Why I hate programming competitions by Mike Vanier

Most aspects of Deming’s thinking seemed natural to me from the start. Some ideas have taken longer (it took me awhile to be won over to the harm caused by performance appraisals, for example). Competition is another area that I still struggle with. I have been moved greatly by my experience and the thoughts of people like Alfie Kohn (No Contest: The Case Against Competition). But I still hold more promise for some aspects of competition and I hold less concern than some about other aspects of competition. Still I agree that there is a good deal to learn about the dangers of competition which often creates havoc within a system.

Given my history such articles are good reinforcement to keep me from falling back into old ways of thinking. the articles provides a great summary:

That paragraph is the key to me. To me if that is remembered I am not sure that enjoying a programing competition (if it is something you would enjoy) is a problem. But the game (competition) should not be seen as anything close to an accurate model for how work should be done.