Have you ever said the words: “I wish I were as ________________ as her”?
That blank can be filled with words like: pretty, smart, funny, athletic, sexy, skinny, adventurous, tall, outgoing, chic, strong, etc. The problem with thinking things like these is that eventually we move on to thinking things like “Why did she get that chance and I didn’t? Did I do something wrong? Am I not good enough?” Or “Why is everyone else ahead of me? Why am I stuck here?” Or even worse: “Why is everyone graduating or getting a promotion (or getting married or having kids) before me? Is there something wrong with me?”
But why must we compare ourselves to others? Who are we to determine who’s doing things “right” and who isn’t? Sometimes we can be our worst critics and that’s a bad habit that must go.
It’s your first day on a new job and you’re trying to impress everyone. You’re fresh meat so you know you need to be the best version of yourself.
You know what I’m talking about. That version of you that comes out when it matters: when the stakes are high and you’re heading for a home run.
A bet there’s a version of this girl somewhere inside you all the time. We all have our A-game side (which hopefully shows up when it matters). But why can’t we be that amazing person all the time? What’s stopping us?
It’s hard being smart, funny, authentic, and staying focused all the time. It’s probably impossible to stay on top 100% of the time. But just because things are hard it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try.
I believe that most of the time, it is us who stop ourselves from getting what we want or where we want to go. “I’m not good enough” or “I’m not smart enough” or “I’m not ready for this” are some of the excuses we tell ourselves again and again. But who said you weren’t good enough? Or smart? Or ready?
We can be our own worst enemy. “I can’t” is the worst thing we can tell ourselves because if you’re giving up without even trying, then you haven’t even peaked at the real possibilities. You’re already a loser if you don’t even try. There is nothing wrong with failure, what’s unacceptable is giving up.
So look in the mirror and meet your competition: it’s you. It’s always you. You are your best (and worst) competitor. Why? Because only you can push (or stop) yourself to the limit. No one else can (or will) do it for you. So stop comparing yourself to others, enjoy where you are right now, but always visualize the best version of yourself and try to become that every day.
