Picture taken from www.syracuse.com
Losing. People hate it but it almost inevitably happens. Even seeing or hearing the word can make people cringe with disappointment and regret. What most people don’t realize is is that losing is what propels you to success. Consistent failure is what produced who Michael Jordan became as an athlete, in his own words.
One of the more recent examples of losing popped into my head, the 50th Super Bowl. Sports analysts and Carolina fans alike will remember a certain quarterback, Cam Newton, as reluctantly and disinterestedly mumbling responses to the media crowd enshrouded around him. After some time, Cam stands up and leaves the conference room clearly showing he was done answering questions. While he was criticized for this, can you really blame him? Newton just lost the biggest game of his career so far and then is expected to find answers to questions preceding with, “Obviously this was a disappointing outcome…”.
After some time, another interview was held this time in the Panther’s locker room, where a more mature and composed Newton proceeded to answer questions with a more analytic perspective. He goes on explaining he doesn’t need to be anyone else but himself. That moment showed that losing can really be a beneficial thing. Cam showed where his identity lied and exuded a great amount of confidence in himself. He really puts an exclamation point on the whole subject by quoting the great Vince Lombardi, “Show me a good loser and I’ll show you a loser.” In short, as much as everyone hates losing and likes standing on the middle of that podium with your head raised high, losing can and will show what makes a winner.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLHmrHHFH_I&feature=youtu.be
