Are You Jealous?

Are you jealous? Before you answer, let me answer for you. Of course you are! We all are, to some degree. Being jealous is a normal human emotion, just like being angry or feeling joy.  Although I would not consider myself a particularly jealous person, I would be lying if I said I have not felt tinges of jealousy at different times in my life. It is not a feeling we like to admit or even acknowledge to ourselves, but here is the deal, as long as you are a human being, it is bound to happen. It is just a matter of what you do when you get that feeling. A healthy feeling of jealousy can motivate you to work harder and stay focused on what you really want in life.  The thing is, it can easily and quickly go downhill and cause you to do things that you will definitely regret. You could end up feeling inadequate or develop low self esteem. No one wants that feeling of not being enough or not having the ability to reach your dreams.  So listen up, I have some ideas to turn this jealousy thing around! The only thing I ask of you, is to be honest with yourself and admit when you have that feeling.

So here we go, let’s put a different positive spin on it. Let’s say that someone else has achieved something that you would want, instead of continuing to allow that feeling of envy, what if you were happy for them instead? We can even go a step further and say that by others achieving it, you know it is possible for you. You can be happy for them and know you can have it too or you can have other different wonderful things. That is right, it may not be the same but if you focus on you, there are lots of great things coming your way, trust me.

I remember when I was younger, thinking how great it would be to have enough money that I wouldn’t have to worry about the basics and could do fun things in life, like travel. I would investigate everyone I knew who had money and were self-made. I would find out how they did it and want to learn everything I could so that could be me someday. Of course there were times I wished I had been brought into a family that didn’t have financial concerns, but that didn’t stay with me long. I believed it could be me someday, why not? Look at all these other people who figured it out.

It is also great to think about all the things you have in your life that you are grateful for, now.  Gratitude never gets old. I know it sounds so cheesy at times, but the more we focus on what we have, the easier it is for the rest of the areas to come along. I believe you should also write down, now and then, all the things you love about yourself. When you truly love yourself unconditionally that green jealousy will not surface as often, it just won’t, and when it does, you can remind yourself of all you have right now. That is better than fine, that is incredible!