Yes, other people’s shoes always fit weird…even if they’re supposed to be the same size.

Oh, yes, becoming the cable guy would be a grim fate indeed.

Yes. I agree. Good show ole’ chap.

It was best said by a friend of mine years ago, “Don’t hate me cause you ain’t me.”

True true. Be yourself or you will become the cable guy.

I like Kerry’s comment (and Jason’s response)…so often I compare myself to my brother. I can’t express how much I admire him, and I think he’s the best brother in the world. But then I hear him say the same thing about me. I beg to differ, because I think my brother is much cooler than his brother…but trying to become my brother will not help me to become me. God has different plans for each of us, and it won’t help for me to try to fit into the shoes God made for my brother to wear.

Well said, Eric. It makes me wonder, why do pipes only seem to break on Sunday evenings?

Great, GREAT comment, Kerry. You know I was going to make a point in the post about how the people we look up to are often looking up to us for reasons we find hard to imagine. Thanks for making that point for me!

Kudos to you for having the openness to observe the people around you and analyze yourself in your last job, and for the strides you’ve taken in such a short amount of time. Lots of people wait till it’s too late before they realize their mistakes. Your last sentence reminds me of the saying, “When you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life.”

Tim,
The comparison trap is so easy to slide into, and the media seems to enjoy helping us do that! I see too many people striving for so many things, only to look back and realize they had what they really wanted all along. We all definitely need reminders in this area…I’m sure you’ll write a blog post before long that will do the same for me :)

That happened to me. About 2 months ago I stopped and looked at where my career was going to take me. I realized my bosses were all workaholics, working 12 hours at the office and then working another 6 at home. They were all single, or divorced. They didn’t have time for their own interests. Campaigns are all consuming. I found when I was on the trail I had lost that sense of who I was, or what my interests even were.

Success for me, will be when 1) I am able to support myself through my own measures, be it my blog, or freelance writing, or some other business, and 2) when I get to determine my own hours, have time for family and friends, and am not feeling stressed because of my job.

I’ve almost fully accomplished #2. I view my blog as my business now, and that means giving it my all. I may very well end up working more hours than at my job in a cube, but I am so much happier now, and that means the world to me.

Great post…I really enjoyed Chris Garrett’s definition of success and I really don’t know a better way to put it than he did. I sometimes get caught up in the comparison trap…and this never leads to anything positive. I try to stop and correct myself when this happens…but we all have both strong and weak moments. Thanks for this reminder that success and happiness are possible no matter our situation.