treeguy64
Hari Om, y'all!
- Location
- Austin, TX.
Throughout my life, I think I mostly shied away from outright competitions. I was on my high school swim team, I ran for, and won, the Presidency of our NHS, but then I think I mostly sought the path of least resistance, in my adult life. With women, I felt that if a gal wasn't interested in me, she wasn't worth pursuing. So many gave me the go-ahead sign, that it was no big deal to leave the reluctant ladies behind, with few regrets, or afterthoughts. Even going the self-employment route was, I think, my way of having things my way, and never having to compete for a better company position, favor with the boss, etc. In school, I did very well, but that was more due to great planning, organizing study groups, getting friendly with my profs, etc. I never felt like I was competing with my fellow students.
I like keeping my stress level low, in everyday life, but, paradoxically, I enjoy confrontations, to an extent. Not sure why that is.
I just thought of this competition topic, as I did an online Jumble. When I'm doing those word puzzles in the paper, while relaxing on the couch, I'm at peace with the world. Online, the timer rolls, you get bonuses for being fast. Your score is showed as compared to the maximum available points for any given Jumble. Man, I didn't like that, at all! I did OK, but then I started feeling like I needed to up my game. I was going to stay on that site until I maxed out, point-wise. Luckily, I caught myself getting geared up, and decided to come here, instead.
Another recent situation, where competition entered the scene: I recently gave the gf a very simple jigsaw puzzle, which she completed, quickly. After that, I got her a 500 piece puzzle, and she asked me to help her on it. She had no method of attack, no game plan. I put a strategy together, no pun intended, and we got the puzzle done in about seven hours. Next puzzle, I refined the strategy, and we completed the puzzle in four hours. By puzzle number five, we took only two and a half hours to complete it. Then, I started reading up on national competitions, and started going to puzzle tip sites. Whoa, fella! I caught myself getting too into the whole speed thing. The gf complained, also, that I was taking the fun out of our puzzle activities. She was right. We now do puzzles at a laid back pace. Cool.
So, how competitive are you? Do you like the rush? Is it good for you, as you see it?
I like keeping my stress level low, in everyday life, but, paradoxically, I enjoy confrontations, to an extent. Not sure why that is.
I just thought of this competition topic, as I did an online Jumble. When I'm doing those word puzzles in the paper, while relaxing on the couch, I'm at peace with the world. Online, the timer rolls, you get bonuses for being fast. Your score is showed as compared to the maximum available points for any given Jumble. Man, I didn't like that, at all! I did OK, but then I started feeling like I needed to up my game. I was going to stay on that site until I maxed out, point-wise. Luckily, I caught myself getting geared up, and decided to come here, instead.
Another recent situation, where competition entered the scene: I recently gave the gf a very simple jigsaw puzzle, which she completed, quickly. After that, I got her a 500 piece puzzle, and she asked me to help her on it. She had no method of attack, no game plan. I put a strategy together, no pun intended, and we got the puzzle done in about seven hours. Next puzzle, I refined the strategy, and we completed the puzzle in four hours. By puzzle number five, we took only two and a half hours to complete it. Then, I started reading up on national competitions, and started going to puzzle tip sites. Whoa, fella! I caught myself getting too into the whole speed thing. The gf complained, also, that I was taking the fun out of our puzzle activities. She was right. We now do puzzles at a laid back pace. Cool.
So, how competitive are you? Do you like the rush? Is it good for you, as you see it?
