To vie with each other in an eagerness to be first, fearing to fall behind; to scramble for priority.
Era:
Ancient
Frequency:
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Story:
During the Spring and Autumn period, Zhao Xiangzi learned charioteering from Prince Qi. Not long after, he competed with Prince Qi. He swapped horses with Prince Qi three times, but each time he fell behind. Zhao Xiangzi blamed Prince Qi, saying, "You taught me how to drive, why didn't you teach me your true skills?"
Prince Qi replied, "I have taught you all the techniques of charioteering; it's just that you have a problem with your application. The most important thing in charioteering is to coordinate your horses and chariot well so that they can run fast and far."
"During the race, whenever you fell behind, you whipped your horses hard, desperately trying to overtake me; and once you were ahead, you constantly looked back at me, afraid I would catch up (争先恐后). In fact, in a race, sometimes being ahead and sometimes falling behind are both very natural. However, whether you were leading or lagging, your mind was always on me. How could you possibly coordinate your chariot and horses well then? This is why you fell behind."