Did you know that every time you compare yourself to others, you lose? That’s what I‘m talking about this week. How the result of comparison is either a feeling of envy or a feeling of pride.

Both are damaging to you, your relationships, your health, and your money. Because when you act on your feelings of envy or pride - trying to keep up with others or trying to show others how perfect you are, it can lead to some pretty terrible money decisions, that don’t reflect your true values.

Yesterday, we started to focus on what you can do to reduce the temptation to compare yourself to others.

Today, we’re continuing with practical ways to avoid the comparison trap. So let’s turn our attention to social media, the ultimate breeding ground for comparisons! Instead of allowing your facebook or instagram feed to fuel your comparisons to others, use your social media feed to make a conscious effort to be genuinely happy for other people and their successes.

Sometimes it’s hard to really, truly be happy for others, especially if your life isn’t much to brag about at the moment.

But one thing that I’ve found helpful is to practice genuine enthusiasm for the successes of others.

Maybe you have a friend who just bought a vacation home at the beach. She posted pictures of her new, gorgeous home, complete with one of those stupid beach house signs that you secretly love: In this house we wear flip flops. We track sand in the house. We soak up the sun. Blah blah blah.

If your first reaction to a post like this on social media is to feel jealous, take the time to stop, reflect, and write a thoughtful, sincere comment of congratulations.

By cultivating sincere feelings of happiness for the successes of others, you’ll realize that it feels so much better to actually be happy for someone, and you’ll be able to better tame the green monster of envy.

That’s it for today. Thanks for listening.

Tomorrow we’re going to talk about how gratitude can help you avoid the comparison trap.

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

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