Run Your Own Race

So often people compare.

People compare their situation to their friend’s situation. They compare their family life to another family. They compare the houses they live in, the cars they drive, the job they hold, or the titles that they carry.

We have ALL done it. Some struggle with this more than others, but everyone at one point- has compared.

If we constantly are comparing to others we will always feel like we are failing. Even when we are not. Why? Because we have our race to run. You may be running uphill while your friend is running downhill. There will even be moments when you will feel like you are winning but they will just be moments. Because eventually, we all have a finish line to cross.

If our eyes are on the person next to us, then we miss what is ahead and will fail. If we are looking next to us to see where they are at in their race, we will miss the hurdle in front of us. We will crash into it and it will knock us down. If we had kept our eyes ahead, we would have seen the hurdle, jumped right over it, and kept on running. Something so small could knock us over because we were too busy comparing our lives to the person next to us. Something that would not have been a big deal is now a big deal because we compared.

Why do we compare when the final product is the same goal. We all want to win. So why not allow and encourage others to win too? Winning with others is so much more enjoyable than by yourself. Winning together strengths the relationship and deepens the cause.

When someone fails, multiple people are affected. When someone wins, multiple people are affected.

We should care if others fail. We should help them up and keep them running. Because if they win, we all win. Think about it, Thomas Edison won- so we all won. If Thomas Edison lost- I might not have a lit room and a computer to type this on.

All of our races look different. Own your race and race the heck out of it.

Watching people win encourages those still running their race. Seeing people ahead of you winning should encourage you to keep running. Don’t let others victories discourage you. Use it as encouragement not comparison.

The root of wanting people to fail is selfishness and the root of selfishness is insecurity.

Insecure people want everything for themselves to make up for the lack they feel. Insecure people can still win- their race is lonely and messy.

Winners of integrity and character are people who inspire others, are not lonely, and the most fulfilled.

I’ve been thinking about this a lot since I have seen the struggle in others lately. So these are my somewhat scattered thoughts. Have you ever compared your life to others? How did that make you feel?

I encourage us all to keep running our own race. Like I said before, own your race and race the heck out of it!