Have you ever gotten the feeling that others are so much better than you? How to feel good about yourself? I know I have. I’ve had days where I’ve spent the entire day doing chores around the house (like in full-on Cinderella mode).
But when you look around, it would seem like our family couldn’t care less about cleanliness. The dinner would be rated 3 out of 10; the number of dirty clothes runs circles around the clean ones, and even though it’s evening, the children aren’t in their PJs yet. I bet the kids in other proper families are already on their third round of dreams. Oh, dreamland, how I wish I could visit you.
You get the feeling that you want to be better, brighter, and more capable. If you look at social media, then it seems like everyone else can do it all. Moms look like fitness models that take online courses from morning to night, read books, listen to podcasts, etc. To add insult to injury – they post pictures of their beautifully organized and clean homes and starry-eyed children.
They manage all that plus starting up million-dollar businesses at the same time. And then I look at my floor peeking through the layer of toys; the walls covered in ‘priceless artwork’; the tower of unread books which is higher than Jack’s beanstalk, and think HOW DO THEY DO IT??? Did they sell their soul to the Devil? If so, how would one go about it? I’m asking for a friend :D.
To feel good about yourself, don’t compare your inside to others’ outside.
We don’t wear rose-colored glasses at home (unless you’re Elton John 😀 ). Neither are our days made up of positive Instagram-worthy moments. The harsh reality hit me in the face the other day when I managed to get irritated already at 7.30 in the morning.
I won’t bother you with the details. There is no way I’m going to make an IG story about the way all hell broke loose a few minutes before leaving for the kindergarten. Daddy was in the middle of an important conference call while the baby was crying like there’s no tomorrow. My younger son got angry with his big brother and got toothpaste all over his pants. I have to mention that our washing machine took the weekend off, so they were pretty much the last pair of decent, fitting, and clean pants.
No, let that be our family’s little secret. I’ll post about how cheerful the children were when they were finally sitting in the car, happy and smiling. And how they made funny and sweet comments on each other that I not only want to post for the world to see but have written down in history books.
To feel good about yourself, don't compare your inside
to others’ outside.Inspire Moms to Lead
Comparing yourself to others steals your joy.
FB, IG, and all other platforms aren’t reality but a dream. We should try harder to remember that. The comparing game robs your life of joy. It does not help to feel good about yourself. It only makes us feel bad.
For example, I finish cleaning the house and feel pretty good about myself, but then I see pictures of other homes. They look like they could be on the cover of magazines. Suddenly the feeling of accomplishment gets replaced by sadness.
We know it’s like comparing apples to oranges, so why do we let it make us feel bad? We should never compare the natural and filtered world. They talk more and more about social media being one of the main causes of depression. However, it also offers a chance to better yourself; learn, and gather inspiration.
I recently learned a great idea at Anthony Robbins’ seminar (I’ll be honest with you, I secretly listened to it while putting my baby to sleep). We should use social media for our own good instead of letting it take advantage of us. Follow the ones that encourage you, who you can learn from, and don’t make room for envy (that little green monster) but find inspiration.
If you follow someone that makes you feel depressed, then stop following them! It only takes a click, and they’re out of your life. I wish it was that easy in real life. Protect and cherish the good feelings and take joy in your personal growth.
We’re all in different situations.
Every mom is in a different situation, so it wouldn’t be fair to compare them. Some kids are in kindergarten all day, and some at home. Some moms have an office in the house (that locks!), while some live in a small apartment. Some have a robot to do the vacuuming, while others have tiny play robots who remind them 83 times a day that there are eight planets in our Solar System and that it’s time to take a dance break 🙂
Some grandparents cannot wait to babysit. Some grandparents won’t babysit even during holidays because that would interfere with their time off. I am very fortunate to have grandparents that belong in the first category:) That’s also why I have time to write this blog. All in all, it doesn’t make sense to compare yourself to others. The only important question is how to do your best in a given situation.
Life is not a race.
It can sometimes feel that children stand in the way of a successful career. That is not true!!! It’s the opposite. In my recent blog, I gave you reasons why raising children makes us more successful in business and gives us quite a few advantages. It would help if we learned how to make those lessons work for you, and you’ll be invincible.
We can learn a lot from books, but nothing beats the life experiences you gain while raising children. And those experiences come in handy both in sales and management. Raising children is a huge advantage so let’s be grateful for it.
Moms do such a fantastic job juggling kids, partners, and work, which isn’t easy AT ALL! There is no need to add extra pressure by comparing yourself to others. Everyone follows their path. You can only compare yourself to YOURSELF. Try to be a bit better today than you were yesterday and be better tomorrow than you were today. At the same time, let’s not forget that we already have all the knowledge needed for success and absolutely anything is possible.
With Love,
Annika
P.S. If you know someone who could benefit from reading this post then please share it with them. Everybody benefits from a boost of positivity. We would both greatly appreciate it!