Pursuing Arete

We live in a society where winning seems to be everything. Winning feels good—who doesn’t enjoy winning? I’ve played sports my whole life and worked with thousands of athletes. I’ve consulted with them on this, and everybody has won at something but didn’t always like their performance. Likewise, everyone has lost at something and thought, “That’s probably the best I could be.” Maybe not every moment was perfect, but the preponderance of their actions—the majority of their effort—was the best they could display.

One of the things that inspired me years ago was a coach who never talked about winning. He always talked about excellence. He emphasized preparation, likely drawing from the wisdom of the great John Wooden. The idea is that if we attach ourselves to excellence rather than winning, we will appreciate our journey more.

If we live a life focused on excellence in all our actions, no matter the field or arena we play in, we will find greater fulfillment. After all, we are all going to lose at some point. We’re going to die eventually—no one gets out of here alive. The goal isn’t perfection or being a perfectionist, but rather pursuing excellence in everything we do.

At the end of the day, if you judge yourself based on your commitment to excellence rather than just winning, my best guess is that you’ll be satisfied with the results. And, perhaps, people will appreciate and respect you more as well.