Why Academia Feels So Competitive (And How to Escape It)

Why does academia feel so competitive?I think we first have to define what competition is.I see it as a race toward a limited amount of resources. A lot of people, from all over the world, vying for a limited number of spots. That is one of the modern marvels of a successful world. But we are still in a tremendous amount of transition.There is a belief that the pursuit of knowledge translates into a better position, that more education leads to better outcomes. In the macro, that is absolutely true. In the micro, when you actually talk to people, it is emotionally draining. It feels like there are never enough opportunities.On the demand side, decisions are made about how much to allocate to discovery. People focus on today. Tomorrow is ambiguous. We do not know what we will discover. So we tend to maximize the short run and underinvest in the long run. That creates chronic shortages. All the time.So yes, it is going to feel competitive. It is going to feel like you are always behind.But a lot of this is perception.If you lock your vision on one little tiny thing and believe it is the only opportunity that exists, it will be very hard to thrive. But if you stop caring about that one narrow race, there is no bargaining power over you.You take a step back. You accept the world as it is. You stop focusing on the lack of things and start focusing on the abundance we actually have.You realize your life is too valuable to chase one little domain simply because that is how people have viewed the world in the past.You change it by deciding you are going to change it.The world is competitive. That part is true.But you also make the world that you live in.And you are an extremely valuable, wonderful person who is simply being underutilized right now.