Connect Rather Than Compete.

We all know at least one or two people that always make life seem like a competition. Who is more successful at their job, who works out the most, who has the most dates and sometimes even who feels more stressed out, tired and exhausted? Especially the last one will always be a mystery to me. It's simply stressful, tiring and certainly not fun. 

So why do so many people still hang on to jealousy? I know a lot of people don't like the word 'jealousy'. And they would totally deny that they are jealous of the person they are talking about behind their back. But honey, if you don't want to see them succeed, if you feel like they are taking something away from you by absolutely smashing it and you secretly hope their project will fail... you are jealous. 

I am not saying that I am a saint in this regard. I think everyone has been there.. everyone looked at some other woman and thought: Why did I not get this promotion? Why is my hair not that long and smooth? Why does she seem like she has everything and more and I look like a hot mess? I have been there, you have been there... we all have been there. But that doesn't make it right.

One of the most recent situations where I witnessed a lot of jealousy and a lot of hatred was about the lovely girl behind the Instagram account 'TheSundayChapter'. I have followed Angela and her blog, and of course her social media, since the start of Lisa Autumn actually. She always produced the most beautiful pictures and had quite a big following for a while. I remember her being at around 20K when I first came across her. In the last couple of months, something amazing happened: She went from around 30K to now almost 500K in a matter of weeks. Crazy, right? But how did she do it? Well, she did something simple but effective: she created story templates for Instagram stories for her followers to screenshot and use. And of course, she added her own handle to it so people can find her and her templates. She went viral within days. It's amazing! Well, shortly after I saw a lot of hate-fueled and mean tweets directed at her. Accusing her of buying followers and being fake. Success like this can't be for real. 

For me, it was completely different. When I first became aware of what happened I felt incredibly happy for Angela. She seems like such a sweet girl and I really felt like she deserved it. But you know what else I felt immediately afterwards? Inspiration. Yes, exactly. Not the kind of inspiration where I just want to do the same thing she did. You just can't copy anyone and expect the same kind of results.. not gonna work. But the kind of inspiration where one certain thought popped into my head: 'She did it. That means I can do it, too!'. I know we sometimes see the successful or rich people think.. well, that life is just not meant for me. I will never drive that expensive car, will own a villa or just reach that 500K mark on Instagram. But there she is.. she did it. And she didn't just stumble into it. She is not a famous model or actress where a large social media following comes with the job. She is not some celebrities wife. She is Angela. The girl who used her passion and creativity to create something amazing. You can't tell me that this is incredibly motivating and inspiring to you. 

So why don't we all just stop with the resentment, anger and jealousy and simply cheer each other on? I bet we can achieve so much more that way. Here's to girls and women cheering each other on!

x Lisa