Tennis ladders and competition

I am playing on tennis ladder at the local city park here in Raleigh. It’s my first time playing on a ladder, though I have played tennis on and off for most of my life.

I was playing against a guy last night ( who beat me ) and we got to talking about how the ladder worked. I had never really read the formulas because I assumed I would be at or near the top, and had noticed he had moved up very quickly. I was curious how he had moved up so fast.

It turns out that the way ladders work is if you are on a lower rung, you can challenge someone higher than you. If you win, you get a certain number of points for winning, plus points for the number of games won, AND you get a multiplier for beating someone above you. So, you are rewarded more for challenging those above you if you can pull off the win, rather than just playing people below you.

The other side that is interesting is that if you are at the top, no lead is really safe. You have to keep playing and winning to stay at or near the top. Otherwise, you will get passed by those behind you. No points for sitting idle and protecting your lead.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized it was an interesting way to think about business and competition. If you are behind, its worth taking a shot at the guys ahead of you and trying to overtake them. The rewards are greater, and you can move up quicker. Conversely, if you are at or near the top, you can’t afford to rest on battles previously won. You have to keep winning, keep innovating, and keep being willing to take on anyone that challenges you.

Might not be novel, but it was to me.

I also challenged the #1 seed this morning.