How To Stop Comparing Yourself To Others

When was the last time you compared yourself to another person? If you can still vividly remember how you felt at that time, then it must not have been that long ago.

You should know by now that comparing yourself to others won’t help you reach your goals or other aspirations. Not one bit of it is right for you and your confidence. However, even though you know that comparing yourself with others isn’t helpful, it’s hard to stop. 

When Do You Begin To Compare?

From job titles, income, house, grades, to the number of likes on their Twitter account--you use all these categories to compare yourself to others at every level. 

Comparison is your ticket to misery. It is the secret to unhappiness. Instead, you should focus on yourself and not worry about what other people are doing or achieving. 

But how do you teach yourself to do this? How do you learn to appreciate what you have more than what you don’t have?

It may work for a while, but if you don’t take it by heart, you can fall back in the pit of self-pity again. You will end up getting caught in the middle of comparing yourself to other people. You will begin to think about what you don’t have and focus on what they have as opposed to what you have. 

You will begin to think that you have fallen behind others because their life is so much better than yours. Think about it. The more you focus on other people, the farther you are from learning how to appreciate yourself. When you lose control, you begin to question your decisions. 

What part of your life went wrong? In an instant, you can go from being satisfied and happy with your life to a pit of despair. Picking yourself up is the only way to go, but how do you make it happen?

How Do You Stop Yourself From Comparing?

Keep an eye on your own achievements

When you are too focused on other people, you end up losing all the time you could have used focusing on yourself. You can’t grow if you keep looking at other people and how they are improving their lives. Instead, nurture yourself. Comparing what you do with what others are doing is a total waste of time. 

Invest in yourself. Explore your creativity, and start caring more for yourself. In time, you will see that there is so much in you that is already awesome. 

Accept your destiny

You cannot change the things that you don’t acknowledge. So before you wish for anything else, make sure to recognize what you already have. Be at peace with what you can and cannot possess. You have your own strengths, so say yes to that part of you. Make sure that the decisions that you make will move you in the direction that you want. 

Embrace your past 

There might be some things in your past of which you are not proud. It might have been messy or bumpy. It might be colored by a lot of mistakes. The memories might bring about a lot of fear and anxiety too. But remember that they are all part of the past. Those things were not so beautiful, but they all helped mold you into the person that you are now. 

You have become better, wiser, and stronger because of the mistakes you made in the past. Embrace it and make it your own story of success. Be proud of what you had to go through. 

Do an internet detox

How often do you check your social media accounts? When your day to day work is bombarded by the idea of others as #blessed, you begin to ask yourself why they feel that, and you don’t. 

Comparing your life to that of others is not good, nor is it beneficial. While social media can be a great source of inspiration and creativity, it can also trigger feelings of self-doubt and frustration. Whenever you feel jealous of what others have, remember that it may not be something you need. 

When being active on social media is no longer helping you, do a detox. Make sure you are in control of social media and not the other way around. Take a day or two. If you can put that social media life on hold, you’ll be able to see your own worth more clearly.  

This isn’t the end yet

You may not be happy where you are today, but that doesn’t mean it’s the end for you. Remember that where you are today does not define where you will be tomorrow. It is your attitude towards the challenges today that will determine the outcomes of tomorrow. 

What matters now is how you handle the situation today. The mindset and the attitude you have today will determine where you will be going. 

Ask yourself this question--why do we compare ourselves to others? Why do you always want to have what others want? Comparing yourself to others can be useful only if you are using it as a motivation to push yourself harder. 

But if you are not in control of the comparing process, you lose all control of it. You end up hurting yourself in more ways than you can imagine. So why let yourself go through all the pain? 

Stop right there. Stop comparing. You know that you can always be better than who you were yesterday. There is no competition as to who is better. To each their own, and so you should simply let yourself be.