Can Comparing Yourself to Others Ever Be a Good Idea?
How comparison can become our best friend
Comparison is the thief of joy.
President Theodore Roosevelt is said to have been the first to say it, and countless people followed suit, including me.
It’s so unfair. We’ve all had different life experiences, been brought up by different people, had different opportunities, different privileges… Everything is different.
And yet we find something we have in common with someone — for example, the day we started posting on Medium — and somehow think it’s a good idea to compare ourselves to that person.
I’ve done this time and time again. Careers, relationships, possessions… I’ve compared everything I’ve ever had to every person I’ve ever known.
The result? My self-esteem is lower than the chances of a snowball in a sauna.
No wonder I condemned comparing myself to other people. I was sure that the only healthy comparison is the one we make with our past selves.
But my ego, allergic to black-and-white thinking, couldn’t allow that.
I gave it more thought: has comparison with others always been the thief of my joy? Could it even be useful?
