When I decide I am going to compete with the best, I dig deep. I seek out something from the depths of my being, a self-confidence, angry and determined. Touching this point I let it consume me. I find myself pedaling harder than I ever would have, eating just what I must, bringing my opponent to his knees. My enemy has no heart, no arms no legs. My enemies are my demons: sloth, resignation, guilt, and shame. 

We all have our demons that eat at our insides. Everybody has stress, worry, fear, and anxiety to some degree. We can be overcome and dominated by these forces, letting them dictate our life’s choices. We can try to hide from them and numb the pain.  Or, we can embrace the challenge. Indeed, the gift of the challenge is the opportunity to overcome it.

Competition is the nature of life on Earth. Darwin attributed the development of species to the competition between organisms. Adam Smith spoke of the invisible hand of allocation guided by the competition between different businesses. To embrace the essential structures of life is to free yourself to move within them. 

Like many Caucasian men my age, I enjoy hip-hop music, an art that comes from a culture and a life quite different than the one I have lived. This musical art form is often criticized for its aggression; white listeners are criticized for having nothing to do with the culture that created the music. 

Life is a mix of cooperation and conflict. We can never “all just get along.” The good news is that nothing creates harmony better than conflict.  In order to compete with my colleagues in bike racing I need to make sure that every cell in my body is in cooperation with the rest. The most efficient companies become so as they seek to compete with others. The best non-profits are driven to prevail in their cause. All of these are forms of competition motivated by cooperation.

Some of the most inspirational people are those who have been diagnosed with cancer.  They decide that they are going to take on the challenge and compete against something as big as cancer. These people are full of life and energy. 

The trick here is pushing out the boundaries of competition. As a bike racer I can choose to compete with my colleagues, or I can choose to race at a level that makes the Northwest competitive with any other region in the country. Within this context, the dynamics that play out between me and the other racers become more harmonious than conflictive.             

I can go broader with my competition. I can decide that I am not competing with my peers, nor is my region competing with other regions but we are all competing against American obesity. By investing in health, we gain in health, locally, nationally and universally. As we move towards harmony we must remember the sharp edge of conflict and competition that cuts through the bullshit. 

Whether I am competing against cancer, poverty, or neglect, I compete with a mindset embodied by what my teammate tells me when it is time to throw down: “Kill killer.”