. After a huge victory, the coach told the team to go home, rest, and think about what they could have done better in the game. He wanted them to work on those things in the next practice to prepare for the tough game that they had coming up. The team’s “superstar”, Jay, was accustomed to winning, so he felt that he didn’t have to evaluate his skills or how he performed in the game. He scored most of the points, he dominated the court, and the team won. He didn’t lose, so why would he evaluate what he did wrong? Everything was working for him, why change or look back now? The next game was a very close one. The opposing team was just as good and they too had a star player who averaged about the same as Jay. The only difference was that the opposing teams star evaluated himself after each game regardless of a win or lose.

There was 6 seconds on the clock, the score was 78 to 77 (Jay’s team was down), and the other team had fouled Jay. Jay had two shots and if he made one he could tie the game, if he made both he could win. The fans were confident because their star player would sink the next two shots. Jay missed both, and his team lost. After the game, he was talking to his coach and he stated that he realized that he wasn’t as strong at the free-throw line. He could use some more practice and hard work. Jay realized that he should have taken the time before suffering a loss to evaluate his performance. But, let’s be honest. Many of us fail to self-evaluate during our highs and wins. It usually takes a loss to push us into self-evaluation.

Looking back at all of the times I took a “loss” or “failed”, I have realized that before losing, I didn’t self-evaluate. I didn’t take the time to analyze and figure out how I could be better. No one likes to lose, but so much good can come out of losing. Let’s be honest, when most of us are at our prime and winning, do we spend time thinking about what we did wrong? Do we critique ourselves? In most cases, we don’t. It normally takes a loss to force us into self-evaluation. So, from this point forward think about your losses or failures as a time to make yourself better. Use the time to become a “true beast” in whatever it is you failed at. Use that time to become polished. Don’t allow the failure or loss to get you down. Think about it as a time for more training.

Losing can also bring us back down to earth. Just like the basketball player discussed earlier, many of us don’t focus on our weaknesses when we are winning. We abandon those weaknesses because it seems that everything is working out despite having them. We don’t see a need in working on those weaknesses because we are great. However, when we fail, we immediately think about those things we were weak in. Let’s not get so big until we forget that we are not perfect. Let’s deal with it up front. Let’s not crush our own hearts by walking around as if we are “GOD” with no flaws. It’s is perfectly fine to have weaknesses because we all do. It is more becoming to be able to recognize your weaknesses. It provides for growth in that area.

So, when you lose, don’t get angry and down. SELF-EVALUATE. Identify your weak areas. Work hard to get better. Also, don’t get “big headed”. Always work to better yourself. Never think that you are without any weakness. Remember, “SOMETIMES IT TAKES A LOSS”.