Transform Comparison into Celebration

Admiration and envy are responses that point us toward what we value most. And when we become aware of what we value, we are much better positioned to create a life that’s richly satisfying.

If you notice yourself admiring people who take creative risks, bring your full attention to the part of you that wants to dare more greatly. If you catch yourself envying the folks in your circles who are at ease with self-promotion, take some time to reflect on how you might share your triumphs in a way that feels totally YOU. Heck, if you’re obsessing over tennis players’ forearms, it could be a sign that you’re ready to revamp your fitness regime. You get the idea.

Use the Success of Others as a Mirror

Comparison can be a dark, stuck place, but only if you let it be. There’s gold to be found in your comparison habit, if you’re willing to look for it. The light we see in others can help us see our own—and appreciate it.

So the next time you catch yourself admiring or envying someone’s success, gifts, or particular brand of radiance—be it in a professional context, a personal one, or simply perusing magazine covers—take a moment to consider:

? What qualities in them inspire me?

? Where do I currently embody these qualities?

? How might my expression of these qualities differ from theirs?

? What can I learn from my desire to embody these qualities more fully?

Your Twitter feed may never look quite the same.

Vocabulary

1.每天早上我做的第一件事情就是上推特，只為了去看上面列出的所有我落下的東西。fall behind: 落后，跟不上。
2.release: 發(fā)布。
3.collaborative: 合作的，協作的。
4.buddy: 伙伴；trailer: 預告片；phenomenal: 非凡的；polished: 優(yōu)美的；charismatic: 超凡魅力的；bleary-eyed: 睡眼惺忪的；telegenic: 適于上鏡的。
5.keep score: 保留得分，和競爭者同步發(fā)展。
6.media stream: 媒體流。
7.fulfill: 實現，完成。
8.measure up: 合格，符合標準。
9.internal mechanism: 內部機制。
10.ego: 自我；yearning: 渴望，向往。
11.在過去的一年里，我和領導力課程導師塔尼婭?蓋斯勒共同研究“攀比”是如何進行的，它讓我們付出何等代價，又教會我們什么——我們發(fā)現它幾乎存在于我們所認識的每個富有創(chuàng)造力、有增長潛力的人身上。run rampant: 猖狂，泛濫成災；growth-oriented: 有增長潛力的。
12.在我們這種攀比成風的文化中，我們很難做到不去留意周圍其他人都在短時間內做些什么，然后陷入一種思考“我過得怎樣”的模式中。comparison-soaked: 攀比成風的；on earth: 究竟，到底；slip into: 陷入；〈美口〉stack up: （生活）過得，進展。
13.mentor: 導師。
14.take aback: 使大吃一驚。
15.unearned: 不勞而獲的；dumb luck: 不費多少心思和力氣得來的好運。
16.behind the scenes: 在幕后，秘密地。
17.fall prey to: 深受……之害；over-simplification: 過度簡單化。
18.celebration: 頌揚。
19.羨慕和嫉妒可以讓我們了解自己最重視的是什么。
20.obsess: 使……困擾；revamp: 改進，翻新；fitness regime: 健身計劃。
21.下次當你發(fā)現自己在羨慕或者嫉妒別人的成功、天賦或者特有的魅力時——無論在工作場所、私人場合，還是在看雜志封面時——花點時間去考慮以下幾點。radiance: 光輝；context: 環(huán)境；peruse: 細讀。
22. embody: 包含，體現。

（來源：英語學習雜志 編輯：許晶晶）