Having a business has some downfalls. One huge downfall is making comparisons. You start comparing yourself and how you are doing compared to others.
You can't help yourself! You see their social media posts. You see their blogs. You see their stores. Everything looks great. You just know they have the perfect life and the perfect business. And you start wondering what's wrong with you.
The fears come to the surface. Jealousy starts seeping in. You start feeling that your products aren't good enough - that you aren't good enough. You start spending more time with your negative thoughts than spending time working in your business and being you.
I've been there. I've spent plenty of time comparing myself with others. I've spent plenty of times entertaining all of the negative thoughts that have crowded my mind. It has been paralyzing at times. I've cried a lot. I've had times where I decided I wasn't good enough to do a project I wanted to do. I've had times where I just knew my products weren't good enough. Mentally I've been in some hard places.
But there is HOPE!
It takes moving past your fears.
One day I decided I had to stop comparing myself to others. I had to stop believing lies I was telling about myself - I'm not good enough, I don't know enough, etc. I had to move on.
It takes changing your mindset.
I decided that negativity wasn't working for me. A person can only cry so much. I decided that I wanted to continue building my business. I decided on the paths for my business. I decided to start doing things that I wanted to do and figure it out along the way. Many of you know that I am a person with faith and a love for God. Daily devotion time spent in my Bible really helped me.
It means taking control of your thoughts.
This is hard to do! I still have negative thoughts run through my head. BUT now I stop them. I decide that I don't want to think that. I tell myself something positive and move on. Some days are harder than others but it is getting easier.
I've learned over the years to celebrate instead of compare!
There are so many wonderful things to celebrate every single day. I can celebrate big wins but I can also celebrate small wins. Size does not matter. Celebrating and being grateful for the journey matter more.
- I can celebrate that I finished a product.
- I can celebrate that I reached a certain milestone.
- I can celebrate that I managed to write a blog post after a year.
- I can celebrate that I made a choice to work in my business.
- I can celebrate that I sold a product.
- I can celebrate that I had my best day ever.
- I can celebrate that I decided to do that project I'd put off for 3 years.
- I can celebrate that I saw someone's post or product and I didn't start comparing myself to her.
