Mind Games

In fifth and sixth grade, my class had to memorize the poem “Life’s Battles.” It didn’t mean much to me then, but over the years, I still remember it.

            If you think you’re beaten, you are

            If you think you dare not, you don’t

            If you like to win, but think you can’t

            It’s almost certain you won’t

This poem speaks towards a struggle that I, and many others in this world, tend to face. The first part of this poem deals with the fear of failure. This fear is something that literally stops people in their tracks. Time and again, we get lost in our own heads. We let ourselves talk us out of doing things or even trying. And when we do try, we’ve already convinced ourselves that we are no good and that we cannot succeed. When we get to that point, we’ve lost.

            If you think you’ll lose, you’re lost

            For out in the world you’ll find

            Success depends on a fellow’s will

            It’s all in a state of mind.

Life is a mind game. Those who want something and put the effort in to get it, find success. When we allow ourselves to say, “there’s no way I could do that” or “I’m not good enough,” in that moment, that instant, we have already failed. This mindset is an epidemic that has spread throughout the world.

            If you think you’re outclassed, you are

            You have to think high to rise

            You have to think well of yourself

            Or you’ll never win first prize

Thinking that everyone else is better than us and that they will be better than us, keeps us down. If we keep looking up and thinking that we will never get there, makes it so. But if we look up and believe that we are good enough to get where we want to go, there is nothing that can stop us.

            Life’s battles don’t always go

            To the stronger or faster man

            But sooner or later, the one who wins

            Is the one who thinks he can

Natural strength and speed may have an effect on some outcomes or help make it easier to achieve your goals, but it doesn’t replace the effort put in to building your strength or increasing your speed in order to win that race. “Thinking you can” is the foundation upon which success is built. If you think you can and you act on that belief, you will find success.

The author splits his poem into smaller parts. The first half of the poem speaks to those who struggle and have a general lack of confidence and a fear of failure. It then talks about our mindset. Are we going to let our fear hold us back? Are we going to allow our own minds to prevent us from succeeding? If we have been doing that, all we need to do is change that mindset. Once we have changed it, we will be able to find success.

The third stanza of the poem deals with comparing ourselves with others. The term “outclassed” introduces the feeling of comparing oneself with others. This is something we do all the time. Humans love comparing. The problem is that our society likes to shut down people’s dreams by saying that they aren’t as good as someone else and that they should make more realistic goals in life.

This third stanza speaks to that problem. When we compare ourselves to other’s whose lives are more exciting or who have wealthier families, we put a cap on our own potential. If we can get past the comparison and thinking everyone is better than us, we will lose the negative picture about ourselves that we like to carry around and hold up for comparison. We keep holding up our awkward middle school photos and comparing them to people who have already scrapped those photos and moved on. They have been able to succeed because they see themselves as someone with the potential to succeed, if they will only try.

The last stanza in “Life’s Battles” carries the message of the entire poem: Yes, there are those who are better at sports than you; yes, there are those who can run a mile faster than you; there are even those who are famous and living your dream – now. But if you believe in yourself, if you let go of your fear of failure, if you believe that you can do anything, and you are willing to put in the time and effort to get there, then you will get there. Then maybe, just maybe, they will look up to you and be inspired to go a little further, run a little faster, and try a little harder.

I have found that there are some slight variations to this poem. Having searched for it online, I found that it was originally called “Thinking” and written by Walter D. Wintle (https://allpoetry.com/poem/8624439-Thinking-by-Walter-D-Wintle).