“To be the best, you’ve got to beat the best. That’s all there is to it.” – Adam Vinatieri
As a writer I expound on certain events to bring metaphorical significance to different walks of life. Such is the extended purpose of the media. Unfortunately, there are a lot of people with a lot of opinions in this day and age. So even in victory, questions are raised:
Would he have hit as many home runs if he did use performance enhancing substances?
Would that team have won if the opposing star player wasn’t hurt?
How much did off-field distractions affect the game’s outcome?
The aforementioned questions raise an eyebrow at Adam Vinatieri’s forward-thinking statement. Some times the best team wins and other times consequences beyond the player’s control alter the course of the game.
The New Orleans Saints are currently under scrutiny because they are alleged to have intentionally injured other team members to win a game. The Miami Heat will be questioned for their true greatness because Derek Rose left the playoffs with an injury. These distinctly different oppositions to victory hit on a common theme:
There will always be those who question the outcome despite the scoreboard!
Vinatieri encourages that the only way to win is to do so without leaving any doubt in the outcome.
The Cheaters May Have Prospered
Barry Bonds was a remarkable baseball player. He didn’t need to do drugs to be great. But he did (allegedly), so we will never know how genuinely great he truly was. A legacy intentionally tarnished!
The challenges we face at work probably do not parallel the weight of winning a world championship but that doesn’t make our approach to success any less important. You want to be the best and you want to be challenged to the fullest of your potential. So that when you raise the trophy your co-workers can celebrate your achievement without raising an eyebrow.
When you cross the line of integrity, two things happen:
- You cheapened the process!
- You compromise your genuine effort!
That’s Not What I Signed Up For
I am 100% confident that no one on the New Orleans Saints defense started playing football because they wanted to hurt someone. They ran for their life to achieve the satisfaction of proving to themselves that they are the greatest. Now, their championship rings are tarnished by the sentiment of rule breaking. They became victims of an age old system. No one thought to question the integrity of tradition.
If you can examine your achievements knowing you overcame adversity by the power of your personal potential, you are a winner. If you lost because you were not willing to compromise your integrity for a trophy, you too, are a winner!
The story of David and Goliath is not intriguing because the opponents were evenly matched. The tale has come to characterize the genuine intent of motivation: if you work hard, know your applicable skills, and put a strategy in place….anything is possible. There is nothing more rewarding than besting a bigger, faster, and stronger opponent. David gave people hope by showing them that Giants are not invincible.
Victories and failures will come and go. But there is only one true test to your resolve as a professional: the look in the mirror!
You should not celebrate what you have not achieved nor should you regret a challenge you ignored because it required bending the rules.
To be the best you have to beat the best. It is easy to ignore your detractors when you have played the game the right way.
Thank You for reading!
Dave Kovacovich
