--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is healthy to have competition and…" description: "\"It is healthy to have competition and intense competition, and then, when you walk away from it, you are still teammates, and you play the same positio..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85a/alex-smith-5123_competition_it-is-healthy-to-have-competition-and-in_2900618.png" --- # It is healthy to have competition and intense competition… ![“It is healthy to have competition and intense competition, and then, when you walk away from it, you are still teammates, and you play the same position and that we can still put the team first.” quote by Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85a/alex-smith-5123_competition_it-is-healthy-to-have-competition-and-in_2900618.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85a/alex-smith-5123_competition_it-is-healthy-to-have-competition-and-in_2900618.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85a/alex-smith-5123_competition_it-is-healthy-to-have-competition-and-in_2900618.png) > “It is healthy to have competition and intense competition, and then, when you walk away from it, you are still teammates, and you play the same position and that we can still put the team first.” [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Healthy competition builds skill, but teamwork remains paramount after rivalry ends. **In simple terms:** Competing improves, yet teamwork stays essential. Key Takeaway Balance competition with collaboration. Themes teamwork competition leadership Mood motivated thoughtful Type motivational strategic When to use this quote - team projects - corporate environments - sports training Key Concepts sports dynamics psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do you foster healthy competition? - When should you prioritize team over personal goals? A Different Perspective Excessive rivalry can damage relationships. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Competition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/competition/) [Football](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/football/) [Healthy competition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/healthy-competition/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Sports](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sports/) [Team](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/team/) [Team first](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/team-first/) ## Related quotes > [You play for your teammates; you play for each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/you-play-for-your-teammates-you-play-for-each-other/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [When I signed my first contract with Sao Paulo I still wasn't sure that I was going to have a successful career. Even after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cafu/when-i-signed-my-first-contract-with-sao-paulo-i-still-wasn-t-sure/) [Cafu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cafu/) > [Why is the competition always so intense to set new records for maximum stupidity?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashleigh-brilliant/why-is-the-competition-always-so-intense-to-set-new-records-for/) [Ashleigh Brilliant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashleigh-brilliant/) > [The kind of society which we still have is maybe, in some cases, getting worse. Competition is becoming a virtue. Intense competition drives people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/major-owens/the-kind-of-society-which-we-still-have-is-maybe-in-some-cases/) [Major Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/major-owens/) > [Also at the top of the list was my three day appearance on 'Press Your Luck'. In addition to the intense competition of each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-west/also-at-the-top-of-the-list-was-my-three-day-appearance-on-press-your/) [Randy West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-west/) > [In spite of really intense competition for the job, I'm still my own worst enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-holt/in-spite-of-really-intense-competition-for-the-job-i-m-still-my-own/) [Tom Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-holt/) > [The bottom line, in the professional level, no matter where you go, there's going to be competition. That's what it is. At the end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-tolzien/the-bottom-line-in-the-professional-level-no-matter-where-you-go/) [Scott Tolzien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-tolzien/) > [I am no stranger to healthy competition-wor king hard and playing hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/i-am-no-stranger-to-healthy-competition-wor-king-hard-and-playing-hard/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [We are maintaining a 25-member squad for Rio Games so that has kept a healthy competition within the team. If there are any injuries,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-r-sreejesh/we-are-maintaining-a-25-member-squad-for-rio-games-so-that-has-kept-a/) [P. R. Sreejesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-r-sreejesh/) > [There is a healthy competition as there would be in any business. But we do not spend our days thinking about what Marvel is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-nelson/there-is-a-healthy-competition-as-there-would-be-in-any-business-but/) [Diane Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-nelson/) > [The most important measure of how good a game I played was how much better I’d made my teammates play.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-russell/the-most-important-measure-of-how-good-a-game-i-played-was-how-much/) [Bill Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-russell/) > [The best player's responsibility is to unite and inspire your teammates to play up to their full maximum ability, and that never occurs if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-van-gundy/the-best-player-s-responsibility-is-to-unite-and-inspire-your/) [Jeff Van Gundy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-van-gundy/) > [I don't play for myself. I play for my teammates and play for the people that helped me get to where I am. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-foles/i-don-t-play-for-myself-i-play-for-my-teammates-and-play-for-the/) [Nick Foles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-foles/) > [When I was a player, I didn't expect my teammates to play the way I did. I did expect them to work hard every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-bird/when-i-was-a-player-i-didn-t-expect-my-teammates-to-play-the-way-i/) [Larry Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-bird/) > [That's the key - there is no secret. Just trust your teammates and play together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-calderon/that-s-the-key-there-is-no-secret-just-trust-your-teammates-and-play/) [Jose Calderon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-calderon/) ## More by Alex Smith > [Once you pull the trigger, you've got to throw balls aggressively and with conviction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/once-you-pull-the-trigger-you-ve-got-to-throw-balls-aggressively-and/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [I know guys respect work ethic, and they respect the guys that are invested and committed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/i-know-guys-respect-work-ethic-and-they-respect-the-guys-that-are/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [At the combine and at my workouts, I tried to be the perfect player. I tried to promote my strengths and conceal my weaknesses,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/at-the-combine-and-at-my-workouts-i-tried-to-be-the-perfect-player-i/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [Game day can be emotional, and there are a lot of ups and downs throughout a game, but as a quarterback, you have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/game-day-can-be-emotional-and-there-are-a-lot-of-ups-and-downs/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [When I watch good friends play, it's almost worse when you're watching, because you have zero impact: you have zero hand in what's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/when-i-watch-good-friends-play-it-s-almost-worse-when-you-re-watching/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [If you don't go out there and play winning football, they're going to try and find somebody who can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/if-you-don-t-go-out-there-and-play-winning-football-they-re-going-to/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [Quarterback play starts with your eyes and feet. Those have to be in the right place and have to be on