IT’S COOL TO CARE

Watching March Madness over the course of the last few weeks, I have of course been caught up in the excitement of buzzer-beating shots and bracket-busting upsets. I’ve loved watching the thrill of victory - seeing teams and individuals celebrate the success they’ve worked so hard to achieve. But honestly I think now more than ever, I’ve found myself observing and admiring those on the other side of the experience, those who’ve given everything to their winning pursuit…and come up short.

There’s an element of emotion that comes with giving everything to a winning pursuit...and coming up short. You see superstar athletes breaking down as the buzzer sounds on their season or their career. They can barely keep it together in the post game press conference, talking about what it meant to wear the jersey or to experience the journey alongside one another. They are exposed - right there for the world to see - by the wound losing has inflicted. Each one of those tearful testimonies highlight he harsh reality of the damage really, truly caring can do.

The truth for each of us is that really, truly caring is risky. That’s why it’s gotten harder and harder to find people who are willing to lay in all on the line, who’ll give everything to their winning pursuit, and who are devastated when they come up short. After all, each of those tearful tournament moments serve as evidence that just because you care doesn’t mean you win. You can put your heart and soul into it. You can make all the necessary sacrifices and commitments - many of which no one else will ever see or celebrate. You can really, truly care, and still not get the outcome you’re after. That’s why choosing to care, despite the danger, requires some serious courage.

It’s also why so many people these days have worked hard to make it cool not to care. That’s the easiest way many people have found to cover for their lack of courage. Not caring provides you with a built-in excuse for coming up short. “I didn’t win, but that’s because I didn’t really care.” It protects your fragile ego and satisfies that insecurity that keeps you from stepping in the arena and laying it all on the line. Losers know that when it doesn’t mean much, then it doesn’t matter much.

In reality, though, we all care. Even the losers care about something. They care about comfort over courage. They care - a lot, in fact - about what other people think and about what laying it all on the line and coming up short might say about them. They care about satisfying that ego and protecting that image. They care about highlighting and criticizing those people who have chosen to step in the arena, especially when they come up short. They are hoping to shine a bright light on the failures of others, so they can distract from the somewhat embarrassing reality that they didn’t even have the courage it takes to try.

The voices of those critics and losers can be loud and convincing. Sometimes the loudest and most convincing voice might feel like the one inside your own head. Those voices are undoubtedly encouraging you to mitigate that risk, toplay it safe, and to take the easy way out. Maybe just some counterfeit competitiveness - maybe just act like this matters and act like you really care, but hold back just enough to avoid the long and potentially painful fall that comes with going out on that limb. Build in that excuse, those voices argueProtect that ego and satisfy that insecurity. Accept that comforting lie over the cold, hard truth.

Your inner champion clarifies the cold, hard truth about real competition and authentic achievement - that really, truly caring is the only way. If what you’re after is meaningful and significant, then stepping in the arena and laying it all on the line is your only option. It’s risky, yes, but I hope you can see today that it’s worth it. It’s the only way you’ll reach your potential, and - even though there are no guarantees - it puts you in the best possible position to get the outcome you’re after. Most importantly, giving everything you’ve got today eliminates your regret for tomorrow. Looking back, you’ll be proud that what meant a lot mattered a lot, and proud, too - regardless of the outcome - of who that winning pursuit helped you become. So forget the critics and the losers. Instead, do what champions do. Cultivate your courage and go all in. Why? Because it's cool to care.