Volume XXII, Number 46 (Issue 1102) | November 11, 2024
Life is Not Meant to be a Zero-sum Game
Unfortunately, some among us approach life as if it were both zero-sum and a game. Many more think of life as if it were one-hundred percent zero-sum – that is, your basic win-lose paradigm. For every winner, there is a loser. Games of chance are a classic example. Board games, sports, and politics are also examples of zero-sum outcomes. You do not need examples in the world of sports, but I will mention the Olympics anyway. At least in the Olympics there are medals and glory for second and third place.
Politics is fresh on everyone’s mind courtesy of the elections we just came through. There, once the votes were counted, we had clear winners and losers. Of course, the exhilaration of winning was not limited to the candidates – their donors, campaign staffs, volunteers, and voters all came away feeling as if they too were winners. Needless to say, those candidates who fell short in the vote count as well as their teams ended their day deeply disheartened. In the case of board games, there is a game called “Life.” The objective, like other games is to “win,” but at least in this Milton-Bradley game there are rewards for what the creators deemed to be good moral decisions.
Models such as these that champion competition are not inherently wrong. Competition drives us, challenges us, makes us better. However, it is easy to fall into the trap where we see all of life as a competition complete with winners and losers. But must it be that way? Must we take our measure against others, or might we be better served competing against ourselves? That is, are we a better version of ourselves today than we were yesterday and the day before that?
The objective (our objective) should not be about besting others as much as it should be to help others. Imagine how life would be if we spent our time pursuing win-win outcomes for ourselves and others rather than competing at every turn. We do that best (our best) when we focus on serving others.
Soli Deo Gloria
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves.” Philippians 2:3-4
J. Keith Hughey
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E-mail: keith@jkeithhughey.com
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