Not the winning, not the contending<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n One can strive and fail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then strive again and fail again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Is this a failure? In my view, not necessarily so. It becomes a failure when the striving is done half-heartedly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The striving \u2015 to win, indeed!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n At the time of full-hearted striving, there is one goal, present within the striving itself: to win. Anything less is not enough. That\u2019s why only contending is also not enough. You want to get it, to beat the guy, the mountain, yourself. You give it the best you\u2019ve got, damned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Adrenaline full-speed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Full-hearted striving brings discipline from the inside out \u2015 no coercion needed. Also, frustration plays a lesser role. [see: “Delayed Gratification, No Frustration<\/a>“]<\/p>\n\n\n\n Within this striving, the intense focus actually leads to one kind of meditation. This is probably why it can also lead to a sense of \u2018flow.\u2019 Think, for instance, of a runner\u2019s high. Body and mind are focused within the striving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And then you fail, and that\u2019s also OK.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n One may feel this as a contradiction. It\u2019s not. It\u2019s a paradox, therefore subtle. There\u2019s a distinction that one may easily miss. Yet this distinction is crucial, between:<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the second, the winning is incorporated within the striving-to-win. It doesn\u2019t really exist \u2013 or is not relevant \u2013 by itself, without the striving. For instance, to win by cheating would be nonsense, not only because it\u2019s ethically wrong and dangerous, but because it\u2019s nonsense altogether.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s the striving that counts, and this happens to be a striving-to-win.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not only in sports<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The same mode of thinking is relevant in all domains of life, including the intellect. [see: \u201cThe Intellectual Elite – Leaving Nobody Behind<\/a>\u201d]<\/p>\n\n\n\n This may seem somewhat idealistic. It is, of course. Striving is always towards something that may end in an ideal. Even if the striving is to lead an everyday life, then this is the ideal. One may try doing it as well as possible. You see, here\u2019s already an additional ideal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nirvana!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The ultimate paradox is the Buddhist ideal to strive for nirvana\/enlightenment \u2015 nirvana being the state utterly without striving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And yet, there is also no contradiction if the striving for nirvana is felt as perfectly OK even when the goal is never reached. For instance, if one strives to get everyone \u2018on board\u2019 before reaching the heavenly state oneself \u2015 knowing this is impossible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Meanwhile, the good that one can do while striving this way is immense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 2021, Olympic year<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Athletes worldwide are heading towards Tokyo to win the gold medal or, at least, some medal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s great to strive for a medal. It\u2019s even greater to strive for it in a way that involves the total person, transcending the mere-ego. [see: \u201cThe Story of Ego<\/a>\u201d]<\/p>\n\n\n\n When watching the show, you might try to discern the athletes who have grasped the zest of what I\u2019ve just tried to talk about. They may have done so while training, or dreaming, or being coached.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They may not all get the gold medal, but they surely get the shining one.<\/p>\n