When You’re Winning… And Lose Everything

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“You know you never defeated us on the battlefield,” said the American colonel. The North Vietnamese colonel pondered this remark a moment. “That may be so,” he replied, “but it is also irrelevant.”

Harry G. Summers Jr.

A man from Poland and I each had five minutes to checkmate the other.

He took one of my pawns. On my turn I sent my rook at his king.

He came back with three consecutive attacks on my king. I escaped each one.

One move later my rook and bishop trapped him.

Checkmate.

He was still up on points when he lost.

To take my pawn, his rook went to the far corner of the board. That rook was still there when his king needed it.

Lindsey Jacobellis was three seconds ahead with two jumps left in the 2006 Olympic snowboard cross final.

On the second-to-last jump she reached down and grabbed her board in the air to show off.

She caught an edge on the landing and fell. Tanja Frieden rode past her to the gold.

She got up and finished second.

When a move distracts you from the bigger game, being ahead can be what gets you wiped out.

♟️

What distractions should you ignore to focus on the bigger picture?