Competitive drive is an innate part of human nature and can be used to strengthen team cohesiveness. Team members can satisfy their competitive spirit by striving collectively to better previous team accomplishments. And like a dash of pepper on your favorite dish, a touch of fun-natured competition can spice up team life. Data should be used as a learning tool and the terminology should be descriptive rather than judgmental. As with all areas of coaching, asking is better than telling.
People often exclude most of the world from their lives.
This becomes evident to me when I see individuals struggle mightily against supposed friends, spouses, managers and co-workers. Such people have defined their life game as winning or losing against this one antagonist. And that is very freeing. The larger the game I define, the more opportunities there are for me, and, the more potential teammates show up to help me. And the same goes for you.