How to stop comparing yourself to co-workers?

Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States, once said: Comparison is the thief of joy. This joy is perfect for the topic we are going to talk about here: how to stop comparing yourself to coworkers.

Excessive comparison in the workplace not only robs us of joy, but can also put our lives at risk. employment by focusing more on what others are doing instead of focusing on how to be the best version of ourselves. Let's see how harmful it is and how to avoid it.

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How to stop comparing yourself to co-workers

No matter how hard we try to be the same as everyone else, it just isn't possible. Just because someone is more successful than we are doing something in a certain situation does not mean that, if we imitate them, we will achieve the same results. This is especially so if the way he or she does things makes us extremely uncomfortable when we try. That person has his own effective way of doing things, particular and unique, with which he does not have to work for us..

Comparing yourself to co-workers excessively and all the time is extremely detrimental to our job performance. Doing so involves wasting time, energy, and sanity by obsessing over trying to be who we really are not. It is true that we have to try to learn from others to improve, but focus on what they do and what they do not doing instead of getting down to work and developing ourselves as people is an extremely dysfunctional

Fortunately, there are healthy ways to stop constantly comparing yourself to co-workers so you can being able to progress in the professional career with less stress and anxiety. But, first, we must be aware of the main pitfalls of comparison in the workplace.

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Job comparison pitfalls

Comparison is like quicksand: the harder you struggle, the deeper you sink. It is essential what the main traps of comparison in the workplace are in order to know which one we have fallen into, and how, by being aware of it, we can free ourselves.

1. Talent

Do not compare your talent with that of others. It is essential to understand that each one is unique, and as such has unique qualities. You can't do what everyone else does, and they can't do what you do.. Diversity in talents and skills is what makes companies and societies exist, because if we could all do everything, they would have no reason to exist.

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2. time in the company

Each person takes their time to achieve success and skills. Some people discover their true callings later than others.. We should not compare ourselves with those who have been working in the company for decades or with someone who has just started and has already surpassed us in success. We all go at our pace, there are those who get things before others.

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3. Available resources

On many occasions, in order to achieve our professional goal, we need financial resources.. These resources are used to pay for training, complete a training program or start a new business. We should not be discouraged when we see that we do not have the same resources as other people or their economic stability. Although money helps to achieve it, not having it should not be seen as an inalienable obstacle to achieving our dreams and professional goals, it will simply require a little more time and effort, but if we are constant sooner or later we will see fruits.

4. life history

Some people have a fascinating life story, a life trajectory that when you listen to it sounds inspiring, almost like a movie. Others, on the other hand, have lives that seem more normal that, when listening to the lives of the first, they may feel self-conscious for not having apparently so interesting lives. Whatever your life story, there is no doubt that it is what has led you to be where you are today. Value it.

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The harm of always comparing yourself to others

Excessively comparing yourself with co-workers is a great drag on our work performance for various reasons, among which we highlight the following.

1. makes you waste your time

Being all the time thinking about what others are doing is a great waste of time. What if instead of wasting time comparing ourselves with others, we take advantage of it to do something productive? We can use that time to do training, evaluate our performance and work progress, improve an area that we need to improve...

2. Creates a toxic environment

Envy is unhealthy, and in the office it is even more so. Excessive comparisons with our co-workers can contribute to a toxic environment, in which that there is resentment between the employees and, even, towards the leader or head of the section. Rancor and resentment between workers harms job performance, work ethic, and trust.

3. lowers your self-esteem

You will hardly feel better after comparing yourself to someone who is apparently better at everything.. Even if you use the comparison to try to make yourself feel better, this type of behavior It is usually based on insecurity, on the pathological need to find defects in the the rest. What if instead of looking for weaknesses in others, you look for a way to value your own merits and strengths?

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What to do to stop comparing yourself with other employees?

It sounds easy to say that "stop comparing yourself with co-workers", but naturally it is more complicated to put it into practice. Comparison in the workplace is a bad habit, and as such it is hard to get rid of, just like smoking or procrastinating. But, even so, it is possible and next we will see two key points to achieve it:

Evaluate your performance, not that of others

It is very important that you keep this in mind: the only person that matters with whom you should compare yourself is your past self.. If you find yourself starting to compare yourself to others, try to break that toxic spiral by putting the spotlight on yourself. Are you working better than you did last week? Have you learned anything new lately? Do you have more skill than a month ago?

If the answer is “yes” to all and more questions like that, then you are making progress. It is with your self that you must compare yourself and see if you really are better or worse than before.

keep your vision in mind

A clear vision of who you want to be and where you want to be will motivate you to keep going. If the case is that you have never defined what your work vision is, now is a good time to do it. Stop paying attention for a moment to current problems, setbacks and failures and focus on where you want to go. Try to keep and keep your vision in mind, approaching the final goal one step at a time each day. By doing this, the need to compare yourself to others will fade as you get closer to your dream.

Is there something good in comparing yourself with others?

As a final point, we would like to say that not every comparison in the workplace is bad, as long as it helps us learn to be better workers and develop as people. If it is done in a healthy way, without envy or toxicity in between, compare the skills and knowledge of others with ours can help us to grow and achieve our goals labor.

To prevent comparison from becoming toxic, it is very important to keep in mind the previously mentioned idea: that we cannot be exactly like everyone else. Understanding this, we can improve as much as possible, without obsessing about trying to be a copy of those people who we consider extremely successful because, simply, that is not going to be possible.

It is useful to take a look at how others do certain tasks, because that it is an opportunity to learn from them. This is especially important when we are new to the company or the project and we do not know very well how to do the tasks. Before putting into practice our own way of doing things, it is key to understand how the basic processes in the organization take place and how things have to be done in the most appropriate way.