Envious or Jealous.

Following comparisons do come up situation wise in both our life and career cycle. How would you tackle?

Buddha once said, “Do not overrate what you have received nor envy others. He who envies others does not obtain peace of mind”. This is true but how many people can control human emotions such as envy and jealousy.

 

No matter how much we try, we cannot control our envy when someone has better things than us or jealously when we fear that others may take our belongings or replace us.

 

Be it at home or at the workplace, these emotions do come up but it is important to tackle them properly. At home, there could be rivalry between siblings and more often than not, this rivalry stems from jealousy that the parents prefer one child over the other.

 

Generally, the older sibling, who is used to receiving all the attention from the elders, may be jealous of his younger sibling, who after coming into the world slowly takes away the attention and love that was once showered on the older sibling. Children may not be in the position to understand; so, parents should ensure that all children receive equal attention and that no comparison is being made between the children.

 

There are other times when we feel envious – when our friends purchase a bigger house that what we own or when our neighbors purchase a more expensive car than ours. It is human tendency to feel envious, but we should not get affected by such occurrences in our lives. 

 

Generally, envy and jealousy lead to strained ties between people and it is not worth losing your friends over this. So, instead of comparing your belongings with others, be happy with what you have. Even though your neighbor has a bigger car, he may have other problems that you are not aware of. So, be thankful for what you have and focus on your goals.

 

In the workplace, envy and jealousy are common – when an employee gets promoted or gets a raise, others will feel envious and jealous. Here, the person who is getting promoted should try not to flaunt his success in front of his colleagues – he should be modest and behave the same way that he used to prior to the promotion. This way, the working relationship will be harmonious and there will be no ill-feelings between one another. 

 

Instead of feeling envious or jealous, people should think about how they can improve their skills to get a promotion next time. Promotion is not a one-time thing – it happens at least once a year. So, instead of feeling dejected, one should look at what went wrong and try to make things right.

 

Success and failure lie in our hands – we cannot blame others for it. So, if you succeed, you ought to pat your back and do better next time. If you fail at a task, understand what went wrong and try harder next time. 

 

Jealousy and envy will get you nowhere – so, get rid of these emotions, and focus on your goals and life, instead of comparing them with others, and you will be a happier person.