Yeah man, this is positive @whatamidoing ...you said it bro:
try not to compare yourself to others because it’ll make you feel like crap
As you lay out, you're doing really well! I think comparison of self with others is the biggest factor in, and the epitome of, the scarcity mindset, which states that there is not enough to go around, that I will be left behind and therefore need to muscle in, stomp on people/be fake if need be. It's very stressful and energies are drawn away from creativity and funnelled into poor-me-type thoughts... This seems counter-productive, redundant and not necessary. If we see that there's nothing to be gained by comparing (what are we comparing btw? stashes, followers, reps???...to what end?...does this make a +ve or -ve difference to our perception?) we can focus on our unique, individual self-expression (this is sooooooo precious to me!). This has its own reward, the rest just follows naturally (if a bit slower) IMO.
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I think it’s the fact that the system seems so limited that makes it easier to compare, or rather harder not to compare. But I have to just trust that the right focus will allow me to do more to fix said system.