Comparison

Comparison is a hard thing to avoid, especially in business.

Especially when in a business that is focused on sales and a bit of competition. With that little aspect — Competition — You cannot help but compare yourself to others. You look at the success they are experiencing and wonder “Why am I not there and what am I doing that is keeping me from what they are doing?” You also talk to yourself saying “Well, they are successful because they are lucky.” Or “They had better skills going into this, that’s why they are doing better than I am.”

And all or some of that may be true.

Still, you need to look at yourself and ask, “How am I doing compared to where I was a couple days or weeks ago? Am I doing better? What things are they doing that I can bring over and use?”

When you start asking those questions, you are better setup for success. The other questions lead to negative thoughts and resentment. Neither of which are healthy for yourself or for the relationship you have with the person. It would be better to just focus on where you are, what you are doing and look for things you can steal from others (from a practice standpoint).

I have noticed that the comparing mind is a gateway to other, more insidious thoughts. It can lead to resentment, pride, and anger. When those thoughts creep in, then you begin to erode your own abilities and focus on them instead of what you are doing. You are outward focused instead of focusing on “cleansing the inner vessel,” to borrow a phrase from the Bible.

Only by recognizing that we are comparing, identifying it, and then looking at ourselves and asking how we can reframe the questions to more positive ones will we be able to overcome the comparing mind and then be better setup to succeed.

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Photo by Raquel Martínez on Unsplash