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Comparison Kills Self-Compassion
It’s easy to forget what we’ve achieved when everyone else is doing more.
Tonight, I made the mistake of looking on LinkedIn. I read several posts about how amazing several people’s careers are. In particular, people doing the activities I wished to be doing. I did the clap reaction on these stories as I appreciated the hard work that went into getting to these accomplishments, but then I would ask myself.
Why am I not doing the same?
What’s wrong with me?
Why does everybody else do so much, and I can’t?
The negative thought spiral began in earnest. But before it went deeper, I took a deep breath, shut down LinkedIn, and walked away from my laptop.
I felt sad and anxious as my career is not moving forward in leaps and bounds. This has been one of my most challenging years, and I don’t see it getting better quickly.
Instead of focusing on how much my life sucks, I pulled out my notebook and wrote a quick paragraph about my feelings and why. No judgments, just my honest and raw emotions.
Then, I wrote a paragraph on my activities today to be kind to myself. I exercised, ate three healthy meals and took my prescribed medication. I took a nap in the afternoon as I…