“One chip and a chair” is a saying gamblers use which means that, no matter how bad things may be going for you, as long as you have one chip and a chair at the table you have a chance to come back and win it all.
Recently the UVA baseball team won the national championship after a season in which they almost didn’t win enough games to get into their own conference tournament. They became only the second ACC team to win the NCAA baseball championship since 1955.
Despite their struggles during the regular season, they continually reached down deep and found the strength to win when they needed it. The rallying cry they adopted for this amazing season was, you guessed it: “One chip and a chair.” It empowered them to believe that as long as they were still playing they would find a way to win and play on.
I love a story like this one because even though to some it may be “just a game,” the story mirrors life with its wins and heartbreaking losses, long odds with little hope and finding a way to grind on and fight another day.
In this country we glorify winning so much that we often overlook the reality and importance of the struggle. Very few championship seasons play out like that of the 1972 Miami Dolphins, still the only football team in NFL history to complete a perfect season. Victories, by their very nature, don’t come easy.
I’m convinced that too many of us quit too early when all appears lost. Its at these times when we need to embrace the challenge and keep believing that as long as we still have a seat at the table and a solitary chip in our hand, we’ve got a chance to win.