On envy…

“Envy is a really stupid sin, because it’s the only one you could never possibly have any fun at.”

~ Charlie Munger

Ultimately envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

Envy is your own potential you are projecting on another.

Own your envy.

Analyze envy as an indication of your true desires.

A hint of what you are subconsciously craving (good or bad).

“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.”

~ Epicurus

Appreciate what you have, instead of complaining about what was given to you or lusting after that wasn’t.

“Do not dream of possession of what you do not have: rather reflect on the greatest blessings in what you do have, and on their account remind yourself how much they would have been missed if they were not there. “

~ Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 7.27

When you compare yourself to others you are comparing your inside to their outside. They could be miserable creatures.

Look at what you have, the things you value most, and think of how much you would crave them if you didn’t have them. 

Envy developed as part of our evolution as a species, to provide the basis for our competitive edge. It motivates us to strive to take what another person possesses, achieve it for ourselves, or better it; and all these impulses were pretty good ones when it came to guaranteeing the survival and evolution of early humans fighting for resources.

According to Nietzsche envy is necessary…refer to and add notes from pages 38 and 39 from ‘The Portable Nietzsche’.

But in today’s society it can foster discontent and distress, bind our freedom, lead to resentment and bitterness, causes us to do things we wouldn’t normally do and can spiral into depression.

“Whenever you see someone holding political power, set against it the fact that you yourself have no need of power. Whenever you see someone wealthy, observe what you have instead of that. For if you have nothing in its place, you are in a miserable state; but if you have the absence of the need to have wealth, realize that you have something greater and much more valuable. One man has a beautiful wife, you have the absence of longing for a beautiful wife. Do you think these are little things? How much would these very people – the wealthy, the powerful, the ones who live with beautiful women – pay for the ability to look down on wealth and power and those very women whom they adore and get?

~ Epictetus, Enchiridion

Overcoming envy…

Shift your focus to the goodness in your life. One of the biggest reasons we envy the life of another is because we have begun to take our blessings for granted. Count them again. You are talented. You are gifted. You are cared for. You are unique. Your life is too valuable to be lived like everyone else. You have countless reasons to be grateful for the life you have been given. Remind yourself again.

Remind yourself that nobody has it all. Comparing your life with others is always a losing proposition. There will always appear to be people who have it better than you. But remember, we always compare the worst of what we know about ourselves to the best assumptions we make about others. Be reminded, nobody has it all. Each person you meet experiences problems, trials, and weaknesses–just like you.

Whenever you see a successful person you only see the public glories, never the private sacrifices that it took to reach their heights of success.

This is what makes us human. Nobody is exempt. Nobody has it all. Nobody.

Stop viewing life as a competition. Joy is not a finite resource. And the moment you learn to experience happiness in others’ joy is the day you take a huge step to overcoming envy once and for all.

“Do not dream of possession of what you do not have: rather reflect on the greatest blessings in what you have, and on their account remind yourself how much they would have been missed if they were not there.” 

~ Seneca

“It is in no man’s power to have whatever he wants; but he has it in his power not to wish for what he hasn’t got, and cheerfully make the most of the things that do come his way.”

~ Lucius Seneca, Letters from a Stoic

“Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants.”

~Epictetus

I pity the rich because they have no real friends, only acquaintances who want something from them.