Purge the Win-Lose Mindset

Uncompete: Rejecting Competition to Unlock Success
By Ruchika T. Malhotra
Penguin Random House, 320 pp., $30

When you think about competition, you may think, as I did, that it's been around as long as humanity has. But in Uncompete, Malhotra writes that "Homo Sapiens outlived every other early human species not because we were more competitive, but because of our unique collaboration skills." The author challenges readers to think about community, not competition, and about abundance, not scarcity. She also encourages readers to think about the power of sponsorship and partnership between human beings, not so that we can gain and someone can lose, but so that the collective community can improve.

Malhotra divides her book into three main parts: choice, act, and resist. In each one, she writes about her experiences and her journey to "uncompete," mixed with data and facts on how the world has evolved into a state of constant competition. Reading her words is like escaping from the Matrix and realizing that there is a different way to look at the world than what I typically think of as natural. As a self-proclaimed competitive person, I had to pause multiple times and reflect on new pathways to greater success through building up and praising people I used to view as competitors.

One of the powerful reflections and reversals of mindsets came when reading how people choose to compete. We put ourselves in a constant state of stress and chaos, which doesn't leave any room for peace, mentally, physically, or spiritually. When you learn to choose to uncompete, you can "fully benefit from the creation of healthier environments in personal, corporate, and social spaces that will inspire collaboration, abundance, inclusion, solidarity, and radical generosity."

Many times, Malhotra writes, choosing to compete means an individual makes decisions not from a place of what is best for their business, their community, or their team—and, therefore, makes short-term decisions that primarily serve what is best for them.

Malhotra's final chapter makes a lasting impression, as she recounts the concept of what it means to be a good ancestor and recommends readers consider whether they are living in a way that makes them a "good ancestor." Are we evaluating our decisions through the lens of long-term prosperity and benefit to the largest group possible? When you choose to uncompete, you begin to expand your impact and leave a legacy because you are purposefully choosing to live a life of abundance powered by the success and happiness of the community of which you are a part.