“You vs You”Don’t compare your beginning to someone else’s middle.”
In today’s world, where we’re constantly surrounded by the lives of others on our phones, it’s easy to fall into the trap of comparing ourselves to them. This holds true for snowboarders as well, who often compare their skills to others. The sport is evolving at such a rapid pace, and social media amplifies these comparisons, blurring the lines between beginners and accomplished athletes. Scrolling through Instagram, seeing the overall progression of the sport or the new tricks that are going down, is a recipe for feeling insignificant and overwhelmed. Spending all your time and energy worrying about what other people are doing and how you can be more like them—in the way they ride, spin, etc.—is a losing game.
From the moment you wake up to the moment you go to bed, snowboarding is always on your mind. But instead of having the joys of the sport at the forefront of your brain, the only thing you think about is the skill level of others. You constantly worry about how you’re going to catch up to them. You feel discouraged at the thought of how skilled other people are. You feel like you want to give up because of how seemingly “far ahead” others are “in front” of you. You feel insignificant in comparison. But that’s the problem right there—”in comparison.” There is no comparison to be made. “Don’t compare your beginning to someone else’s middle.” You are not in competition with anyone except yourself.
If your goal is to compete at the highest level, such as against elite snowboarders, or if you just want to improve your S turns on the hill, because you absolutely levelling up, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by how far behind you might seem when you compare yourself to others. But if that’s the case, you simply don’t have time to waste on comparison. Focus on your progression, not the progression of others. You’re spending all your energy worrying about their progression instead of putting your energy into your own.
“Who Would Win?”
Who would win? The guy who is only focused on improving himself and his progression? Or the guy who is anxious, overwhelmed, and only focusing on the progression of others? No brainer, right? “Easier said than done”—yeah, you’re probably right. It’s hard to focus only on your progression. But you can make it easier by doing the hard things. Changing your mindset and cutting out the source of your problem. In other words, changing the way you think and how much time you spend on social media watching other people’s so called “success“.
- Minimise social media time
- Adjust your mindset
When you fall into the trap of comparison, it often results in one of two outcomes: either you inflate your self-esteem by belittling others, or you diminish your self-worth because you feel inadequate compared to someone more advanced. More often than not, it’s the latter. Comparing yourself to someone whose skill is far beyond yours can be discouraging, leaving you questioning how you’ll ever reach their level. This is when frustration, self-doubt, or even thoughts of quitting creep in. Your journey has been completely different than theirs, and the same can be said for you and someone else. They’re incomparable. You’re you, and they’re them, and there’s no comparison to be made.
“Starting Late”
“Sorry I’m late, I just don’t give a f***” — Conor McGregor
The truth is, it doesn’t matter when or how you started. It matters how you finish. All that matters is your burning desire to accomplish whatever it is you want to achieve. Having an overwhelming, almost delusional, amount of self-belief. Only you see the dream. Only you see the future results. You play the video tape of your own future successes over and over, again and again, inside your head, on repeat. It doesn’t matter when you started—what matters is what you do when you start. That is what turns dreams into reality. Your friends, close ones, and family criticize or inflict their own doubts on you and the path you’re on because they can’t see it. They can’t even begin to comprehend it. What it’s like to be possessed by a dream, or the will to succeed in your own words, at all costs.
Conor McGregor is a great example of this. In his early life, he was a struggling plumber’s apprentice in Dublin. He started doing MMA as a means to protect himself. He hated his job and how he was living. He knew he could make it in the sport. He believed in himself when no one else did. Living on welfare while training, overcoming early setbacks, and facing criticism from everyone around him—friends, loved ones, family—it’s nothing new. what separated him from the pack, was his Relentless Dedication, a Burning Desire to achieve his goals, and an Overwhelming Amount of Self-Belief. We all know who he is now. Look at what he accomplished.
And how many other stories like this are there? You think you can’t do it too? It doesn’t matter when you start—what matters is what you do when you start. That’s what turns dreams into reality.
Takeaways and Actionable Steps
Focus on Personal Growth
Stop comparing your starting point to someone else’s middle. The person who will progress the fastest is the one who compares himself to* himself, not to others. What I mean by that is, you’re not “competing” against the other kids from your local hill anymore. The internet and social media have bridged the gap between beginner and pro, pro and X Games medalists. You’re never going to progress if you’re only focused on the progression of others and not on your own. Eliminate the source. Cut out the social media that doesn’t help you achieve your goals. Mindlessly scrolling through your Instagram feed, watching random people across the globe do triple corks and quads while you think to yourself, “Man, how am I ever going to catch up to them?” Or seeing how well someone can do big S-turns on the hill and thinking, “He’s so much better than me.”
Stop belittling yourself—because he’s not you. Dreading over the skill of others is not going to help you improve. If you truly want to get better, the absolute best solution is to focus on your own improvement and your own progression. Another .great tool is to study how others did it—”stealing their software and downloading it”. (Just don’t belittle yourself in the process)
Compare Yourself to the You of Yesterday
This is the most important takeaway from this blog and in the entire field of improving ones self. There’s this quote from Naruto that’s stuck with me ever since I heard it years ago: “Better than I was yesterday.”
Just be better than you were yesterday. Your progress will compound to levels you’ve never seen before. Be better than you were yesterday. It’s you vs. you—not anyone else. Imagine competing against that guy. The Guy who, each day, improves a little bit more, everyday. Being better than he was yesterday.
The fastest route to exponential growth is by comparing yourself to the you of yesterday and striving to be better than him.
“It’s You vs You. There is no competition.”
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