Ok so, let’s start off with a scenario.
You are in an English class with your best friends. You just finished an assignment that was an essay the week before and your teacher tells you that they graded them. You and your best friend check your grades. You received an 85 and your friend received an 95. You know you worked just as hard as your best friend did, and you still got a lower grade. Of course that starts rolling around the thoughts in your head; that you can never be as smart as your best friend and they’ve always been better than you at most things.
Do you let these thoughts take over you, or do you let them pass?
You should never live your life comparing yourselves to other people, in any situation. If anything comparing yourself is demoralizing. You should not live your life thinking that you will never amount to anything, because that is not true. You are your own person, you deal with different problems, you learn differently and you’ll never be the same as the person sitting next to you. We are all different in our own ways and we each express that differently.
We all need to learn to appreciate what we have in life. Appreciate our successes, another thing that has many different meanings for people. Looking up to someone else’s goals may tear you down, because maybe it’s just not what makes you happy and it’s not what you would want for yourself.
If you are looking for someone to compare yourself to, compare yourself to the old you. The you that you would not want to be at the moment. Think of all the improvements you’ve made and how far you’ve come. We strive to be the best version of ourselves, and seeing this change can show us that we are getting where we want to be, or that maybe we still need a little change.
When looking for inspiration don’t turn to comparison (unless it’s to yourself). Finding inspiration without comparison may be difficult, but can be done. Look up to those who you admire and if it gets to a point where you want to compare yourself, look at it in a positive way, not so much putting yourself down. Look for some quotes that keep you motivated.
Comparison can also lead to assumption, which is definitely not everyone’s cup of tea. Saying that someone’s life is better than yours or someone else saying that your life is better than yours, does not benefit either person. You will get the wrong idea of the person. You may not know the person really well, and only know them by what is on the outside, and not on the inside. They might not be living the life you think, they could be thinking the same thing about your life and you think that your life is difficult. We create these images of what we think is perfect for other people and strive for what people want us to be, or what we think we should be.
Even if it is someone that you know, it could cause damage to the relationship you have with them. It could lead to trust issues, arguments and this image of that person created in your head of what you think this person is like.
Taking a step back, and realizing what is best for yourself can do wonders. It can boost your self confidence, knowing your different passions, and appreciating that you are different from everyone else. Do what you want to do and what is best for you. Besides taking account into what people care about you think is best for you, you should always do you think will benefit you.
From personal experience, I’ve tried not to let myself be compared to others. I know my friends are capable of things that I might not be able to do, and I think that it’s cool that they can do those things. They can do their thing and I’m gonna do my thing and we keep going on, but I won’t be putting myself down. I’m gonna push myself to be a better version of myself, not a better version of someone else.
