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How to Transform Envy into Motivation for a Fulfilling Life
What’s interesting to me is that when presented with the same set of circumstances, some people will feel envious whereas others will feel inspired.
For example, when some people hear that I’m in a loving, healthy romantic relationship that started when I was 55 and he was 60, they envy me. Others are inspired by me, especially if they know it’s my first healthy relationship ever.
Another example is in the recovery community when someone has a decade of long-term recovery. Some people envy them, and others are inspired by them.
This intrigues me, and I’ve set out to figure out what the difference is between seeing things like late-in-life healthy romance and long-term recovery as something to be envied vs. something to be inspired by.
I think the main difference is that those who are inspired believe it’s possible for them. Those who are envious do not believe it’s possible for them.
The envy-ers (I just made that word up!) believe there’s something so uniquely special about them that they cannot have what others have. That’s so sad.
So what’s that about?
A huge part of recovery is learning to change our perspectives. There’s a lot of thought work involved in recovery because we have beliefs…
