Today I want to talk to you about something really important. It’s something that has the power to derail you, your plans and your life. Yes. It’s that important. We’re all guilty of it. If you tell me that you’ve never suffered from it, I won’t believe it. You and I may call it different things. But in essence, it’s still the same.

It’s called the comparison game and if you’re not mindful it can end up ruining your life.

Comparison is an insidious thought that creeps up on all of us when we least expect it. And let’s face it, in today’s media obsessed world we’re surrounded 24/7 with unrealistic images of diets, bodies, relationships, houses and lives. In fact I’m pretty sure that you could pick any contextual tag on Instagram and be taken into a world of filters, Photoshop, airbrushing, colour coding and more – carefully curated images of people living carefully curated lives.

But it’s not just our personal lives that suffer. In the world of business, comparisons have been known to undermine future profits, disable great leaders and generate corporate lies. It’s a dangerous game to play, with most people completely disregarding how much it may be controlling their daily lives.

Comparison is a form of self-sabotage and the fastest way to keep living an unlived life. When you are constantly comparing yourself to others the energy that you should be using to focus on bringing your legacy to life is used in watching, witnessing and whining about others.

Here are 5 reasons why you should stop playing the game of comparison(itis):

1. It distracts you from your purpose.

All of us have a unique destiny on planet earth but when you constantly compare yourself to others you rob yourself of your focus.

2. It gives away your power.

Comparing yourself to others is the fastest way to undermine your self-esteem. In fact you can energetically spiral down so quickly that it can take hours, weeks, months for your self-esteem to come back to life.

3. It stops you from thinking creatively.

When you compare yourself to others you give your inner critic an open invitation to delete all of your creative thoughts. Creativity is your natural birthright – we are all here to share our gifts and talents with the world but your inner self talk will be stuck on ‘play repeat’ if you don’t break the cycle of constantly comparing yourself to others. Those ideas will never come to life.

4. No-ones life is perfect.

Years ago a friend told me that the pursuit of perfection is impossible. It’s completely arbitrary because what you and I think can never actually be measured and therefore it’s impossible to agree on what you perfection actually is. Double down on the fact that no-one’s life is perfect – we all have our own personal challenges and struggles and you can begin to see how one-sided the game of comparisonitis actually is.

5. It increases feelings of anxiety and depression.

Say what? Enough said.

So what can you do to drag yourself out of playing the game of comparison in life?

1. Realize life is not a competition.
2. Remember that nobody is perfect.
3. Celebrate who you are.
4. Recognize when you are comparing yourself and pivot to your greatness.
5. Turn Inwards. It’s impossible to compare yourself to others when you’re focused on yourself.
6. Focus on how you want to feel, follow the feeling.
7. Choose a higher thought, transform the feeling of inadequacy to one of meaning and purpose – ie. I need to pay attention here, dig deeper and find out what is really going on. What is the root of the feeling.
8. Acknowledge you are on your own journey and it’s yours alone.
9. Remember that you are exactly where you need to be and move forward not back.
10. Choose love over fear and reinstate your body with feelings of deep love, gratitude, compassion and forgiveness. Choose love.

And remember this beautiful quote from Marianne Williamson:

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people will not feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone and as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give others permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

Now I want to hear from you, — how does playing the game of comparison stop you from truly shining? And what is one thing you are going to do next time you catch it sneaking in? Share with me in the comments below.

As always, thank you so much for being here. I am thrilled that we are on this journey together. Please share your thoughts in the comments below. Hundreds of people visit these posts each week and you never know when your wisdom could be exactly what another person needs to hear!

And remember, Live With Purpose!

Brooke