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Social media has made humans sad, lonely, and in constant comparison mode.

When social media first started getting popular it seemed like a fun way to keep up with friends and share information. Instagram was made up of candid photos, not the highly photoshopped and stylized ones we see today.

Long gone are the days when social media was just a small part of life, a place to share what you had for lunch or a picture from your latest vacation. Unfortunately, I think we have gotten so out of control with social media now.

Instead of a harmless way to keep up with friends, it has now turned into a way to feel worse about our life. Everyone seems to be in a constant race to one-up each other of who has the better life or takes more vacations. We have gotten so far removed from what social media first started as.

I’ll be the first to admit that I have gotten pulled into the comparison game far too many times, and I still do. It’s a dangerous cycle to get caught up in because it almost becomes like a drug where we don’t want to miss out on what others are posting.

I had to get real with myself lately after feeling some of these heavier emotions like loneliness and uncertainty. I realized I was letting social media affect my mind and I have been down this path so many times. But this time I decided it would be different: I don’t want to spend my life scrolling on my phone, seeing what everyone else was doing.

I thought for so long that I was using social media as a way to keep up with friends but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. That was just a lie I was telling myself as a way to feel better about the endless scrolling.

If the last two years taught us anything is that life happens incredibly fast and the entire society as we know it can change instantly. I feel like the last two years of my life was a blink of the eye. Do you feel this way too?

So instead of watching my life pass by as I aimlessly watch everyone else’s, I have decided enough is enough. Of course, I will still use social media (for now), but I am vowing to use it in a much healthier way. Will I be perfect? Of course not.

But anytime I see myself slipping back into the habit, I will remind myself of these three important lessons:

1. Only compare yourself to who you were yesterday, not anyone else.

This lesson is huge and has completely changed my mindset about all the uncertainty I’ve been feeling. With eight billion of us on this planet, it is impossible that all our lives will look the same. We are all unique individuals who were put on Earth for a purpose. Comparing our life to someone else’s will just make us feel worse about ourselves. We all have different timelines and events on our life path. So instead of comparing yourself to your friends and strangers on the internet, compare yourself to who you were yesterday. Make a vow to yourself to always live as your authentic self and pursue your goals and passions unapologetically.

2. Enjoy your life to the fullest, no matter what season you are in. 

With social media it’s so easy to feel like you are somehow behind everyone else in life. That you aren’t reaching the same milestones that your friends are. Or maybe you think someone else is happier than you because they are in a relationship, have a successful career, or always seem to be on vacations. But this goes back to the lesson above: Why spend your time looking at what everyone else is doing while your life passes you by?

Instead, make a promise to yourself that you will live life to the fullest no matter what season you are in. Each stage of life gives us unique lessons, new relationships, and special memories. When you truly step into the present moment and savor everything around you, that’s when the magic happens. So no matter where you are at in life, try making today just a little bit sweeter and more meaningful. Maybe you call a close friend or make your favorite meal. However you decide to celebrate this moment, give it your full intention and focus.

3. Social media is a highlight reel; it’s not reality.

This is the most important lesson of all and one that we all need to be reminded of. Social media is everyone’s highlight reel; it’s not 100 percent reality. Your media feed is filled with images and videos that are highly curated and photoshopped. These are images that people deliberately choose to show the world; of course, they are going to pick the best moments. It may look like someone is in a happy relationship based on their photos, but you never know what is going on behind the scenes.

And it may look like someone is incredibly successful and making lots of money, but you never know the years of hard work and struggle that someone has overcome. So when we judge someone’s life based off their best moments, of course it will feel like we are falling short. So whenever you feel that comparison is creeping in and making you feel bad about yourself, remember that life is not a highlight reel.

So there you have it, the three important lessons to remember when you are stuck in comparison mode. Save this article for when you are feeling less-than, stuck, unsure, or can’t seem to stop the doom scrolling on social media.

When you take the time to step into the present moment and find the magic in the now, you will be amazed at how special your life already is. The magic is out there just waiting for you to find it.

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