I think we all look to the people around us to compare our own actions and accomplishments. It’s human nature and it isn’t necessarily a bad thing in a general sense.
However, a lot of us — myself very much included — have a bad habit of taking that general comparison and turning it into outright judgement of ourselves as people. Which is very unhealthy.
This has always been true, but in the age of social media, the effect is magnified.
Whereas previous generations may have compared themselves to the people around them or to what the current media told them was good, now we have the entire world to compare ourselves too in real time.
It can be hard not to compare yourself to those bright, perfect Instagram grids as you scroll through someone’s feed.
Learning to see those drool-worthy flat lays as personal inspiration and not societal expectation is a skill that takes practice.
And one that you will never become a master of.
All you can do is be knowledgable about how social media doesn’t reflect actual reality, and practice self-understanding.
By knowing yourself honestly, flaws and all, you will know what you need to improve upon to feel like the best you. Regardless of whether that you matches the current popular influencer’s opinion.
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Ultimately, we can’t control whether or not we compare ourselves to others, but we can control what we do with that comparison.
If you are truly inspired by something you see someone else doing, you can learn from it and find ways to incorporate the fundamental ideas into your own life.
It’s about why that image sparked inspiration, jealousy, sadness, etc. in you and how you can make personal, positive changes to reflect that. It’s not about the products or person in that specific image.
