On your marks, get set, GO! Some readers have probably already started running, while others are sitting there wondering why race at all. Rivalry – understood as competing, contest, payback and revenge – is a natural tendency to pit oneself against others. Some people have more of it and some less. Some actively look for opportunities to compete, while others question competition because their higher goal is harmonious cooperation. Rivalry cannot be thought of in terms of good and evil. It is better to think of it in terms of the function it serves in society. Without the friction between two people competing, there probably wouldn’t be many inventions and discoveries. But if every activity were marked by rivalry, each side would sooner or later bleed itself dry. Only the context determines whether rivalry is useful.
Schwartz’s circle of values has no clearly defined value of rivalry. References to competing can be found on the opposite side from the values of security and humility. These are values in the area of personal focus and openness to change, such as self-direction in action and stimulation. In the area of self-enhancement, it is the value of achievement. Rivalry in Schwartz’s sense can be a tool for growth as well as a tool for self-protection. Philosophically, though, one could argue that growth can also serve self-protection if you take an evolutionary perspective.
Józef Kozielecki would place rivalry among the Heraclean values. Hercules was the mythological figure who boldly took on challenges and accomplished tasks at which others had failed. He competed not only with monsters in battle but also with others. Another interesting aspect is competition for image – which demigod is the strongest. Rivalry often goes hand in hand with a sense of strength, influence and ambition, as well as a tendency to overestimate one’s own strength.
Rivalry finds its place in Edgar Schein’s anchors in the challenge anchor – the desire to take risks and overcome difficulties and limitations. People with this anchor are happy to take on difficult tasks. Monotony at work and a lack of challenges and competition will be a source of burnout for them. At work, however, a focus on challenges and competition can lead to burnout and create an unwanted image of someone who will trample over others to reach their goal. Yet in some industries and positions, a propensity for competition and challenges is the foundation of success – for example in sport, sales or law.
Steven Reiss contrasts the need for competition with harmony. For him, rivalry and competition are linked to a desire for payback, which in some translations is understood as vengeance. At its most basic, a propensity for rivalry is linked to competing with other people. But it is also possible to compete with oneself, especially when a specific reference point is built in one’s mind, rooted in the achievements of other real people. In evolutionary terms, rivalry is linked to the struggle for survival, which is why it arouses very strong emotions. The value of rivalry strongly shapes personality.
How to recognise people for whom a high need for competition is a motivator?
They tend to compare other people’s actions with their own, while stressing that they would have done it better themselves.
They argue on principle; there is no topic not worth debating.
Competition and the chance to compete excite them; they are always keen to join such activities and enter contests and rankings.
They bravely defend their opinion, or themselves when they feel they have been treated unfairly.
They don’t let go of the competition until the very end; even when they have reached their goal, they keep fighting and acting if there is time and room to do so.
When they lose, they look for an opportunity to get even.
They value their sparring partners.
How to recognise people for whom a low need for competition is a motivator?
If something doesn’t matter much, they usually give up the fight or don’t even enter it.
Under stress they avoid confrontation and seek agreement with others.
They build an atmosphere of peace and harmony around themselves.
In negotiations they focus on a win-win approach.
They forgive others quickly and avoid conflict.
What to do to satisfy a strong need for competition?
Give them tasks that require effort and energy; even if they have no one to compete with, they will compete with themselves. Ambitious goals and a high bar excite them.
They will be happy to carry out tasks in which they can check on an ongoing basis where they are and how they are doing, and tick off successive points. Create work for them that requires confronting other people. Also give them the opportunity to compare themselves with others, so that they can end up somewhere near the top.
Working under time pressure.
What to do to satisfy a low need for competition?
Create situations with no winners, where the whole team wins or both sides reach a win-win outcome. Avoid all rankings and comparisons of their work with others. Consciously build harmony in the organisation. When dividing tasks, give them a chance to take on the role of mediator or peacemaker. If full cooperation is not achievable, give the employee a chance to work out a compromise.
How do people who need competition see those who don’t?
People with a strong need for competition think of themselves as determined, self-confident and success-oriented. They believe they are inquisitive and have a natural tendency to fight injustice. They look at people who don’t need competition as passive, rather weak and powerless people who don’t care. To them they are wimps, because they give way for the sake of peace.
People with a low need for competition think of themselves as nice, likeable people worth being with. They believe they are good mediators and that, being wiser, they should give way. To them, people with a propensity for competition are aggressive and angry. They think they are restless and hold grudges. Sometimes they are also pushy.
A need or value is not a competency.
A propensity for competition is very noticeable and is linked to how people enter conflict. Rivalry, competition and the desire for payback are strongly correlated with skills and with an assertive attitude. An assertive attitude allows us to enter competition thinking that we are OK and that our competitor is also OK. The stake is victory, not harm to the other side.
