DON’T COMPARE YOURSELF, BUT BE YOURSELF

By Jaeson Ma
Link: http://jaesonma.com/
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One of the biggest lessons I am learning is not compare myself, but to be myself. In today’s world we are constantly bombarded with images of what we should be like, what we should look like, what we should have, who we should be.

From magazines, to TV commercials, to advertisements on the Internet, to people we talk to, it always seems like we are never enough and we always need to measure up to others. But is what the world declares as successful our success? Is what society says we should be like, act like or look like be our standard? Or is what other people are doing what we should be doing? I fail to differ…My whole life I was always compared to others around me. My parents thought I should be smarter like my sisters, my friends thought I should be cooler like the other popular guys, my peers in the music industry thought I should sound more like this musician or that other band, etc.

The list goes on, I lived in a world where I was constantly feeling pressure to be everyone else but myself. Our culture shouts to us everyday to conform to the popular norm, but this may be the biggest deception to truly finding ourselves.

If we want to find ourselves and find our purpose in life, we first have to realize that each of us are completely and utterly unique. I am not like you, and you are not like me. My thumb is the only thumb that will ever have the marks it has, my face is the only face that will look like mine, and my life is the only life that can be lived by me.

So what does that make you and what does that make me? It makes us “you-nique.” Each of us is not only special, but each of us are one of a kind. The greatest deception is to try to live your life to be someone else and in the process lose yourself, and lose who you may have been to the world.

You are the greatest gift to the world. Yet, so many times we play ourselves down. We feel like we are not good enough, not beautiful enough, not capable enough, or smart enough because we are always told we are not enough, but this is a lie and not the truth.

You are enough, you are called to be you and not somebody next to your, or the person you read about. It’s okay to be inspired and challenged by others, even influenced by others in a positive way, but it’s not okay to try to be another and not be yourself.

We think success is what people make it out to be. Bigger is better. Show me the results. Look at what I have. See what I can do. I’m more beautiful than you! Are these statements true or are they just a perception of what truth should be? I believe that success is something that is unique to each person, never to be compared from one life to another, but to know that success is you following your heart, you being yourself and you doing what God created only you to do.

There will never be another one of you or me. So lets stop trying to compare ourselves to each other, but lets be ourselves to one another. This will make the world more beautiful, attractive, creative and innovative. Don’t try to be anyone but yourself… I am happy to be exactly me!


God bless,
Jaeson Ma