6 Ways Envy Destroys Career Advancement

People that advance in their careers focus less on what others say about them and more on how their creativity, competencies and leadership skills can add-value to the organization they serve.   Envy is a dangerous but natural emotion that we are faced with each day.  You can’t avoid it, but you can certainly contain it.  Unfortunately, I have seen too many people ruin their careers (let alone their lives) because they felt so much pressure to be like those in their organizations that were trying to get promoted and noticed.   The most effective and sustainable way to advance in your career is to be yourself.  This requires you to know who you are, what you stand for and how to enable your talent.   Mentors and bosses can guide you, but in the end you must be your own manager and this means taking control of your career.   Envy destroys career advancement and if you are not careful you can become a victim of this dangerous mind-game that we play with ourselves.

We operate in a dog-eat-dog world of copy-cats and a race to the finish line.  The demand for originality is at premium and requires taking risks. As such, people would rather leech off one another to be generally accepted rather than be unique and different.   That is why envy is so prominent in society.   Most people are only looking for acceptance, not significance.   In fact, the majority of people do not desire to make a difference in the world.  They are just content with mediocrity and go with the flow – waiting for the next trend (or tweet) to give them purpose.  They are only awakened to take initiative if their comfort zone has been disrupted (the Occupy Movement proved this point).

Envy doesn’t fuel people, it defines them.

We now operate in a global market that encourages people to embrace differences and to be different themselves.   Diversity is not about being compliant; it’s about being chic and celebrating the uniqueness that lies within each of us.    Envy looms when people are not happy with themselves and their careers/lives.    While you may not be able to change the feelings that cause envy, you can change the way you look at things and that will eliminate envy from your life.

It’s all about perspective. 

With this in mind, here are six ways envy destroys career advancement and why you must contain it:

1.       Competitive Spirit is Lost

It’s difficult to be competitive when you are paying too much attention on wanting to be like others.  You lose your passion and desire to unleash your own innate gifts and talent.   This is why most people don’t advance in their careers.   They declare themselves “unable to compete” because they spend too much time observing others as “threats” rather than unleashing their true potential. When you’re blinded by envy, you can’t see your own opportunities right in front of you.  You cloud your circular vision.

2.       Authenticity Remains Dormant

You must become in order to do.  It’s impossible to become when you care more about being what others are, rather than being yourself.   Do be a commodity.   Increase the value in your stock that is original, substantive and with a voice that is true to who you are.  That’s how you get discovered.

3.       Difficult to Build Momentum

How can you build momentum in your career when you are not focused on what makes you unique?  Momentum is created with proper timing and focus.    This requires defining a strategy that integrates the skill sets that make you effective in your work and apply focus to how best you can unleash them. Without strategy, change is merely substitution not evolution.

4.       Disrupts Ability to Network with Others

We can’t build respect and trust for one another – and therefore lift each other – on a foundation of envy.   How can you build a network when envy stands in the way?   Why envy someone else’s career aspirations when success is now measured by your influence.  Think about the influence you can share with others – rather than the barriers to advancement envy creates when networking.

5.       Trusting Yourself Becomes Impossible

When you are bitter and can’t find the reasons to believe in yourself; it becomes almost impossible to trust yourself.  This is one of the most important success factors in your career.   If you don’t trust yourself you can’t sell yourself and your capabilities thus limiting your advancement.

6.       Self-Worth and Happiness Erodes

Envy is another term for being unhappy.    This is when envy can take over your mind.  It becomes a powerful virus that kills our confidence and self-worth.   Additionally, envy means you’re stuck in a rut and must dig yourself out of it.  How can you progress yourself forward when envy takes you backward.

There are always going to be people that do certain things better than you can.   The goal is to define what makes you special and apply it to good use in different ways every day.   Life is not about comparing yourself to others but rather knowing what each of us can learn from one another.