time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/quarterback-play-starts-with-your-eyes-and-feet-those-have-to-be-in/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [I don't feel like I have to prove myself to anybody any longer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/i-don-t-feel-like-i-have-to-prove-myself-to-anybody-any-longer/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [I think the quarterback position, moreso than in all of sports, no other position compares - you rely on so many people to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/i-think-the-quarterback-position-moreso-than-in-all-of-sports-no/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [I've been to so many deals with so many of my peers. I hate to say it, but you go, and it's some tournament…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/i-ve-been-to-so-many-deals-with-so-many-of-my-peers-i-hate-to-say-it/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [In this league, you can't take your foot off the gas pedal. You think you have something won, but teams are too good, too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/in-this-league-you-can-t-take-your-foot-off-the-gas-pedal-you-think/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [In the pocket, you do have some protections, but you get out of the pocket, and defenders' eyes get big. Sometimes you learn that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/in-the-pocket-you-do-have-some-protections-but-you-get-out-of-the/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [I fast all the time - daily. It's such a counterintuitive thing because, my whole life, I've been training to get bigger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/i-fast-all-the-time-daily-it-s-such-a-counterintuitive-thing-because/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [There are a lot of peripheral things that you have to deal with in this league, and I dealt with a lot of them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/there-are-a-lot-of-peripheral-things-that-you-have-to-deal-with-in/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [It's fun to come in when it's first down. It's not fun to come back in when it's third-and-long.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/it-s-fun-to-come-in-when-it-s-first-down-it-s-not-fun-to-come-back-in/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) [Explore all 103 Alex Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) ## More Competition quotes > [The Copa del Rey is a different competition. It is football in its purest form and is different from the continuity of the league.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-laudrup/the-copa-del-rey-is-a-different-competition-it-is-football-in-its/) [Michael Laudrup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-laudrup/) > [I can skate beautifully. While performing on ice I always try to please the audience and to win as well. Being artistic is very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evgeni-plushenko/i-can-skate-beautifully-while-performing-on-ice-i-always-try-to/) [Evgeni Plushenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evgeni-plushenko/) > [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [People think that the Club World Cup is an easy competition, but it's not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keylor-navas/people-think-that-the-club-world-cup-is-an-easy-competition-but-it-s/) [Keylor Navas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keylor-navas/) > [If you ask another competitor, they may tell you they felt very competitive towards me. But I can tell you that my biggest competition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/if-you-ask-another-competitor-they-may-tell-you-they-felt-very/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [“At times, competition can be a good thing. But a person's value isn't something that can be ranked, is it?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hotaru-odagiri/at-times-competition-can-be-a-good-thing-but-a-person-s-value-isn-t/) [Hotaru Odagiri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hotaru-odagiri/) > [Our competition has always been anything that is wasting your time when you're bored at work. In a broad sense. We want people to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-ohanian/our-competition-has-always-been-anything-that-is-wasting-your-time/) [Alexis Ohanian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-ohanian/) > [I've always considered making it legal for Americans to import their prescription drugs a free-trade issue. Imports create competition and keep domestic industry more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-grassley/i-ve-always-considered-making-it-legal-for-americans-to-import-their/) [Chuck Grassley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-grassley/) > [Honestly, we’ll compete with everybody. I love competition. As long as people invent their own stuff, I love competition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cook/honestly-we-ll-compete-with-everybody-i-love-competition-as-long-as/) [Tim Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cook/) > [The "health, education, and welfare" section of government is another boondoggle. First we manufacture indigent and superfluous people by legal monopolies in land, money…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurance-labadie/the-health-education-and-welfare-section-of-government-is-another/) [Laurance Labadie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurance-labadie/) > [I try to keep up with everything - all wrestling across the board. I want to know what the competition is doing, what the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-hardy/i-try-to-keep-up-with-everything-all-wrestling-across-the-board-i/) [Matt Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-hardy/) > [Sometimes in England, people look down at the Europa League, but being from the continent, I've always realised what an important competition it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mignolet/sometimes-in-england-people-look-down-at-the-europa-league-but-being/) [Simon Mignolet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mignolet/) > [“There is a scene in one of the Rocky movies where after the match Apollo Creed and Rocky are waiting for the scoring of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-a-passaro/there-is-a-scene-in-one-of-the-rocky-movies-where-after-the-match/) [John A. Passaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-a-passaro/) > [I've always written. When I was in school, the only teacher who ever liked me was my creative writing teacher. I used to enter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-townes-earle/i-ve-always-written-when-i-was-in-school-the-only-teacher-who-ever/) [Justin Townes Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-townes-earle/) > [Competition between men is a fuel that's useful to us. We have to be careful that it doesn't tell the same story over too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-irwin/competition-between-men-is-a-fuel-that-s-useful-to-us-we-have-to-be/) [Bill Irwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-irwin/) [Browse all 3,894 Competition quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/competition/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is healthy to have competition and intense competition, and then, when you walk away from it, you are still teammates, and you play the same position and that we can still put the team first.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alex Smith" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/it-is-healthy-to-have-competition-and-intense-competition-and-then/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Competition" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/it-is-healthy-to-have-competition-and-intense-competition-and-then/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85a/alex-smith-5123_competition_it-is-healthy-to-have-competition-and-in_2900618.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85a/alex-smith-5123_competition_it-is-healthy-to-have-competition-and-in_2900618.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85a/alex-smith-5123_competition_it-is-healthy-to-have-competition-and-in_2900618.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It is healthy to have competition and intense competition, and then, when you walk away from it, you are…” — Alex Smith", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Alex Smith", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It is healthy to have competition...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/it-is-healthy-to-have-competition-and-intense-competition-and-then/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/it-is-healthy-to-have-competition-and-intense-competition-and-then/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```