Don’t compare yourself to others. I know, it’s hard. We live in a comparison culture. Better or worse, fast or slow, skinny or fat, pretty or ugly, in or out.
“Comparison is the thief of joy.” – Theodore Roosevelt
The problem with comparing is it leads us down a road of unachievable happiness.
No matter how hard I work, my life will never measure up to yours. It’s literally impossible. Sure, maybe I can earn as much or lose as much weight or my kid can get the same grades but it will never match up.
What’s the point anyway to compare yourself to others? To fit in? To feel good enough?
Let me share the truth of my own life.
I typically struggle to accept my own body. I am embarrassed about my fair share of physical attributes.
I constantly feel like I have things to accomplish in my career. Goals that crop up before I’ve even achieved the last ones.
I get super frustrated with my kid when she misbehaves in public, lose my temper when she talks back or doesn’t follow directions.
When I stand in front of my closet, it truly feels like I have nothing to wear.
My husband doesn’t believe in God while I hold deep spiritual beliefs. He also didn’t go to college and doesn’t particularly enjoy discussing current events.
Where it comes to the intellectual and spiritual, we just don’t have the same interests.
The home I live in is small by modern standards.
And, we don’t own a boat, we borrow the boat we use.
And, despite all of that, my life is perfect.
These things are only a problem if I choose to see them as problems.
The problem is, we tend to compare our inside thoughts and feelings to what we see on the outside of other peoples lives.
It’s a bs comparison. We can’t know what we can’t see.
And typically, we don’t show the world our dark twisty places.
To be truly happy in life, we have to focus on what matters.
Relationships, connection, personal growth, learning and helping others.
All the other crap is just extra.
And, I’m not making this up. It’s pretty widely accepted science. While our genetics dictates a significant portion of our happiness, there is a considerable portion we can effectively influence.
We need to measure on a different scale.
True satisfaction comes with learning how to appreciate exactly what I have exactly where I am.
That doesn’t mean I have to like everything about my current circumstances. I don’t have to settle for never going further or doing more.
Don’t Compare Yourself to Others: The key is to find the gratitude and appreciation for the process or journey of life.
The moments, the experiences, and the people.
This is the stuff memories are made of. The stuff that creates lasting fulfillment.
