Competitiveness

I've just been thinking about this after reading some posts on various messageboards (both spinny and non-spinny) and thought I'd see what everyone elses oppinions are.

Everything (as far as I can see) always becomes competitive at some point. Whether this is in education (competing with peers for the best grades) or an art form (such as poi) or anything else this always seems to be the case.

As a DJ I've grown to despise this. I've been mixing for years BUT have never felt the need to 'prove myself' in a DJ competition. I just dont see competition as being part of the art. Instead I like to encourage co-operation. Playing back to back (a couple of records each) with someone is far more fun to all involved (DJ's and the audience). I see playing this way as a learning experience where you can pick up tips from the other person and combine your skills so that you both improve. In the early days of hip-hop DJ's used to meet for 'jam sessions'. Now people just compete for an audiences approval.

One of the things that first attracted me to poi (,staff, devilstick, etc) was the feeling that the majority of people who are involved in these art forms share my love of, well, sharing. At first it seemed as though everyone I met was only interested in helping each other get better at whatever skill they wanted to learn. However the attitude mentioned in [Old link] has become more and more apparent to me. There seem to be so many people setting up competitions to decide 'who is the best'. This seems to go against what spining is for me. I like to see people that have amazing skills but I dont think that we need to compete for this.

I am generally anti-competitive. I dont believe that it helps in any situation. I believe in co-operation and the sharing of ideas to adapt and improve them. 'Two heads are better than one' and all the other cliche's.

I actually think my my views on this were caused by my school years where I was pretty much forced by my teachers to compete with everyone else in the school and my county. When I was in upper school (13 - 16yrs old) I was actually awarded prizes for certain subjects but turned them down on the principal that I didnt see the point of being singled out purely because I was good at *X subject*. (I was, as far as I know, the only student in my school ever to do this.) Learning is the whole point of education is it not? Why should you get prizes for achieving what everyone else has to a slightly different degree?

International sporting competitions seem to fuel xenophobia. National ones cause entire towns to be prejudiced against people from other places for pathetic reasons (just look at football - your nearest neighbour is normally your most hated enemy).

Competition just seems to breed contempt.

Does anyone else share my view or am I just a bit odd?

Forums > Social Discussion > Competitiveness

HOP Newsletter