You win some, you lose some...

July 03, 2012

You win some, you lose some...

... and sometimes you lose some big time. Italy's defeat, though heartbreaking to those of us dressed in blue (azzurro) looking forward to a victory celebration in Circo Massimo, was total. It wasn't a loss because of someone kicking it in their own goal or because of an injury to the star player. It wasn't a misguided Referee and undeserved advantages to the other team. It wasn't even penalty kicks that come down to hit or miss. Spain was simply the better team. Despite the obvious disappointment to the Italian tifosi (fans), the game was solid proof of this fact. So there was a certain ease in accepting the truth and moving on. Next time.

Isn't that just life though? We have all had complete losses, or put another way, failures. They are meant to humble us- to remind us that there is always room for improvement. They keep us from narcissism. But I think the key is to take the lesson, but to not stay focused on that imperfection.

It is too easy to say "Winning isn't everything; it's the only thing" and write off something as a flop. No, I think even if something ends in failure, we should give credit for the journey: the four rounds of interviews and the "Thank you for your interest in our company, but" email, the x-number of years relationship that ends in a not-so graceful break up, the great idea presented to the Board and shot down because of budgetary constraints... All of the energy funneled into those efforts don't disappear just because the result is not "a win." It is important to remember that.

So bringing it back to the case at hand, here are some reminders to celebrate getting to the final stages of something, regardless of the outcome. Italy made it to the finals. Good job - the training is still good for next time.