“Who Dares Wins”
By: Gus Bageanis
A few weeks ago, my wife and I went out to see “The Avengers” movie for our weekly date night. During the previews before the movie, there was an interview with KISS front man Gene Simmons (yes, I just said that). And, while I really wasn’t paying much attention, there was a segment of the interview that really grabbed my attention. It was when Gene quoted someone named David Sterling. For those that don’t know, Mr. Sterling founded the British Special Air Service (SAS) in 1941. Essentially, the SAS is a special forces arm of the British Military and their work is kept highly confidential.
Nonetheless, quite unexpectedly, I was instantly engaged with Gene Simmons as he began to talk about this quote from David Sterling. I mean, no offense to those that love “Rock and Roll All Night” or “Detroit Rock City”, but for me Mr. Simmons has not been a figure that typically stirred up thought provoking emotion in my heart and mind. But in an instant, this all changed.
The quote is short and sweet. Quite simple really. Ready for it? Here it goes… “Who Dares Wins”. That’s it! Nothing more!
“WHO DARES WINS.” – David Sterling
This motto has been adopted throughout the past eight decades, in some way shape or form, by at least twelve elite special forces units around the world. These warriors understand battle. They understand winning, losing and risk. And, in the end, they share this motto…” Who Dares Wins”.
It occurred to me as I sat there, this slogan is true in everyday life as well. Whether you are on a military battlefield, in the sports arena, or on the battlefield of life…the one who chooses to dare really does win. Another way I’ve heard it said is, “Fortune favors the bold”. This couldn’t be more true.
You see, we have one life. And during our lifetime we will dream dreams, we will be confronted with tough decisions, we will see opportunities come to us that we never expected, and so on. And it’s during these moments where we will have a decision to make. Will I be bold? Will I take a risk? Will I stick my neck out there? Will I choose to be daring?
To be clear, I am not advocating uncalculated, foolish risk taking just for the sake of risk taking. However, I think the point of the quote is that there are times in our lives when we need to be bold. There are situations that require risk taking. For the SAS, this boldness was required to defeat the Germans. For you and me, the daring or risk taking probably won’t have nearly the consequences that it did for these men during World War 2. But the underlying sentiment remains…who dares wins.
The big idea is this. If we play things too safe throughout our lives, we will never really know what we were capable of. If we don’t go after our dreams and take necessary, calculated risks here and there, inevitably we lose. In other words, we miss opportunities, possibilities and experiences that were achievable, both for our good and for the good of others.
Something important to keep in mind is that even if we take a risk and we fail…. we still win. You see, even when we fail, it’s in those moments that we learn and grow as human beings. So really, we win even when we fail! So why not stretch ourselves and push ourselves to take calculated, bold risks?
This motto holds true throughout our lives. In our families, in our communities, on our career paths, and beyond. Be bold. Take chances. Dare for more and go after your dreams. Because here is the big spoiler alert…you will win!!!
Gus Bageanis is one of the world leaders in Executive Recruiting for the Food & Beverage Industry. If you would like to discuss partnership or you would like to network, contact gbageanis@millerresource.com