WinningButLosing

Sometimes you win.....................................but you lose.
Sometimes you lose.....................................but you win.

Those admonitions were embedded in my psyche by one of my mentors 20 years ago as he was shaping me to be a stronger leader.

Proving others wrong may be within our capability.  Trumping their decisions may be within our authority.  Undoing or devaluing their work may be within our jurisdiction.  Making them look or feel foolish may be something within our reach (in fact, we may wish it - with or without justification).

In leading others, there is a price to be paid for "winning" at their expense.  Like a soap bubble, our "winning" is visible and tangible but for a moment; but it pops and disappears rather quickly.  Like rot, their "losing" grows slowly and consumes us over time.

Making ourselves look or feel or achieve better at the expense of others in our organization carries a hefty long-term price, the bill for which will most certainly come due.