Winning Isn’t Everything: Sometimes It’s Good To Lose

At nearly all levels of athletics — from high school to college to the pros — winning is the main objective. However at the youth level, that doesn’t always need to be the case.

Sure, sports are competitive and everybody wants to win; and in many youth leagues across the country, everybody does win. But there may actually be some benefits to losing, particularly for our youngest athletes.

When it comes to learning life lessons, and growing and developing as a person and as a player, which is more beneficial: winning or losing? Let’s take a look:

The Pros Of Winning

While winning may not be everything, it sure is a great confidence boost! There’s nothing more valuable than feeling good about yourself, and winning is the easiest way to build self-confidence.

That’s because winning is validating. By winning, you know you did what you were supposed to do, your methods were sound and you have a blue print for success moving forward. It keeps you excited to continue playing and to continue winning.

And winning is the quickest way to make a connection with a sport.

The Cons Of Winning

So if winning is so great, why is the saying: “winning isn’t everything?” That’s because eventually winning becomes boring and makes you complacent.

When you become content with how things are, it becomes easier to stop learning. You’re more vulnerable to going on autopilot and that’s when bad habits begin to develop.

Constantly winning, or winning early on, could also be detrimental because it may give you a false sense of your own abilities. Just because you’re winning, doesn’t mean you’re the best, and you may stop striving to be or working as hard.

The Pros Of Losing

Sure, at first, losing doesn’t feel all that good. But losing builds character.

Learning how to deal with loss is one of the most important life lessons, as loss is simply a major part of our life experience. Losing a game isn’t the only time you’ll face defeat, and how you respond and pick yourself back up says a lot about you.

Losing also gives you drive and purpose. It makes you want to strive to be better and achieve what you previously couldn’t. Losing also forces you to learn how to evaluate yourself. The only way to make adjustments and improve is by looking in the mirror and fixing what doesn’t work. When you’re winning, you tend not to look.

The Cons Of Losing

What’s the bad part of losing? Well, that’s pretty simple … losing!

No one wants to lose because no one wants to feel bad. And losing constantly has the ability to turn you off from a sport for good.

Does winning feel better than losing? Of course! Is losing the end of the world? Far from it. Winning isn’t everything and losing doesn’t have to be either.

Winning isn’t everything: while it may feel good to win, losing actually goes a long way to making you a better person. What do you think? Do you learn from your losses?

Win When You Lose

Author Bio

Travis Armideo, marketing manager at Gladiator Custom Mouthguards, is a lifelong ice hockey player. He began playing for various clubs at a young age and continued onto junior teams, while also playing lacrosse at the collegiate level. Travis is still heavily involved in athletics, coaching high school and youth ice hockey athletes, as well as playing men’s league ice hockey on a regular basis.