Each day, long before the sun rises, people around the world begin tracking stock markets. These marketplaces, originally created to facilitate the exchange of goods and services, have grown to become a world-wide network of companies providing consumers with a multitude of economies (health, agriculture, manufacturing, etc.).
We live in a “free” fast-paced, technology-driven, market-based, transaction-oriented, economy where even people that don’t own stock have heard of the Dow, S&P 500, and NASDAQ; success defined in terms of gains and losses. However, behaviors used to achieve these results may include legal terms like bribery, collusion, insider trading, etc., or worse neglect to report on these behaviors altogether.
A term used to define these behaviors is “winning at all costs.” The mindset is often entrenched in environments that place a high value on competition and ambition like politics, sports, finance, and at times religion. Introduced in 1948 by Vanderbilt University head football coach, Henry Russell “Red” Sanders, and later popularized by legendary football coach Vince Lombardi, it proclaims that:
“Winning isn’t the most important thing. It’s the only thing.”
The “winning at all costs” mindset” is often used to justify, and also condone, the questionable behaviors seen in movies like “Wall Street” (1987), “Glengarry Glen Ross” (1992), ”Any Given Sunday” (1999), “The Replacements” (2000), “Remember the Titans (2000), and “The Wolf of Wall Street (2013). However, when our focus is “winning at all costs,” the lines between right and wrong can easily become blurred. Author Ayn Rand asks:
The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me?
You’ve heard “it’s only wrong if you get caught” or maybe about the “gray” lines between right and wrong, moral and immoral, or legal and illegal? Because of this mindset, Matthew 16:26 asks:
“For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?”
Winning isn’t all about the outcome but the journey. Our decisions and actions can impact our outcomes, but they also define our character and shed light on our integrity. Heraclitus, a Greek philosopher from Ephesus, tells us:
“The soul is dyed the color of its thoughts. Think only on those things that are in line with your principles and can bear the light of day. The content of your character is your choice. Day by day, what you choose, what you think, and what you do is who you become. Your integrity is your destiny … it is the light that guides your way.”
“Winning at all costs” can have devastating effects at work and in our relationships. This mindset challenges our integrity and threatens to destroy the bonds of intimacy and trust that are the foundation of our relationships, especially family and friends. A 2018 Psychology Today article states:
“The decision to stay in a relationship with a partner who must win at any cost is a tough one. You know that great relationships truly depend on both partners being willing to own their own accountability in conflicts and to seek resolution together.”
The Bible emphasizes winning at all costs is not the right approach—victory comes through faith, integrity, and righteousness. Examples highlighting these values are found in Leviticus 19:35-36, Colossians 3:23, Matthew 16:26, and 1 Corinthians 9:24. Here are a few examples from the book of Proverbs:
“A false balance is an abomination to the Lord, but a just weight is His delight.” (Proverbs 11:1)
“The integrity of the upright guides them, but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity” (Proverbs 11:3).
“A fortune made by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapor and a deadly snare” (Proverbs 21:6).
Integrity, faith and righteousness aren’t just “religious or spiritual” concepts; they’re the cornerstone of companies embracing “servant leadership as a business model. Warren Buffett, one of the most successful investors of all time and the chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, says:
“In looking for people to hire, look for three qualities: integrity, intelligence and energy. And if they don’t have the first, the other two will kill you.”
We shouldn’t be surprised by the methods used if “winning at all costs” is our goal. Our responsibility, as leaders and followers of Jesus, is to lead with integrity. Psalm 119:105 (TLB) reminds us:
“Your words are a flashlight to light the path ahead of me and keep me from stumbling.”
To lead like Jesus, we can’t afford the luxury of “gray” areas; we must define acceptable and unacceptable behaviors and hold people accountable; including ourselves. At the end of the day, we each must define success and the price we’re willing to pay to achieve it; but, as an award-winning actor, Andy Garcia reminds us that:
“It’s important, when going after a goal, to never lose sight of the integrity of the journey.”
Gilbert Camacho serves as President, Organizational Leadership Solutions, a management consulting firm, based in Melbourne, Florida. Gilbert is a certified Lead Like Jesus Facilitator with extensive leadership experience in the private, public and non-profit sectors. He has been a contributing author to the Lead Like Jesus Blog for almost 3 years writing monthly on such issues as servant leadership, accountability, trust and integrity. Gilbert s a sought-after Speaker, Trainer, and Executive Coach. Gilbert is a Registered Shared Neutral (Mediator) with the State Supreme Court of Georgia. He recently retired an Associate Director for the Human Resources Office at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia. Gilbert has been married to his best friend, Annie, for almost 40 years. Together they have raised two beautiful daughters, Holley and Logan.
