Don’t get jealous, get busy

I have recently found myself looking at the lives of the people around me and getting jealous. You know that creeping feeling of discomfort that comes right after you feel joy for that person. The one where you look at what they are doing, creating, have  – whatever it is and start to feel jealous.

For me this usually comes around work and I think for many people jealous of others projects, or success or opportunities can be lurking around every corner. I think it comes hand in hand with crafting your own path. When you aren’t necessarily following the steps that others have laid out for you it is easy to start looking at everyone around you for comparison.

The problem with jealous, is it as sticky as mud and the more you ground down in it the more stuck you get. I have learnt that any problem I am trying to solve will never come from copying someone else, my solution always has to come from me. And any feeling of jealous is just a great signal that there is something in me that I am not giving due attention to. So as I was looking at a friends recent opportunities and getting jealous I had the thought that actually instead of getting jealous I needed to get busy.

Busy creating my own shit, crafting my own opportunities and building my own community. All of those signs of jealousy were just a sign to get the f**k on with it. I am sure it is going to work? Obviously not. And do I think I will never get jealous again? haha wouldn’t that be wonderful! (well, actually, maybe not – maybe the jealousy is a good thing). But regardless right now I am using that jealous to make me sit on a Saturday and write this post, to send emails to people I don’t really knowing asking for stuff (cringe!!) and building my work. In short I am getting busy. And it feels a whole load better than jealousy!