10 things Mario Kart taught me about life...

I'm not sure if this will find it's way into discussions in your boardroom at work, living room with your kids, or bedroom as you lie awake at night trying to figure out how to be a more effective leader as a parent...but it's hitting all three marks for me today. 

Here are the 10 things I learned playing MarioKart last night with my kids and their friend.

1. Let last place teach you where you need to be. No one wants to be there. When we are there, we complain. But there is an advantage to being able to see everything in front of you so that you know what you have to overcome. Life will chuck some last place starts at you from time to time. You don't have to stay there. Soak up the learning and use it as fuel that will let you experience winning.
2. When you are in first place, don't look behind you. Staring at everyone else's screens is the fastest way to implode. Keep your eyes on where you are going. Drive the best race you can, and don't worry about what you can't control. 
3. You can't control someone else sabotaging you. Speaking of what you can't control...If someone inks you, red shells you, or shrinks you...there isn't much you can do about it. Ride it out. Complaining about what you can't control starts to creep its way into distracting you from what you can. Life has enough distractions of its own. Don't create more for yourself becoming obsessed with what you can't see coming. Keep your eyes on the prize.
4. Going faster can get you further behind. I love the rewards that let you boost your speed. And then I hate them. And then I love them again. But knowing when to use them is the difference between getting ahead and ending up completely off track. Boost wisely, or end up off track quickly. Don't get me wrong...not all short cuts are bad. Be smart about it. Like this...
5. Better vision leads to smarter routes. The wide road everyone starts on isn't the narrow road that will help you win. There are going to be times when you can take a road some won't see, that will propel you to places most can't get to. There will also be times your peripheral vision will help you avoid unwanted collisions. See the whole race ahead of you, not just the two feet of pavement in front of you.
6. Taking the same road as everyone else is settling. There is safety in numbers. You can get to feeling real comfortable, real quick. Come on man, being in 7th place out of 12 is still pretty good, right? You can see the competition all around you, so you must be in the thick of the race, right? Listen...here's the thing...Comfortable racing doesn't let you lead the way, it just puts you in the poster. You want to win, right? See #5.
7. Choose the race you were meant to run. If you've played MarioKart you know exactly what I am talking about. Intense negotiating takes place as racers vie for which race to run. Everyone has "that course" they know they own. And life follows suit. You have to share when you play games. Life isn't a game. You get to pick your race. So run one you know fits you. Stop complaining you can't win a race you aren't any good at. Crush the one you are called to win. And don't gloat when you do...
8. Win with class, lose with congrats. Winning the race is fun. It's even better when those you passed to get there feel good about you being there. Do it the right way. And when you lose, be the first to offer the congrats, hand shake and head nod for a job well done. Life is full of first, middle of the pack, and last place moments. Act like you've been there when you win, and learn from your experience if you don't. You'll need it. It'll be the fuel that puts you on the podium someday, too. Be the one others are happy for when it happens. This will help...
9. Position your teammates ahead of yourself. If you are running a race with teammates, stop being so obsessed with an individual win. Find ways to keep the people on your team with you. You'll either all go down (find a new race if that's the case. See #7), or you'll stand on the podium together. Don't be the person whose strategy is to blow everything up in its path to finish first, and hope that your teammates find their own way. And at the end of it all, remember this...
10. Winning was never about the podium moment. Getting to the end with the most medals was never the point. It's what you learned along the way, who you did it with, and how you can help others win, too. Don't get me wrong...Compete your face off. Have fun doing it. Celebrate the wins. BUT...Pour into others along the way. Don't be the person who pouts when it doesn't go your way. Life is too short to let racing to somewhere mean you need to race over someone to get there. Get there because you earned it. Get there because you led the way, the right way. That's a race worth running, and one you and everyone around you will be happy to see you winning.