It is easy in today’s world to get drawn into the comparison game. You compare your accomplishments with those of other people. You compare your life to the one others appear to be living. You compare your success to what others appear to have achieved. You compare the number of likes, followers and connections to other people. You compare your financial status to other people’s apparent status. You compare your level of ‘formal’ education with others. You compare your impact to what others appear to have. You compare your book sales to others. You compare the number of people who watched your TEDx talk to others. You compare the number of shares of your latest post with others. 

Getting sucked into the void of the comparison games is usually a drain of your time, energy and confidence. You need to step back and ask yourself, “What am I gaining from this? How is this helping me grow? How is this helping me be a little better than I was yesterday?” The answer to all of those questions is usually, “It’s not.”  

Much of what you believe other people’s lives are like from looking at social media is a mirage and a façade. There are people who have found a way to scam every “Best Seller” list to the point that being a “Best Selling Author” does not mean what it used to. There are people who have a host of letters after their name reflecting their academic achievements who have made massive contributions to the world, and others who have made very little impact. There are people who have very limited formal education who have made a significant impact in the lives of other people and in the world. 

I have had the chance to interview people with very impressive bios who have accomplished amazing things and it is easy to feel like an underachiever compared to them. When I find myself feeling that way I need to take a step back and avoid getting drawn into the comparison game. My impact and contribution is different from theirs. It is not better or worse, more or less, it is just different.

Too often we look at people’s apparent “success” (money, titles, houses, cars, number of followers, etc.) without reflecting on their impact and the significance of their lives in relation to being of service to others. Many people live lives of significance and never achieve fame or “success”. Many people who appear to be successful are deeply in debt and / or struggling in a number of areas of their life. You never know what is behind the façade, the public facing image. 

If we feel we are behind in the comparison game it is easy to get drawn into the trap of looking for people you can feel superior to. There is no value in falling into that trap either. 

“There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.”

Ernest Hemingway

Are you a little better today than you were yesterday? Are you striving to make incremental improvements in your life? Are you striving to live a life of significance? Are you focused on your Eulogy Virtues or your Resume Virtues? Are you living in alignment with your personal core values? Asking yourself some version of these questions helps you gauge yourself in relation to your former self, not to other people. The question What’s Important Now? helps you tap into your inner guide and take the next step forward into growth. 

What’s Important Now? Continually strive to be the best version of you and be cautious of getting drawn into the comparison trap.  

Take care.

Brian Willis

www.lifesmostpowerfulquestion.com. 

ONE QUESTION BRINGING FOCUS AND CLARITY IN THE CHAOS AND COMPLEXITY OF TODAY'S WORLD.

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