Losers: the new winners

 

Being defeated spectacularly is better than being a triumph as the following examples prove

THERE IS PROBABLY no better guiding principle in life today than “Loser takes all”.

Remember, children, it’s not winning the game that counts, nor is it how you play the game: what’s important is to lose as spectacularly as possible.

You see, losers are the new winners. This sounds like nonsense, and quite possibly is, given who is saying it, but consider the evidence.

Singer Susan Boyle has been all over the world’s newspapers again recently. Why? Because she LOST a talent contest. There wasn’t a single photo of the winners in any paper I read. No, Ms Boyle was pipped at the post and her prize was massive global news coverage, PLUS US$1.6 million in fees and a recording contract. Did the people who won the talent show get a recording contract? No they did not. Okay, so they’re a dance group, and no one wants to listen to a CD of people shuffling around a stage, but my point remains.

This is the age of irony. If you want to make it big, losing should be your goal. There are many examples which prove this. In the fight for the role of spiritual leader of Tibet, the loser, technically, is the Dalai Lama. His prize? He has become one of the top celebrities on the planet. And the winner? No one knows anything about the guy. I bet even his mother gets up in the morning and says, “Just remind me, who are you?” He replies: “Hi, mom, I am the government-installed puppet spiritual leader of Tibet.” His mother says: “Oh yeah, that’s right, now take out the garbage.”

Ask people around the world to name the leader of Malaysia, and the best answer you’ll get is: “Er, a Malaysian guy?” But ask them to name the loser, and they’ll say: “It’s that Anwar dude, who allegedly beat himself to a pulp in prison.” No one can forget that. 

Two weeks ago, a woman named Carrie Prejean lost the Miss America contest after saying: “I think marriage should be between a man and a woman.” This is the sort of statement that Westerners find shockingly outrageous and Easterners find amazingly obvious, and neatly illustrates why the two sides will simply never understand each other. Loser Miss Prejean is now world famous. The winner was a woman named, er, I can’t remember. You can’t either, right?

Jennifer Hudson lost the battle for American Idol. Her prize: a fortune, a record deal, and an Oscar.

Sportsman Eddie “the Eagle” Edwards did so badly in the 1988 Winter Olympics that he became the world’s most famous ski jumper. 

I could give examples forever, but happily for all concerned I am reading the end of this space, so I shall do what all good columnists do and jump to conclusions. Winning is passé. It’s obvious. It’s predictable. It’s elitist. And it’s also extremely difficult.

Choosing to lose, on the other hand, is a brave decision. It is different. It is innovative. It is contrarian. And, most importantly, it’s way, way easier.

That’s why I’ve chosen to be a loser. Think about it. It might just work for you.

You could end up just like me. (Take that as a warning.)

 

Technorati Tags: loser,susan boyle,eddie the eagle,carrie prejean,jennifer hudson,anwar ibrahim

Comments

[farah]

then you should re-name your blog to the curious diary of loser nury and his chums.
i remember whenever i flunked or couldnt succeed my mom would tell me that failure is the pillar of success. to this day i'm still planting the pillars with no sign of success.

[fardel]

Once upon a time, there was a powerful nation where people were so religious that they followed the Book.
They were so obsessed with the ancient stories of the Book , that , when they heard a bush guide them into the desert, (like one of this ancient story) they rushed.......... without thinking.

They got stranded,in the sands of a country around Persia .
It was the first nation in History to lose a war to nobody but themselves.
The consequences were disastrous:
They lost their economy, their jobs, their allies , their factories and more;
But they got worldwide attention, by becoming the joke of the planet: The first loser nation

it was as well the first country in history to turn communist ( where everybody pays for everyone else under the government orders) without a revolution.

This country is now most famous for having found a Savior.
Everybody talks about him, all day, every day everywhere.
Like in the Book
This is what is called being famous.

still a loser, still broke, but famous .

[Vince A]

Yep, the most famous person in World War II is Adolf Hitler, who lost the war to the Allies in the west led by the American President __?, and in the east to the Soviet Russians led by __?.

---

And just to adjust the chronology of events regarding the Book, the people, and the bush:

- the bush came before the Book

- the people escaped from slavery to freedom (ah freedom! Something we prize as much as they do)

- they never got as far as Persia, only just around the corner to Canaan.

- they had no economy or factories to lose

- rather than loser nation, in many circles they are known as the chosen nation (ok, chosen people)

- they have not found the Savior (he found them; they kicked him out -- the losers)

- They were systematically killed in the millions, since time immemorial despised for being who they are, surrounded by those who want them erased from the face of this earth, and yet enjoy a level of education, freedom, and democracy unavailable to many of us in the Orient.

I wouldn't really call them losers.

[Nury]

The key is the word "spectacularly". I think being a winner is all very well, but if you lose spectacularly, that can be even better than winning.

The theological discussion that Fardel and Vince are having is interesting. Both of you are right -- the US has got itself into a situation where it is fighting a war it cannot win. But that country is still ahead of the east of the planet in so many things, as Vince says.

But going back to losers being winners. I remember reading a fascinating book years ago about Jesus. I can't remember who wrote it. It said that technically speaking he was the ultimate failure. His mission failed to do what people expected it to do. He then become one of the most influential people in history.

I once got caught in the most awful boardroom battle. I was the loser in the sense that I got heaved out of the group. But the articles in the newspapers and on the websites about it were about me, not the "winners". Now, a couple of years later, the winners have all dispersed. I'm still standing.

[fardel]

Hi Vince
You totally misunderstood the country, the time, the religion and the people I was referring to.
Your comments do make sense, although my story is 2000 years younger than yours.
I realize now that there could be a parallel.
Thank you

Imagine yourself 2000 years from now.
Would my story stand, by reference to our modern times?

[Chamin]

Hi Fardel,

I wish I could write like you do. But you should NOT start your own column, that might make you too busy to comment here!

[fardel]

Thank you
When I review my previous posts , i am surprised myself,to see my name at the bottom of good comments.
This must be one of Nury's trick
Nury , Do not worry i really do not have time for my own blog:i m too busy looking for my keys, papers, and sometimes my head .
And there is nobody in this house who can find them for me .

[Vince A]

Hi Fardel, that's what you get for writing in parables :-) :-)

Yup I misunderstood which peoples you were writing about. Re-reading what you wrote, it's very clear now which one you were referring to (but just to be sure...you're not talking about the Swiss are you?)

I appreciate the wit and insight in your post.

Still, calling a people 'losers' feels like one is crossing the line. Too many of us owe our freedom to the Americans for me to ever look at them as losers. If they are the laughingstock of the world, one just needs to compare them against those laughing at them. I've never known a people more generous.

[Angela]

sounds like you need a woman so you can just yell: Honey, where's my keys? where's my papers? where's my head?

[Uli]

Fardel, I agree with Chamin, you're top of the commentators here, keep up the good thoughts!

[Lisa]

You know what happens when you lose? you get sympathy. Ask anyone who has experienced sibling rivalry. My sister used to provoke my brother until he'd be forced to beat her to a pulp. Then he'd get in trouble for responding the only way a male knows how. I always felt sorry for him. He never knew how to explain himself.