Never Envy the Fabulous of Someone Else

A smart person told me a long time ago, “You may see my glory, but you do not know my story.” What they meant by this is you see how fabulous I am on the outside, but you do not know what I had to go through to get here. This phrase changed my life because from that moment on, I never wanted what anyone else had in life.

Growing up we all admire the nice clothes, cars, and houses of others. But what we do not know is what it took to obtain these accoutrements. I am sure if we could interrogate the fabulous wardrobe, house, and cars of some of the most fabulous people in the world, they would have a story to tell.

When you see that woman walking down the street in her Louboutins, Chanel suit, and getting into a Lexus, you do not know what is really going on in her life. You do not know many nights she could not sleep because she could not afford to quit the job she hates or the countless days she spent working overtime so her Lexus would not get repossessed. We do not know the whole story because I am sure there is more there than meets the eye.

Maybe she has the fine man who looks like he just walked off the cover of GQ, but the relationship is empty. Maybe he has the perfectly chiseled body, but he has cancer. The cover of a person’s story may be appealing, but the actual story may be a gut wrenching, tear jerker.

Everyone has a story; we just do not always know it. I am not saying there is anything wrong with admiring someone and wishing you had their lifestyle, but be careful because you do not know what they had to go through to get where they are in life. People often tell me I seem like I live a nice life. In my head I am thinking, “Do you know what I have to go through to keep it up?” It is a lot of hard work.

I bring all this up to say that sometimes in life you should stay in your own lane, at your own pace. Do not worry about what everyone else has or is doing because you do not know what they went through to get it and the price they had to pay for it.

You may not be able to live a Louboutin life yet, but there is nothing wrong with that. Aspire to someday be able to purchase a pair, but be content with a pair of shoes from Steve Madden in the interim. With hard work and dedication, anything is possible. So at the end of the day, never envy what others have because their stuff may be fabulous, but their life may not.

Because to be fabulous, you have to know what makes you fabulous!