The theme for this week is: The Comparison Trap.

Comparing yourself to others is natural, and is something we all do all the time. The problem with comparing ourselves to others is that it leads to one of two miserable places: “pride or envy. You’re always going to either find somebody who’s doing a better job than you, and you get full of envy, or you’re going to find that you’re doing a better job than somebody, and you get full of pride.” That’s according to Rick Warren, the author of The Purpose Driven Life, who first introduced me to the concept of the Comparison Trap many years ago.

But guess what? The Comparison Trap, fueled by feelings of pride or envy can also lead to some pretty terrible money decisions.

How many people have bought houses, cars, shoes, and driven themselves into bankruptcy in a desperate attempt to keep up with others.

How many people have you met that have this repulsive air about them. They think they’re smarter, richer, and cooler than you and they’re quite proud of themselves. You are probably calling to mind a specific person right now, aren’t you! That jerk cousin of yours who thinks he’s better than everyone!

How would your life be different if you stopped comparing ourselves to others, stopped allowing yourself to be eaten up by envy or pride, and instead, just tried to be a better version of ourselves?

There is always someone who is richer than you, better looking than you, who can kick your butt at whatever sport or talent you’re best at. It’s a fool’s errand allowing ourselves to fall into the comparison trap!

So here is my challenge for you today: You will inevitably see something today that makes you green with envy -  a car on the road that you lust after, a friend posting pictures on Facebook of their perfect vacation in Hawaii (it’s freezing, it’s February, and they’re staying at the Ritz!), another friend on instagram who just got back to her high school weight, or a neighbor who’s lawn is always green and lush!

Just for today, catch yourself. Replace your jealousy with gratitude for what you have, and even if you have to force yourself, practice being genuinely happy for that person.

Before you go, please leave a review for the One Minute Retirement Tip in Amazon. Your review is important – potentially thousands of people will read your review and decide to enable (or not) based on your feedback. Plus, the more reviews the Tip gets, the more exposure Amazon gives it.

My name is Ashley Micciche and this is the One Minute Retirement Tip.

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Tags: retirement, investing, money, finance, financial planning, retirement planning, saving money, personal finance, the comparison trap, jealousy, envy, pride, 7 deadly sins, rick warren, the purpose driven life book, comparing yourself to others, how to stop comparing yourself to others, comparing yourself to others psychology, comparing yourself to others bible