You are not a Hoover

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By Anonymous

“This product is better value than the other item you are comparing it to.”

Similarly phrased messages are always being thrown at us while we examine products before purchasing them. We always draw comparisons when choosing anything as to how well it will suit us; however, there is one time when the comparisons need to stop: with you.

I spent years comparing myself to other people: what exactly is it they do to be so likeable that I just clearly miss? Why do more people like them than me? Why am I not as good as them? Why can I not be as happy and confident as them? I tried to copy them – imitate the characteristics which I put their popularity and happiness down to – and in all fairness, it did help me find my way into some groups of friends for a period. However, it was an act.

It was exhausting

It was exhausting to attempt to be other people, and to watch while they still overshadowed me because it came naturally for them. I wanted it to be the real me so hard, but it wasn’t. I felt so inferior because of the way I compared myself to others and the effort it took to “be” them.

The day I realised I needed to get a grip was one day when someone told me they preferred the “old me”. That was a kick in the teeth. I had spent too long trying to be people. And I’d apparently dropped even further in the likeable charts… whoo. So if I was a model of Hoover, my sales would probably have decreased by about 50%.

It’s strange, because, although yes, I do still subconsciously compare every little thing about me to others, I try to not change myself to fit in, now. And, surprisingly, people say they prefer me like this. Remember, you are not a Hoover! Do not compare yourself to others!