Who wins?

Simon Sinek, author of Start with Why, tells a wonderful story about a cross country runner with cerebral palsy.  He tells of this young man who always comes in last place.  He finishes each race in pain and usually covered with blood.  He continues to participate and work hard even though he is fully aware that he will never be able to challenge the competition.

While the story of this student could be one about, "When the going gets tough, the tough get going," it is not.

Instead, his story is about competition.  This young man did not compete against the other racers.  He couldn't.  But each race, he competed against himself.  He tried to better his own time.  He simply wanted to finish and improve.  And because of that, he also finished every race with the support of every other racer.  His teammates, and most of the other competitors from other schools, would finish their own race, then run back to join the last place finisher.  He may have officially finished each race last, but there were dozens of runners with him as a crossed the finish line.  They clearly recognized his efforts and his perseverance.

Why?  Because people love to support each other's efforts when the competition is courageous and personal.  We love to help each other overcome individual challenges!