Competitive People - The Downside
1. Excessive Stress:
Competitive individuals often create a high-stress environment by constantly striving to outdo others. This stress can negatively impact relationships and overall well-being.
2. Lack of Cooperation:
Excessive competition can hinder cooperation and teamwork. When everyone is focused on winning individually, collaboration and mutual support can suffer, leading to a less cohesive community or workplace.
3. They mistake life for a competition:
They think life is a competition to win, rather than an experience to have.
4. They measure their worth using comparisons:
They measure themselves against you and others to gauge how 'well they're doing' and think you do too. They fail to see their worth and only feel good about themselves if they believe they are 'doing better' in some area of their lives. They fail to realise not everyone measures their worth by trying to 'out do' someone. "Comparison is the theif of joy" - Theodore Roosevelt.
5. Unhealthy Rivalries:
Intense competition can breed rivalries, leading to negative emotions, animosity, and even conflicts. Instead of fostering healthy competition, it can create hostile environments where individuals may resort to unethical practices to win.
6. Undermined Creativity:
When the focus is solely on beating others, creativity and innovation can take a back seat. People might stick to conventional methods that are more likely to guarantee a win, stifling the exploration of new ideas and approaches.
7. Decreased Empathy:
Competitive individuals might become less empathetic towards others' struggles or failures, as they are primarily concerned with their own success. This lack of empathy can harm social relationships and create a toxic atmosphere.
The Benefits of a Competitive Nature
Improved Performance
In the interest of a balanced perspective, here I offer you the benefit of being competitive. It's possible to use other people's performance in any area of life to measure your own. Sometimes competing to be better can actually improve the function of something for future use. E.g. Let's say you're an internet provider and you want to get ahead of your competitor so you design faster internet speed. That's completely understandable in a business setting. But sometimes a sense of psychological or even financial safety can be gained by 'outperforming' or doing something 'better' than someone else (a company in the same industry, for example). This kind of satisfaction comes from ensuring you or your company survives. This is different from measuring performance to gain a sense of trimphant satisfaction with oneself.