Whom are you beating?

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Hi, I'm Kent, and I have a question: Whom are you beating? I don't know if you've thought much about that word, BEAT, but don't you think its at least a little bit interesteing that in the English language we use the exact same word to talk about winning in a competition as we use when we talk about physically striking someone? This means that when somebody asks you, "Whom are you beating?" you end up having to make a choice between definitions. Hopefully a quick and easy choice, because a) you shouldn't be actually physically beating someone and b) you are already comfortable with the idea that you are doing better than some other people, that in one respect or another, you are beating someone.

See, there are all these little calculations that we do in our heads all the time to assess how we're doing at what we're doing and compare it to the people around us. At the end of all these little calculations, you can always find something that you can define as success compared to somebody else. And, maybe, sometimes, it actually feels that way. Until, of course, you come up against a different question: Who is beating you? Because I'd be willing to bet that you can do a bunch of little calculations and figure that one out too. As you consider the importance of succeeding to your life, its worth it to decide where the comparison should be and what the right way to compare is and even whether or not comparison and calculation is the right way to get there.