Healthy Competition - What is that?

Understanding and Promoting Healthy Competition in Schools

Understanding and Promoting Healthy Competition in Schools

The opposite of ‘competition’ is ‘cooperation’, not ‘complacency’.

I have lost count of how many parents have expressed this worry - ‘Schools need more competition these days. Students get complacent. Students are not resilient. Students aren’t gritty.’

To me this sentiment is misplaced. It makes a huge assumption that competition is the fuel for motivation and grit.

Also, I asked ChatGPT, ‘ What is the opposite of competition?’

ChatGPT responded: ‘Cooperation or Collaboration’. 

Not Complacency. Absence of competition does not guarantee complacency. 

But, it can deter collaboration - an essential 21C skill that is at the core of human progress.

What is healthy competition?

Obviously I am not proposing that we give up competition or that we give every student a gold medal.

When done right, Competition provides opportunities for challenge, teamwork, socio-emotional learning, resilience, grit, fun and excitement.

But if not handled well, Competition can have a Cobra effect i.e. unintended negative consequences. Unhealthy competition can deter Collaboration. It can result in hostile environments, bullying, jealousy, short-term thinking and even unethical behaviour. 

Below is my take on healthy competition vs unhealthy competition 

---

How can we nurture healthy competition?

Does healthy competition mean we need to be numb to emotions? Of course not.

Healthy competition doesn’t expect competition to be devoid of excitement, without strong emotions. Feeling excited, nervous, delighted, disappointed, frustrated, joyful are all important parts of competitive experiences. 

But, our response to these strong emotions matter. And what we believe can influence how we feel and react.

Our beliefs → Our thought and feelings → Our actions

So influencing the competitive beliefs and mindsets of students can create the right environment for competition.

---

These 3 important principles can help students compete in a healthy way in schools:

#1 About Ourselves:

Promote a Growth Mindset instead of a Fixed Mindset

A Growth Mindset is the belief that abilities and intelligence can be developed through effort, learning, and perseverance

A Fixed Mindset is the belief that abilities and intelligence are static traits that cannot be significantly changed or developed.

A growth mindset in healthy competition emphasises continuous improvement and learning, driving participants to strive for better performance while viewing challenges as opportunities for growth rather than as threats to their inherent abilities. This mindset fosters resilience, adaptability, and collaboration, contributing to a more constructive and uplifting competitive environment.

There are plenty of free resources that can help us build a growth mindset, including this site from Dr. Carol Dweck, herself. Dweck coined the term ‘Growth Mindset’ and her research led to this powerful idea that has had a huge impact on the world. Personally, I first heard about the ‘Growth Mindset’ in 2013 and it transformed my approach to learning.

#2 About the World:

Promote a Positive-Sum (Win-win) Outlook instead of Zero-Sum Outlook

Positive-Sum Outlook is the belief that individuals can collaborate and work together in ways that result in mutual benefits and gains, rather than just redistributing existing resources.

Zero-Sum Outlook is the belief that one person's gain can only come at the expense of another person's loss.

A positive-sum outlook in healthy competition encourages participants to seek mutual gains, focusing on collaboration, innovation, and shared success, fostering an environment where competitors elevate each other while striving for individual excellence. This approach not only enhances personal growth but also strengthens relationships and overall outcomes.

While it may be challenging to see a positive-sum/ win-win in a game where there are clear winners and losers, we can help students identify win-wins by zooming out, seeing the larger picture and taking long term views on growth. 

Feels like champions like Federer and Nadal have a positive-sum outlook compared to the outlook of the many trash-talking MMA fighters I have heard!  

Read more about a win-win outlook in this blogpost.

#3 About success:

Strive for Purposeful Goals instead of Relative-to-Others Goals

A Purposeful Goal is a goal with thoughtful objectives that is driven by the intrinsic motivation and desire to achieve something meaningful 

A Relative-to-others Goal is a goal that is simply defined as a result relative to someone else without thoughtful objectives (for example, to beat Student C in the race)

Focusing on purposeful goals shifts the competition's emphasis from comparison with others to personal growth, fostering a positive environment where individuals challenge themselves, collaborate, and collectively elevate each other while striving for excellence. This approach promotes a healthier, growth-oriented competition that encourages continuous improvement and mutual success.

We can foster this by helping students to define goals based on purpose and specific criteria instead of measuring progress relative to other students. Again, bench-marking against norms or others in a group  isn’t always a bad thing, it can help us measure against a standard. But it should not be the only or most important way to measure progress. Purposeful goals can help us measure progress in ourselves by comparing where we were, where we currently are and where we want to be.

---

I’ll end with a few wonderful quotes from one of the greatest (and one of my favourite) competitors, tennis legend Roger Federer. They clearly reflect the beliefs above.

I think being passionate about what you do is important. You won't be successful if you don't love the game.

I don't think there's any shortcut to success. You have to put in the hard work, day in and day out.

It's important to be patient. Success doesn't come overnight.

It's essential to have a good team around you. Tennis is an individual sport, but you can't do it alone.

I have a lot of respect for my opponents. I never underestimate anyone.

I try to stay open-minded. You never know where inspiration or new ideas will come from.

I don't think you can ever get complacent in tennis. You always have to push yourself to the next level.

I'm always trying to improve. Even when winning, I always look for ways to get better.