Don’t Compare Yourself to Others

Think of some of the most supreme, successful athletes of all time. Cristiano Ronaldo, Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Lionel Messi. There are many. So many. Have you ever looked at them and thought “I want some of that. I want that level of success. I want that stardom”.

This blog is inspired by my thoughts the other night. I was lying in bed, ready to sleep and I thought specifically of LeBron James. I admire him, as well as the others I have mentioned above. I admire greatness. I love seeing people do great things and become great. It’s so inspiring.

So I thought to myself “how could I have been known as one of the greatest NBA players in history? What would I have to have done?”

Our environment shapes us

I could never have been the next LeBron James. From an early age in his life, basketball was all LeBron knew, and all he wanted to do. That wasn’t the case for me. I had only played basketball in high school. The point is my environment as a young child was not the same as LeBron James’. So naturally we did completely different things and became different people. Even if our environment was the same, I would still not have been like LeBron because his work-ethic is unrivalled. This is why he is where he is in his career and life!

I never wanted to be a basketballer. I don’t watch it and only have a minimal interest in it. But like I said, I admire greatness and admire all those doing great things. So sometimes I will think of those with super success and find myself interested in their journey to the top. But for anyone comparing themselves to others, don’t. Especially not to a super successful athlete like LeBron James!

A lot of things that happen in our lives as children are out of our control. We are cared for by our parents or other family members. They help to shape us into who we are. Therefore if basketball wasn’t in your childhood, you most definitely should not compare yourself to someone like LeBron James, someone who has been playing basketball his whole life! It’s completely unrealistic and can be bad for your self-esteem.

Compare yourself to the person in the mirror

The only person you should compare yourself to is yourself. Our childhood largely influences who we are. This is because of the beliefs we adopt when we are young, from our parents and society in general. These beliefs are hard to change and therefore many people never change them.

Your journey in life is completely unique to you. There is nobody who has lived the exact same life as you. Cherish that!

I can honestly say that I, personally, do not wish I could be anyone else on this planet. Even LeBron James! Regardless of money or status or fame. The reason why is that I have had so many amazing experiences and moments in my short life so far. And I know so many amazing people. These experiences, moments and people are so special to me that I would never swap them for anything. Why? Because they are unique to me. I understand that nobody has or will live the exact same life as me and that’s amazing to know. We are all so unique. We need to appreciate that about ourselves.

Be the person you always wanted to be

I love being Tony Dhillon, and you should love being you! We all have so much beauty in our lives which we should cherish. But the most amazing thing is that we have the ability to change things we don’t like. This is a superpower in itself. If we are not happy with our situation, then we can change it. We can shape our lives, and ourselves into who we want to be. If we want to lose weight and feel more confident with our body we can. If we want to improve our intellect we can. If we want to develop more personal skills to help us handle relationships better we can.

We were all dealt cards when we came into this world. Cards we cannot change. Such as the relationship between our parents, our year and country of birth, our first school. However when we get older and more independent we find new cards that we can choose from. This is where it’s up to us to choose the cards that will give us the best life we can possibly have.

And that’s what it’s all about. Living the best possible life YOU can. Being yourself. Forget everyone else, they have different cards. So roll the dice. Focus on your own cards, and choose the aces in your life every time.

Thanks for reading,

Tony.