Read it. Just take it in a bit.
Now, let's talk about it.
You're probably now thinking about how many times you have compared yourself to someone in someway. Yes, we are probably all guilty of it. I know I am.
We see it everywhere. It's very hard not to. On instagram we see images of perfectly organised lounge rooms, complete with colour coded cushions and a lovely pile of magazines arranged perfectly on the coffee table. Then we look around .... and see the kids school uniforms on the ground, and last nights coffee mug.
On Facebook we see status updates about how someone just had a baby, or bought their first house.
If you're a blogger like me, chances are you get caught up reading otherd blogs. You see how cool they are, all the cool stuff they are doing, all the lovely fancy weddings their are shooting and even pictures of the cake they just baked ..
"They are so lucky, the got it goin on!."
If you can honestly say that you have never said that about someone you're following, then I'm jealous of your news feed. Bible.
I can't even remember where I heard this quote, but it has stuck with me. I just remember having an 'ah huh!' moment and thinking, of course, that makes perfect sense!
When I sat and thought about it, it became so obvious that all of these constant daily reminders formed an obsession. It lead to an obsession with the appearance of perfection. NOT perfection…but the appearance of perfection.
Let's be honest: We have all kicked the kids uniforms out of the way and slid last nights coffee mug over to the side out of view of the instagram photo to make it look like we've got it all together and we too have a beautiful, cololur coded cushion lounge room.
The problem now, was that I was more concerned about making it all look perfect for my news feed, but not actually doing it for myself.
Something. Had. To. Give.
I started cleaning and organising my workspace as if I were about to take a really cute, styled instagram photo of my computer screen a caption that says something like, "In the office! #ilovemyjob."
All of a sudden, my instagram feed became real.. It portrayed my real life. And in the end, I started feeling less motivated to compare myself to others.
This is why comparison is the thief of joy.
Spend less time fretting over how many people follow you on instagram. And worry less about how many likes or comments your pictures receive. Because when you do, happiness will be there waiting for you.
If you really desire an immaculate lounge room, go at it for 5 minutes and fan out your magazines for no reason! Don't do it so that you can post a photo of it. Do it for YOU ..
Just because comparison is all around us, doesn't mean you need to give in to it. If there are people/pages on Facebook or instagram (or even blogs you're reading) that really make you feel JEALOUS because of their seeming perfection .. un follow them. Unlike that page!
Keep it real.
