Philosophy
Learn to Win
Connect Through Sports
Sports is a metaphor for life. In life, knowledge is power. To keep up with daily, modern life, you have had to learn a lot: a whole hell of a lot. But what do you know about wins and losses?
Sports has taught men for years, how to win and lose; sometimes with grace. Mike Ditka has been quoted as saying “Success isn't permanent and failure isn't fatal”. How do you think he learned that? He played sports in school, in the pros, coached in the pros and worked with men who all had the same experience.
Until Title IX was introduced and adopted, women were at a disadvantage about how to learn the win/lose skills which come naturally from sports. The real lesson learned from losing is: take a risk the next time. Men know that batting .333 for your career in baseball can get you into the Hall of Fame. That means if you fail twice in every three times you try something you are a winner in the game. Women have to learn that lesson. We tend to need to be perfect or else we feel like a failure. We don’t like to make a mistake in public for fear of embarrassment. When you play or follow sports you learn to play the way the boys do.
This is the 21st Century. Sports play a large part in most of our lives whether we know it or not. Front pages of newspapers feature the most famous of scandals, greatest of victories, and local team news. Sporting events are a cause for throwing a party at your home and nothing binds a city more than a winning sports team. Our kids play sports, sometimes more than one, and we need to learn the rules and when it’s right to cheer or offer condolences. Sometimes we find ourselves feeling like the proverbial Sports Widows when our favorite guy spends every Sunday watching football or all of March watching college basketball. And for those of us who are single and still looking, here’s the answer to the proverbial question, “Where are all the nice guys”? They are at sporting events and sports bars.
Incidental Contact can help. By learning the basics of a sport and how to talk about it you can go where male sports fans spend time; you can be with the sports obsessed man in your life or your kids; you can find a hobby to share with millions of others. In other words: CONNECT. You’ll also learn those winning and losing skills you can use in all areas of your life, particularly at work or in relationships.
Sports knowledge is the great social leveler. It transcends the boundaries of race, age, ethnicity, appearance or income. It doesn't matter what you do or who you are. It's the ice breaker and common interest you've been waiting for. Sports is a way to connect with male colleagues at work who may be unable to find a way to feel comfortable in your presence. And if it is your boss or a client, then it can be a necessity for success to be able to put him at ease. That’s what I mean when I say that knowledge is power and the topic of sports can connect you to others.
Why be deprived from learning about the cultural juggernaut which is the blending of sports and entertainment? Perhaps you've tried to learn and been unsuccessful. I am here to tell you that this can work and will work if you give it a try.
A woman teaching women about sports and what it can do for their lives is an idea whose time has come.