If you’re into reality television at all, you’re probably well-versed in all things Survivor. After airing its first season back in 2000, Survivor is currently in the midst of its 30th season. You read that right.
30 seasons.
The success of the show is questioned by many, and, personally, I was a skeptic until last year. My best friend is a Survivor fanatic, and I don’t say that lightly.
I’m talking “tell-you-every-location-of-all-30-seasons-along-with-who-won-and-who-was-runner-up-off-the-top-of-his-head” fanatic. In fact, I told him I was writing this blog post and you would think I had signed up for some “Survivor Facts” texting service with how many messages I’ve received from him about Survivor (fun fact: Survivor has apparently won 6 Emmys).
It’s insane how much he knows about Survivor, and at times, it was almost annoying to have to listen to it.
Until I finally started watching it.
If you’re unfamiliar with it, the low-down on the show is strangers from all over the U.S. are put on an island somewhere for 39 days. They’re divided into “tribes” which eventually merge together to form one tribe. They hold tribal council meetings where one person is voted off every week. They fight for immunity & rewards through insane challenges that test their physical, emotional, and mental toughness. Last night, for the first time ever, I found myself audibly cheering when one of my favorites won immunity and got to stay another week.
Since the entire premise of the show is to be the last one standing in order to win 1 million dollars, you can imagine there is quite a bit of drama between these strangers from different walks of life. There are moral and ethical questions constantly floating about as alliances are formed and dissolved. Thankfully, though, there are redeeming moral qualities with every season of Survivor that can be attributed as life lessons, some of which I’m very thankful for.
Failure is inevitable, but dignity is optional.
One of the most humbling things about Survivor is being blindsided (aka being voted-off without even thinking it could happen). In most situations, the contestant gets up, has their torch extinguished, and they peacefully leave the tribal council without another word. Sometimes they’ll show a clip of the contestant right after being voted off and they are less than enthused about being removed. Sometimes the contestant is laughing because they appreciate the game in its entirety and recognize a good move when they see one. Personally, I would kick something over, flip a table, and wreck their camp before I left. This is probably why I’ve never been asked to be a contestant, too.
In life, we’ll always be faced with failure. It’s not a matter of if, but when. How we respond to our failures is up to us. Do you react with humility and grace, or do you lose your cool? Choose not to be the bitter person. Take the chance to redefine yourself and keep your head held high.
Success is subjective.
Just like Survivor, people in life have different perspectives on success. What I consider success probably isn’t what everyone else thinks it is. The question is this: What are you trying to achieve and why? In Survivor, it’s obviously to win one million dollars, but in our real lives, the goals we set for ourselves are more important than the goals everyone else expects from us. You have to define success for yourself.
Haters gonna hate (hate hate hate hate).
I’ve often found that my favorite contestants on Survivor are not fan-favorites. I have to stay off certain hashtags on Twitter because people bash my favorites, and, let’s be real, no one likes to read negative things about the people they like. The same rings true in the real world. No matter how successful you are or how happy you are with your current happenings, there will always be someone yelling from the sidelines trying to bring you down. My advice is the same as good ol’ T-Swift’s. Shake it off.
