Losing in politics is like losing in sport. It is direct, undiluted, painful feedback. Like getting a smack in the mouth. But there are a few ways you can deal with it.
The first choice is giving up. This isn’t always cowardice or defeatism. Maybe you just never wanted it enough. Or maybe, after going through the process in option 3, it just makes sense.
The second is blaming the other side. They cheated. The rules were unfair. Or the ref was biased. Or the media or the local paper were against you. Or the leadership was unpopular. In other words, you could just blame anybody else or anything else – anything or anybody that was not you.
Or you can take option 3. As John Reid would say, “take it on the chin”. And then take a good long unspun look in the mirror. It is no fun. But it is useful. So what do you see?
In sport you might be physically limited – too slow, too big, too small – and you are already at your limits. But sportspeople push themselves until they body kicks back – until they throw up. Competitive sportspeople are different from normal people – they always believe they can do more, go faster, jump higher. And when they lose, they take it on the chin – they start again, try different methods, new kit, watch endless footage of their losses and their victories – and of those who beat them – to learn and do better.
Very few normal people are ever at their limits. We can always do more and be better.
In politics, you may be fighting for a lost cause that has no chance of winning – although tell that to Caroline Lucas MP for Brighton Pavilion since 2010 and the Greens who won 963 votes there in 1992, while the Conservatives sailed home with 20 630 votes. They kept at it. Even if your cause has no hope – if you really believe in it – using your voice and fighting to be heard is as noble as politics can be.
Or maybe you simply lost because of you. The guilty one looks at you every day from the bathroom mirror. Your message was out of date or just wrong. Or you failed to communicate it to enough people – in the way they like? Perhaps your credibility is shot – why is that? Did you cherish and nurture your messengers? Did you take the media for granted? Did you raise enough money at the right times and did you spend it well? Did you work hard enough at the things that matter – and were you seen to do so?
“I have high expectations, but then why settle for anything less? Only a man who knows what it is like to be defeated can reach down to the bottom of his soul and come up with extra ounce of power it takes to win when the match is even.” Muhammad Ali
I like working with people who know what it feels like to lose, who have been punched in the face. They want to win more. They hate losing. They fight to the last day. I salute all my colleagues on the NO2AV campaign. Many of us know exactly how bad it feels to lose – I certainly do. Maybe that helped us win.
Losing can be character building and educational. It can help you to win. It depends how you handle it.
