WHY YOU SHOULD STOP COMPARING YOURSELF TO OTHERS
As said by a famous poet Robert Zend, “People have only one thing in common, we are all different.”
Everyone of us is different. We are built differently. Our lives, our stories, our destiny, our journey, our experiences, every single thing is different. We often catch ourselves looking at other people on social media, hearing about the ‘dream life’ our colleagues are living and comparing our lives with it. What we don’t realize is that we are comparing two lives which are entirely different.
Most of the time what you’re comparing to is not the complete picture. If you look closely no one is as happy as they show us. More often this comparison turns into a very toxic cycle and becomes a breeding ground for insecurity. We suffer from insecurity as a result of comparing our behind-the-scenes to someone else’s highlight reel.
Are you guilty of comparing yourself time and again ? Here are some reasons to encourage you to stop doing that.
- You are you, they are they.
The person you are comparing yourself to is different from you. You are comparing yourself to them right now, but, you don’t see the whole picture. You don’t know if they got a chance at a better education than you did, maybe they got better opportunities than you, just like there are so many things different about them. Do you compare an orange and an apple ? You don’t. You don’t because you know they are two different fruits. Similarly, you are different human beings.
2. You do not know the whole story
People always showcase the highlights and hide the negative parts of the story. You may see your colleague having the time of their life on their vacation but what you do not see is the bad parts of the trip or how they financially struggled to go on that trip. It is human nature to hide the negatives. When we start comparing we overestimate the happy parts and completely ignore the negative side. So the next time you find yourself comparing yourself to someone, keep in mind that you’re not comparing yourself to a realistic picture of yourself, but rather to conclusions you came to on your own.
3. Comparison does not benefit you
Dwelling upon the fact that your contemporaries are more successful, happy and content in life makes you waste your time. There is literally nothing else that comes out as a result of such comparisons. If you want to live a happy life you need to understand this.
If an activity does not benefit you, why would you want to do it ?
4. Comparison hinders your happiness
Surely you’ve heard how comparison takes happiness at some point. It is important to recognize that this is right. Comparing yourself to others only makes life more difficult and brings nothing but misery and disappointment. Instead of comparing yourself to others, use them as inspiration to progress in a specific area.
You won’t achieve anything if you waste your time worrying about other people’s achievements and comparing yourself to them. Use your energy to help you achieve your dreams and goals. Don’t waste your time worrying about others because the truth is that they don’t care about you at all.
5. There will always be someone better
This is the harsh reality. No matter where you reach in life, no matter what you have accomplished, there will be someone who will outrun you in the race. You cannot always be the winner. All you can do is give your best, work as hard as you can and what is bound to happen will happen.
While it is tempting to believe that others have an incredible life free of challenges, this is not the case. Every person on this planet faces problems and challenges at some point in their lives. This affects everybody. Some individuals are inherently better at concealing their shortcomings than others.
My parting advice to you will be compare yourself to only one person, which is you yourself. Your goal should be to be better than who you were. Overcome your struggles and fears. Start a habit of comparing yourself to your past version and see liberating this comparison feels !
