At the gym I can’t take my eyes off the tall, svelte, Scandinavian goddess who is sweating elegantly, on the cross trainer just in front. When I’m attempting a less than elegant blossoming lotus, I long for the balance and flexibility of the raven-haired beauty on the yoga mat alongside. With regular practice I know my flexibility will improve. But having ‘legs up to your neck’ envy is really a hopeless waste of time, thoughts and positive energy.

My genetics, along with ancestry don’t permit it. They do permit a million other things though, that I can’t even begin to make room for if I allow myself to get stuck in the ‘comparison trap’.

While the Internet has given us amazing access, awareness and opportunities to be grateful for, it can be that place to get lost in comparing and contrasting.

Yes, it’s good to know what competitors and people in your field are doing. That’s market research. But there’s a fine line to be drawn between awareness and obsession. Awareness drives you to articulate your value and bring your ideas to the world in your unique way. Obsession results in unreasonable insecurity, doubt and paralysis.

When you allow yourself to get stuck in a state of constant comparison, you limit your ability to create a difference of your own.

The quota for ideas hasn’t been used up just yet.

The capacity for experiencing difference hasn’t been reached.

There is room in the world for people who can and can’t blossom a lotus.

A place for both them and you.

Have you ever got caught in the ‘comparison trap’?

Image by Joseph B.