_Competition affecting Individuals._--The instinct of rivalry or competition, which makes a man strive to excel among his companions, is another of the leader's instruments. This is so powerful a motive that it has to be used with judgment. Once launched in a real contest most men are likely to sacrifice anything to win. I remember discovering one of my young soldiers cheating in calling the hits at the target he was marking. He was perfectly frank in admitting to me that he had called many hits improperly, and when I asked him why, he ingenuously replied, "I heard the captain say we must beat H troop, and I was trying to help." He was so honest that I had to admit that the fault was half mine, and did not punish him. As a general rule what we want from our men is a high average of performance which may be maintained without any impairment of their powers, so you must judge the case fairly before introducing the spirit of contest. You must not be using it eternally to keep the men on the jump, but only on occasions that are worth while. There are moderate things for which it may be used regularly to stimulate effort, as in making the best record for punctuality, etc. But you would not want a man to be driving himself constantly to capacity--and so you use judgment to guard against individual injury as well as to keep the spirit fresh for use on real occasions. _Team Competitions._--Competition between teams engaged in like undertakings will not only increase results, but its great advantage is that it brings the individuals of each team into close co-operation in order that their team may win, and thus gives them a better comprehension of the spirit of teamwork. As every leader is constantly trying to develop his teamwork, these rivalries are very common. But where your team competes with another _in the same organization_ it must play fair as a member of the larger team. The same rules of co-operation and loyalty apply to the conduct of your team here, as to the individual members of your own team at home. You may not do anything for your team here which injures the other team, or lowers it in the estimation of your men. Building up peacetime infantry spirit by slurs at the artillery, and artillery spirit at the expense of the infantry, was found to have been expensive business when war linked them together in the same team and each found himself dependent for success in battle on the co-operation of the other. "Sure he's good, but we can beat him," is the true mental attitude for contests within an organization.