What we can all learn from American Ninja Warrior — and even the Olympics

If you aren’t familiar with American Ninja Warrior, it is not a person dressed in black, silent as a snail but faster than a hummingbird.

It is a TV show, and it is good.

Now if you are a regular reader, you know that when I say “good” I don’t mean that in the “good – better – best” kind of way. I mean it in the sense of being morally uplifting. It is good rather than evil. ANW, as it is sometimes called, makes life better. Allow me to explain.

Now in its 16th season, American Ninja Warrior is a “reality sports entertainment show.” We all know that reality, when it comes to TV, is in the eye of the beholder. But this show seems pretty real. People fail, people succeed, and people really want to be on this show.

To make that happen they have to be at least 15 years old, they have to answer 20 questions, and they have to submit a video. In the video they show their ability to compete, and they tell their story. Personal stories, it turns out, are as important as the athletic side.

Ability to compete? At what? Well, it would help if you were a world class gymnast, male or female. In fact several former gymnasts have done well on the show.

Here is what they do: they “run a course” of obstacles, most of which require a great deal of upper-body strength. Hand/grip strength is critical, balance is always tested, and endurance is a major asset.

Jump! Grab! Swing! Run…

Sometimes a contestant runs the course against the obstacles and a clock, and sometimes against other Ninja Warriors. Obstacles can be fairly straightforward, or they can require the contestant to grab a handle here, spin, and grab another handle there.

It is great fun to watch these athletes — and they absolutely are athletes — race the clock and overcome the obstacles. To watch a 1 minute clip from last season, click here. But please come back.

If you have watched the show, or if you just watched that 1 minute clip, you will know there are spectators watching the contestants race. Usually they are family members, or sometimes just good friends. A lot of cheering happens during one of those runs, because everyone wants everyone to win.

I know, that doesn’t sound much like reality. But on this show, I believe it.

Now that the show is a ratings success and widely known, tens of thousands of people apply to compete. The very first season 1,000 people applied, and five seasons ago that number was up to 77,000. Like all reality shows, the selection process considers likeability as well as ability, and personal story as much as personal strength.

Take a pause with me here and think about that last sentence. Get it firmly in your mind: likeability as well as ability, personal story as much as personal strength.

We love to be entertained, but just watching people with incredible athletic ability is only briefly entertaining. If we can relate to them, however, if we can empathize with them and cheer for them, our entertainment in enhanced.

Unfortunately, many people today view the political scene in much the same way. If one candidate is more likeable, they will gain votes. Ability in that case is only considered as a way to justify the emotional choice already made.

Cheering for your favorite

The Ninja Warrior shows we watch have all been long since recorded, and the results are in — we just don’t know them until the shows air.

Politics is happening more in real time, but the producers of conventions still want you to be entertained. They want you to “connect” in some way to the candidates. Likeability and personal story are on display. Ability and personal strength — or lack thereof — may only show up after the votes are in.

I have some favorites on American Ninja Warrior, but my life will not be affected by the final result. That is not true in an election — my life is very much affected by the outcome of a presidential election. So is yours.

It would seem wise, therefore, to focus more on ability than likeability, and more on personal strength than personal story.

Competition with cooperation

One of the very best things about ANW is this: the competitors all really want to win, and they all really cheer for their competitors.

There are a couple of reasons why I think that is the case.

First, they all know just how hard it is to get on the show in the first place. It takes a tremendous amount of work to be able to do what they do. Plus there is that whole selection process.

Second, there is no appearance money, and in fact there is no prize money at all except for first place. Contestants and their families pay their own way to the competitions.

But reason 1 is the most important, and it is what ANW has in common with the Olympics. The athletes there (of course there are exceptions) all know that all the other athletes are elite, that they have worked and sacrificed for a chance to compete. They are all Olympians, and at the recent closing ceremony athletes from around the world mingled together with each other.

How does that happen? It happens because of another “c” word: Community. It is that feeling of fellowship that comes from recognizing the things you have in common above the differences.

But today I see people focusing on the differences and ignoring the commonalities. You cannot construct a lasting community, let alone a healthy community, by basing it on differences. People have tried it over and over for generations, and it always fails.

So let’s learn from ANW and be part of a healthy community that celebrates our commonalities. Let’s compete with cooperation because we are in community.

Within community (Americans, for instance) we can compete with cooperation because we want America to be better. Differences should be discussed, not dismissed. That is cooperation.

If American Ninja Warriors can do it, so can we all.

Do good. It’s in you!