Elite athletes and entrepreneurs have a lot in common. They sacrifice huge chunks of their lives for one simple thing: achievement. They want to be the best – they want to excel. They want to carve their names in history. They want to be remembered for the things they’ve accomplished.
Of course, while elite athletes are adored (well, until they put a single foot wrong, then they’re torn down – just like everyone else), entrepreneurs are often looked on with disdain.
I think it’s worse in Australia, where we hate financial achievement but adore sporting achievement, but I’ve definitely observed it happening in other parts of the world, also.
I wrote an article recently about the “Million Dollar Meltdown” – a rite of passage that many entrepreneurs go through when they hit the $800k plus mark. This, of course, drew fire from some people who hypocritically called ME greedy, while saying that much money should make you happy (yah. It’s ME that thinks money is all important. Obviously.).
It got me to thinking – if I took the statements that were thrown at me every day and turned “money” into “gold medals”, what would that look like?
Short answer: about as ridiculous as you would expect.
- “You’re just greedy – there’s no need to have that many Gold Medals.”
- “You’re stealing Gold Medals from the average person. Give them back to the 99%!”
- “You don’t work harder than anyone else. Everyone gets up at 5am every day, lives on a restricted diet and gives over their life to training. You’re just an arrogant asshole who thinks you’re better than everyone else.”
- “Only assholes want to go to the Olympics.”
- “You only got that Gold Medal by fucking everyone else over.”
- “Sure, you CLAIM it’s your Gold Medal, but it really belongs to your coach – because they’re the ones who really did the work.”
- “Gold Medals are the root of all evil.”
- “How many Gold Medals are enough? Isn’t it time you gave someone else a go?”
- “Gold Medals don’t bring happiness.”
- “I pity you. All you care about are Gold Medals. You’ll never understand what’s truly important in life.”
- “How dare you go to the Olympics and get a Gold Medal when they are children starving in Africa?!”
I really want to be the best and win some gold medals, but I can’t do anything right now because I don’t have any spare gold medals.
Because everyone knows that the only way to win Gold Medals is to already have Gold Medals. Most Gold Medals are inherited, not earned.
moar medals.
You play baseball but happen to be born in Australia, you must win the gold medal BUT never go over seas to play …. and your glove better be Aussie made, and the bat, and your coach, and your uniform needs to be Aussie designed and made …. and every other team member you ever play with needs to be Aussie too …. and every competition you enter better be played in Australia …. and all your fans need to be Aussie …… and if anyone or anything from anywhere is involved in the process of winning a gold medal then you are an unpatriotic @#$%!
ARE YOU STILL GETTING THIS BS?!?! Unbelievable!
I’m too busy playing ‘E’ Grade for Upper Kickatinalong to be able to do anything to get a Gold Medal. Anyway the government should buy me a gold medal because I am Australian and they should make sure that Australians get Gold Medals before anyone else does.
Hahahaha.
“It’s the governments responsibility to give me Gold Medals!”
GOLD!!!!!
Worse still, this is what people say who would call themselves capitalists, not socialists!
LOV IT my fav “How dare you go to the Olympics and get a Gold Medal when they are children starving in Africa?!”
HOLY FUCK BRILLIANT !
This is so awesome.