The rigorous definition of competitiveness is difficult or probably even impossible: due to the multiple components - in the short, medium, long term - they involve and due to the relativity of the factors included in determining the degrees of competitiveness.

The desire to win, whether it is a simple adversarial discussion, a game with friends, an important contest, or a career advancement, exists in each of us more or less depending on what drives us to performance, to achieve success and to achieve many of the goals we have set for ourselves.

Competitiveness objectives:

There are differences in how healthy competitiveness is, how beneficial it is for our lives: depending on its type, and the objectives of competitiveness. Do you want to be better than others in general? or just better than a certain category of people you compare yourself to? or do you just want to be better than you were yesterday? Are you trying to increase your self-esteem and self-confidence by surpassing others or just yourself?

• Are you competitive just to win anything, anytime, anywhere at any cost?
• Or do you just want to excel while being eager to outdo yourself?

 The latter goal is related to a higher self-esteem, because it involves the desire to develop skills that increase self-efficacy, these skills being necessary to set goals and fight to achieve them.

Constructive, creative, stake-free competition is desirable both in personal life and in any organization. It becomes harmful and dramatic when it leads to a "life and death" problem. But if we look at another department or another person to see what beautiful things he has accomplished, how he has exceeded his limits and how he has come out of his comfort zone - so with a sense of admiration and curiosity - then we create an energy suitable for growth and development.

 In many aspects of social life, competitiveness can be considered a quality, which aims to achieve goals and generate the best possible results for those working to implement the plan.

We often find in the resume of people who work or aspire to work in a large company, that one of the qualities they are proud of is the competitive spirit. For some, competition is a personal pride, which gives them the feeling that they are strong and trained to get results. But where can this permanent competition take us? Can it bring us closer or further away from those we compete with? How do we look at those we are competing with? How do they look at us? And most importantly how do we look at ourselves in the middle of this competition whatever it is?

Competition is not responsible for either the positive or the negative consequences on the road to achieving its goals. The impact of competition, both useful and harmful, results from the way it is organized and conducted. As a coach, we have learned, understood and applied the importance of objective clients guidance when it comes to achieving our goals to ensure that the competitive experience remains positive even if we are in competition.

Are you willing to do that, even in a competitive situation? This is the kind of question that helps you understand what you are willing to do to achieve your goals and more, if used properly can help you feel motivate in difficult situations.

But have there ever been times when the competition didn't motivate you or when it really reduced your motivation?

There may be the possibility of being in competition with clearly superior or clearly inferior people and then you can no longer find the motivation to go further, so it is important to maintain the perspective on what we want to achieve.

Coaching helps us in such moments to inspire commitment and high performance, stimulate creativity and shape responsibility.

This competitive spirit often appears from childhood, from the moment we reach the community where the comparison is present. we compare ourselves to our classmate with someone from another class, maybe, and if we don't do it, those around us, such as parents and teachers, certainly do. Maybe before we got to school, parents used the comparison with an older brother, a cousin or any other child they see has more qualities. So a comparison meant to awaken the competitive spirit in us as children. Some are not influenced by these comparisons and do not want to enter the game of competition to the despair of parents who would like their child to be more like others and this awakens in them desires to be better, harder, more athletic, etc., that which seems to be in the minds of many equal to ambition and achievement in life.

I also started by being somewhat competitive due to the education system and the parents, ending up competing permanently with colleagues for a prize at school or a scholarship and then at university. It is a good part of this permanent competition, namely self-overtaking and gaining a place ahead. It's just that when I started working on my own as a dentist in my own office, I didn't look at the profession and attracting patients in terms of competitiveness. I knew what I could offer and what I represented as an individual and as a professional, and how I could do my job better and so I liked to break this circle of competition with other dentists and other practices and create my own clientele and my own way in life. As my path shifted from dentistry to professional coaching I understood the true role of competitiveness in my life, becoming able to control how much and when it helps me and how to handle it to my advantage. Now becoming a certified coach, I can help more people embrace their authenticity and use competitiveness in their lives just as much as they consider healthy for their personal and professional lives.

Some people are very competitive, making any small challenge a reason to compete, from which they feel the need to emerge winners. A client likened his competitive spirit to that of a wild horse that he wanted tamed even if he somehow appreciated its wildness, he wanted to be able to manage it better. And here the role of a coach intervenes to keep them in touch with their true values ​​and holding the reins of the stallion to know how to lead without being knocked to the ground.

Competition also involves comparison. A healthy, objective comparison leads to progress, it helps us set goals.

But these goals must belong to us, to be made in the direction of our values, preferences and concerns.

For me, the competition motivated me to the level of obtaining qualifications, knowledge and especially a deeper understanding of what I really represent, so it is a tool not a value, so it is part of my authenticity.

 Where does competitiveness take you?