William Fitzpatrick - violin expert

Violin Basics: So do you know the difference between winning and excellence?

There is an essential difference between the two concepts.

In this new video of his Violin Basics series, Prof. Fitzpatrick explains the difference between "winning" and "excellence."

Released on April 24, 2024

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DISCLAIMER: The views and the opinions expressed in this video are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Virtual Sheet Music and its employees.

Video Transcription

So, just what do you think it means to win? For example, winning a competition is a great goal, right? Or, like a very famous football coach once said, winning isn't everything, it's the only thing. It's alright then. But, if you do win, would you consider that to be the same thing as being excellent? I mean, if being excellent is about achieving rather than obsessing on the outcome, does winning then mean that you have achieved excellence? So, what do you think? Well, here are a couple of questions that might shed some light on the subject.

At this moment, do you equate success with just winning or do you see success as doing the best you can? Are you focused on refining your skills to become better or are you just doing it to win? What if you beat someone in a competition but found out later that they were sick and didn't perform at their best? Would winning still bring you the same sense of accomplishment? What if you achieved your best performance in a competition but didn't win? Would you still consider it a success or would you only consider it successful if you won? Suppose you won a competition but later realized that you would compromise your values or integrity to do so. Would having won still have the same meaning to you? So, think back to a time when you faced a significant setback or failure in your pursuit of winning.

Did you grow more from that experience than from a time when you won? Well, after considering all these aspects, I have a last question for you.

How would you like to be remembered? Would you rather be remembered for the number of competitions you've won or for the perseverance you've shown on the path to excellence?
Automatic video-to-text transcription by DaDaScribe.com
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Comments, Questions, Requests:

Naomi on June 10, 2024 @1:43 am PST
I am a violinist, but also a marathon runner. I am far from ever breaking a record. Whenever I run my next run, I try to be better than the last time. When I play in front of people, I try to be better than last time. Not better than someone else. I am not a professional, but sometimes play with professionals. When I gave the best I could on that day, I need to learn to be confident with my performance.
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William - host, on June 10, 2024 @3:34 pm PST
I loved "Whenever I run my next run, I try to be better than the last time." I'm sure your confidence grows, getting better as you say, than the last time. Bravo!
Dr John AC Thanakumar on May 10, 2024 @5:16 am PST
Excellence is getting better everyday compared to yourself the previous day (or week). Each of us is at different stage of training. So an improvement compared to your own last practice (subjectively, objectively - teacher, audio video recording, etc) will lead one to excellence. And immense satisfaction.
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William - host, on May 10, 2024 @3:35 pm PST
Could not agree more! Thanks for the response!
George Mahida * VSM MEMBER * on April 24, 2024 @3:07 pm PST
Dr Fitzpatrick thanks for insightful questions. I would like to be remembered for persevering on the path of excellence.
reply
William - host, on April 25, 2024 @2:53 am PST
I would as well!!! Merci!
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