The problem with people is that they consider a victory a condition for improvement. Defeat is, not victory. Even in actual, high competitive ranked environments. The gameplay loop is where all the choices are made, the good, average and bad ones, that lead to the end result. This is what matters.

Second, there is competitive in that you're competing against random people, and competitive in that you're competing vs people of your actual level or higher. That's just two completely different worlds.