I remember a brilliant movie titled “The Usual Suspects.” The 1995 film contained some memorable lines. My favorite quote is, “The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he did n
convincing the world he did not exist.”
I haven’t thought about that quote for a long time. It is the words of a top-notch, professional salesperson.
Not to be outdone by the devil, the world today is using that same line, slightly modified. The greatest trick the world ever pulled was convincing people that in life, there are no losers; everyone gets a trophy. The idea that everyone receives a trophy for participating seems wrong to me.
The participants —even the sluggards— know before the event that a trophy awaits them. This reward method isn’t challenging; it"s a cop out.
By doing this we 1. Destroy the value of the trophy, 2.Mislead the participants in believing all they have to do to get a trophy is to show up. 3. The players that don’t win will never know the taste of victory (nor the smell of defeat).
Several years back, a friend of mine gave me a copy of Vince Lombardi’s book, “Motivation Lombardi Style. Vince Lombardi is best known as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s. He coached his team to three straight and five total NFL Championships in seven years. He also won back-to-back Super Bowls in 1966 and1967. (Super Bowls I and II).
Coach Lombard, like any successful leader, knows that the team is a mixture of players with different skill sets, intelligence, experience, and motivation. Those individuals will have the same 14 values that Coach Lombardi had: Belief, Commitment, Discipline, Participation, Desire, Character, Intensity, Love, Leadership, Teamwork, Sacrifice, Integrity, Fear, and Winning.
Don’t buy into the lie that everyone deserves a trophy. The individual who is prepared, motivated, and has the desire to win receives the award. That’s today’s truth.
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