MUST WE WIN?

In the past few months, I have been quite observant about Taxi Drivers and the way they usually operate.  First, they value their time. Secondly, they value their money (and petrol), And thirdly, they appear to be very familiar with the routes their passenger is heading, so confidently overtake other drivers along the way.

Similarly, I have observed the way average business men (and women) operate, and find it really interesting.  First, the business man knows his business and recognizes how he needs to go about it. Secondly, he sees himself as a hustler. One who seizes opportunities and aims at survival. And thirdly, he acknowledges he is not the only one in the game. The competition is fierce, its about overtaking. Its a race to finish ...and win!

I therefore find these two groups of people to be similar in many ways:

1. They value time and money.
2. They appear to be familiar with where they are heading or what they are doing so are usually more confident than others who aren't.
3. They recognize competition and hustle to win.

So then, the question is, 'MUST WE WIN'?

Before you think this through, please read this brief but fascinating story:

On December 2, 2012, Spanish athlete Iván Fernández Anaya was competing in a cross-country race in Burlada, Navarre. He was running second, some distance behind Kenyan race leader Abel Mutai (bronze medalist in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the London Olympics).

As they entered the finishing straight, he saw the Kenyan runner - the certain winner of the race -mistakenly pull up about 10 meters before the finish, thinking he had already crossed the line. Fernández Anaya quickly caught up with him, but instead of exploiting Mutai's mistake to speed past and claim an unlikely victory, he stayed behind and using gestures, guided the Kenyan to the line and let him cross first.

"I didn't deserve to win it," says 24-year-old Fernández Anaya. "I did what I had to do. He was the rightful winner. He created a gap that I couldn't have closed if he hadn't made a mistake. As soon as I saw he was stopping, I knew I wasn't going to pass him."

Fernández' supporters may not have totally approved this, but to him, doing this was more important. According to his coach, Martín Fiz, "It was a very good gesture of honesty, a gesture of the kind that isn't made any more. Or rather, of the kind that has never been made. A gesture that I myself wouldn't have made. I certainly would have taken advantage of it to win."

Through this selfless act however, there is no denial that Fernández Anaya earned for himself a name rather than a trophy.

So then, here are the main questions:

As 'taxi drivers' and' business men and women' taxiing round our daily routes, businesses and societal interactions, should we always act like Fernández?

Would you?



Please leave your comments below. ColourMEamba would love to hear your thoughts :)








Source:
http://elpais.com/elpais/2012/12/19/inenglish/1355928581_856388.html