Iowa Is Not Good Enough But Still One Of The Most Competitive States In America

"If you aren't first you're last."  Great words from a great movie.  But according to Ricky Bobby, Iowa is last.  Cause while Iowa is competitive and wants to win, we just don't compare with some other states in the country.

Meanwhile, our neighboring states are either laid back or are only competitive when it comes to money and (like Ricky Bobby) driving.

See if your feelings match up with those below or if you need to move up north.

What Are Americans Competitive About?

America loves to win.  No country likes to win more.  But, specifically, what are Americans competitive at?

65% want to win at driving.  (Again, Ricky Bobby agrees)

35% want to win at "recreation" which includes any type of game.

27% are most competitive in the workplace.  There is no "I" in team...but there is a "me".

The Money-Loving Folks In Illinois

While Illinois is only ranked 10th in competitiveness in the country, there are a few things the state wants to win.

Illinois is ranked as the 2nd most competitive state when it comes to driving.  This is clearly a Chicago state of mind.

61% of Americans confess to speeding up just to prevent another car from merging in front of them.  In Illinois...that's probably more like 99%.

Where are people in Illinois driving to?  They'd like to tell you it's the bank.  Illinois is the number 1 state in America that is most competitive with finances.

What Are Iowans Competitive About?

Iowa loves its football but they also love to win at work.  While from a competitive standpoint, Iowa only ranks at number 10 for finances, we are number 2 in the country when it comes to being competitive at the workplace.

So while we might not be after it for the money, Iowa wants to show they can work better, stronger, and faster than their coworkers.

With this and other categories the final Iowa "competitive score" ends up at 69.72 out of 100.  That is good for 4th place just ahead of Nebraska.  Which is great, but is also like last place.  We can do better.

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Connecticut is 3rd, Virginia is 2nd and New Jersey is 1st on the overall rankings.

Oh, and the least competitive states...don't travel too far north.  Minnesota is the 3rd LEAST competitive state in America.  Bringing the entire Midwest down.  Sad.

You can check out the full survey and results at solitairebliss.com.