Last week, I came across a quote on a Facebook page named Life in Sangre Grande & Beyond. The quote taught me a great lesson about comparison. So, I decided to start this piece with the quote:
You can seem like a millionaire to one person and a homeless person to the next. The ants think you are a giant, and the trees don’t even notice you. You think you have a boring life, but the next person might be striving for your lifestyle.
Does this give you a clue about what life is? As you read on, you’ll make sense of the quote — so let’s go down.
Is anything wrong with comparison?
No! There is nothing wrong with comparison. When you place two or three things side by side and compare their features, it’s not bad.
There’s nothing wrong with comparing iPhone with Samsung, Coke with Pepsi, Ronaldo with Messi, etc.
There’s also nothing wrong with comparing yourself with someone else. I believe it’s a way of picking out what makes you and someone else different or similar.
In fact, when I was a child, my mates and I used to play comparison games.
We would look at beautiful cars and buildings and compare them with one another. We considered colours, cost, and functionalities. Then we made choices based on the comparison. That was fun.
I guess you might be wondering and asking, why do people always say that comparison is the thief of joy?
It’s simple — it’s about what goes on in the mind.
What are the dangers in comparison that most people don’t talk about?
Most people don’t talk about what goes through their mind when they are engaged in comparison. That is the beginning of the danger.
What comes to your mind when you compare the UK to the US, or Amazon with Alibaba?
What comes to your mind when you compare yourself with someone else?
The answer to that question is what determines the good or bad in comparison.
The moment you start looking down on yourself and placing someone else above you, you’ve started introducing elements of negativity.
Most people think something is wrong with them because everything seems to be working well for someone else.
Because she’s married, he’s doing his dream job, she’s got kids and is living comfortably — you start comparing that with your life. Then you start feeling something isn’t right with you, without even understanding the deeper reasons behind his or her achievements.
I once wrote:
You don’t know the pain behind their gain; you don’t know the story behind their glory. Why do you worry?
Truth is, comparison is not bad — but a negative approach to comparison makes it bad.
People blame social media too much for promoting comparison
These days, the internet makes people live a fun life online but a sad life in reality.
You could be with your phone thinking your life is boring.
The question is — how long are you going to hold social media responsible for what you are doing to yourself?
It takes maturity to understand that most people smile in front of the camera, but they’re sad afterwards.
It takes wisdom to know that some people show off cars on social media, but they’re struggling to buy fuel.
It also takes wisdom to understand that even though some people are genuinely doing well in reality, they are not on the same journey as you.
You are not in a life race. Where you are now is where you’re meant to be for now, but not forever.
Social media is no longer the problem, you are the problem.
You push yourself down every time you see someone else at the top.
Going back to the last line of the quote I shared earlier:
You think you have a boring life, but the next person might be striving for your lifestyle.
That line sums up the problem behind comparison.
People forget their value while validating someone whose true worth they don’t even know.
Live life with the mindset that everyone is facing a secret battle. That’s the golden truth about life.
The richest man or woman you know has something missing — something you don’t know about.
It may even be something you have, but you don’t realise it or cherish it.
Don’t wish to be like people you don’t truly know.
Because if you walked in their shoes for a minute, you might see that their life is a hazard, not a beautiful palace, as it seemed.
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