I think we all are guilty of comparison. In this age of social media, it’s really hard not to compare yourself to what other people are doing. It’s a slippery slope.
Comparing yourself to other people, other social media accounts, other “highlight reels” will definitely suck out all of your joy. I agree 100%. I don’t however, think that ALL comparison is bad.
Do you ever find yourself comparing yourself to yourself?! (Question, how many times can you put “yourself” into a sentence?! 😏)
I found myself doing this recently. I don’t know about you, but I can be my own worst critic. I judge myself so much harsher than I do others. I so easily give the “benefit of the doubt” even to complete strangers, but hardly ever afford myself the same grace.
This past Sunday I laid in bed after the kids had all gone to sleep. Taylor was in the living room watching some NFL game and checking on his fantasy team. I got in bed (angry that he had disagreed with me earlier about something… he obviously had no idea 🙄) and tried to go to sleep.
I’m having more and more trouble falling asleep these days… 20 weeks pregnant and getting bigger with each passing day. As I laid there waiting for my eyelids to get heavy, I started thinking about all the things that needed to be done in the upcoming week.
My mind began to wander and eventually all I was thinking about were all the things that weren’t going right for me. A flood gate was released… all the things that weren’t going right for the business, all the things that I wanted done to our fixer upper, all the things needed to be done before this baby gets here, all the things I felt like I was failing with as a mother, a wife, a friend, business owner…. It may not sound like a lot, but the devil is in the details.
I was defeated. My emotions were all over the place. I really just wanted to cry and feel sorry for myself, but then I had a thought….10 years ago.
I moved to Birmingham 10 years ago.
To everyone else it seemed like a pretty stupid idea. Taylor and I had only been seriously dating since March/April. Our long distance relationship was still pretty new, nevertheless, I moved to Birmingham with no job prospects and no ring on my finger. #smartgirl
I was 26 years old and trying to figure out what I was doing with my life, but if I was being truly honest I could have listed all the things that I wanted to happen…
I wanted to get engaged/married. I wanted to help people accomplish their goals. I wanted to be a (successful) personal trainer/coach. I wanted babies and I wanted my own house on a piece of land. This list goes on, but these are big ones.
Tears started to form as I started realizing all of the things that had been accomplished in the last 10 years. Even now as I write this I am crying … (dang pregnancy hormones).
I realized in this moment that my 26 year old self would be really proud me right now. All of the things I wanted, I achieved.. and then some.
In the last 10 years, I ended up marrying my best friend. We were blessed with 4 babies and now another one on the way. Taylor quit his job and we opened our own business. I got one of the best certifications in the industry and get to help people every day. We sacrificed a lot to get our business going, but finally were able to buy our own home in the best little town around Birmingham. (Go Huskies!) We get to be an active part of our kids’ lives and have watched them grow up before our eyes on the gym floor. Life is good.
Sure, life is hard sometimes. It’s not perfect. I am far from perfect, but really whose life is perfect? Life isn’t perfect. There’s always going to be someone who has more or who is doing more than you. That is just life.
We have to stop comparing our lives to other people and instead start shifting the focus to what we’re doing to make the most of the life we’ve been given. We only get one chance.
Instead of comparing yourself to other people, start comparing yourself to yourself. Compare yourself to you 1 year ago or 3, 5, 10 or 15 years ago. Where were you and where are you now?
Find all the things that are positive and use them. Take those personal accomplishments and allow them to boost your confidence. Once your confidence is boosted then use it as motivation to do even bigger things. Make your future “self” cry tears of joy in pride over what you achieved in the time you were given. – Annie 💖
“We won’t be distracted by comparison if we are captivated with purpose”
