I am the first to admit that I experience jealousy on a daily basis. I am not saying that it is the type of jealousy that makes me have ill feelings towards someone, or not want to be their friend…it is just the jealousy makes me think, “hmmm… I wish I had what they have.”
Jealousy is defined as an emotion that causes insecurity, fear, and anxiety over an anticipated loss of something of great personal value. Although not many people will ever come right out and state their envy towards someone or something, it is one of the few emotions that cannot have a veil. It shows through to the person you are jealous of, and the people around you; sometimes even in the worst time.
Regardless of what people may say or think, jealousy is one of the most natural feelings that humans have in their lives. The reason being is that we can only get to see one side to a person’s success and assume that their whole life is full of all highs and no lows.
But it is not.
There is an amazing quote that was featured on Cassey Ho’s blogilates workout video that stated: “Other people success’s are not your failures.” When I first heard this, it made me think of every time I had been jealous of someone in my life, and how minuscule that jealous was. As humans, we compare ourselves to others without taking a second to realize that every person is different.
We cannot compare ourselves to another human being because they have different lives then we do. We each are given different situations to deal with, and in turn, we have different ways of dealing with those situations, which ultimately leads to different accomplishments.
So, next time you start to get jealous, here are some tips to sway that feeling elsewhere:
1. Take a look on the inside of yourself. Why are you jealous? Is there any solid reason for this emotion?
2. Look around you. Is your jealous affecting your other relationships? Are your friends distancing themselves from you?
3. Relax! Jealous can arise when we are constantly comparing how we may look to other people.
4. Never be afraid to tell someone how you feel. There are times when we get angry or upset at someone for saying or doing something. But, we have to remember that sometimes they are unaware. If you feeling envy towards them for something, let them know so you can both talk about it.
5. “I am sorry.” There are times when our jealousy can make us act crazy and hurt someone’s feelings. So, there is never a problem with apologizing when you have hurt someone because of your resentment.