The Buddha somehow did a lot with his life. So did Jesus and Gandhi. I’m calling these guys winners. Same goes for Mother Teresa.

Winners win, and losers—well, you know what losers do. And who wants to lose?

Play along with me here, and don’t get too philosophical about the whole win/lose thing.

Can you see yourself as a winner? Can you see yourself, as master coach Robert Hargrove asks, living an inspiring, impossible future that you can passionately engage in? Can you begin to live that future right now?

John Luca

One of our challenges is that often we are semi-guided missiles. We have a target, maybe, but once we hit it, we’re done. And it’s off to the next target. This is fine if we’re enjoying the journey. It’s dreadful if we’re not.

We have to keep our eye on the separation between who we are and who we want to become. Of course, we’re all about change and growth and learning and all that good stuff, but just as your vision of an impossible future draws you forward, it can pull you away from the present moment where all the gifts and all the blessings are.

The great dance is to embrace the present moment as fully as possible with all its faults and shortcomings, and yet move ahead trying to learn, and grow, and even do the impossible. Impossible is the way of the universe, by the way. Impossible stuff like flowers and babies are happening in and around you all the time. It’s how you play the game of life that matters.

That being said, here’s an interesting little win/lose game for you to play. Ask yourself, and answer quickly and generously, “How have I won?”

Here are some of my answers to serve as an example.

I have won the game of being a human (rather than the game of being a pet rock or an ashtray).

I have won the game of love.

I have won the game of divorce.

I have won the game of parenting.

I have won the game of being a son.

I have won the game of having a great place to live.

I have won the game of real estate.

I have won the game of laughter.

I have won the game of spiritual journey.

I have won the game of education.

I have won the game of health.

I have won the game of travel.

I have won the game of love of nature.

I have won the game of friendship.

I have won the game of writing.

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