It’s common to get caught up in the comparison game with other coaches, wondering if we measure up or are ‘good enough.’ But here’s something I’ve learned from Steve Chandler: when we approach others from a genuine place of service, the whole concept of status starts to fade away.
Whenever I compared myself with others, I thought about how small or humble my business or life felt compared to theirs, which bled into my interactions with people. I was more concerned with how I came across than how I could help the person right before me.
I remember meeting a colleague of my wife’s many years ago. We were attending a small party at a bar for his birthday. He had a high-flying job in finance, and I was just starting out coaching full-time. In my mind, as soon as I told him I was a coach, his interest in the conversation seemed to drop. I felt insecure and uncomfortable, and we left quickly afterwards. I judged him, but in truth, I judged myself. This is something I did a lot.
Only when I stopped playing the comparison game did I begin to focus on creating a more profound and meaningful impact in people’s lives, rather than on myself. My work with Steve Hardison has been instrumental in this shift. By honestly and sincerely forgiving myself for the judgments I was carrying about myself, I healed from decades of self-loathing. I was then able to create my new declarations of who I am and then live into them.
I now have no other focus but to love and serve whoever I encounter because I love myself for the first time in my life.
With love and appreciation,
Ankush Jain
Coach and Author of Sweet Sharing – Rediscovering the REAL You
