Social comparison

by Mario H. Noronha

Topic of this content: How social comparison contributes to fear of failure

Who might be interested in reading: people and professionals

During this month, we will address different dimensions of how fear of failure affects personal achievements. 5 short texts will be published on this topic (1 for each week) and, in this first contribution, we seek to look at one of the factors that may contribute to this consequence; social comparison.

When someone chooses to constantly and unfavorably compare themselves to others, especially in terms of achievements and successes, it can exacerbate the fear of failure.

This consistent fear of failure can lower a person's self-esteem and self-confidence, which can result in a self-fulfilling prophecy, that is, fear of failure causes a lack of confidence, which, in turn, increases the likelihood of failure, opening up the possibility of creating a spiral with negative or, at the very least, unwanted results.

"The ceiling of social comparison is so high that virtually no one will ever hit." - Morgan Housel

One possible solution could involve something that could be called "exposure experiences", that is, exposing yourself - gradually and safely - to situations in which there is a risk of failure, something that can help desensitize this fear response. The idea is that a person starts with low-risk situations and progresses to gradually more challenging situations.

For example, public speaking can be something where a person compares themselves to people with much more experience speaking in front of audiences, thinking that they can either perform at an identical level or they will feel like a disaster.

Becoming aware that this is an unfair or unbalanced comparison, the person can start practicing in front of the mirror, recording videos alone and reviewing them to make improvements in subsequent recordings.

The person can also bring together family members and, in a second phase, closer friendships to talk about a topic they feel comfortable with, among other possibilities, gradually increasing the degree of difficulty over time. During this process, the person will be able to create their own style, rhythm and fluidity, which may be different from that adopted by the people with whom they were initially compared, being still effective and adjusted to their own characteristics.

However, it is important to note that people with low self-confidence or self-esteem may doubt their capabilities, making them more susceptible to this fear of failure. These are people who may believe that they are not good enough to achieve the goals they set themselves or wish to achieve, which may even harm their willingness to try to build their own process of avoiding, circumventing or overcoming literal comparisons with other people.

When it becomes possible to avoid, circumvent or overcome direct comparisons with other people (which can be paralyzing, create inappropriate expectations or generate frustration, among other consequences that may require certified therapy - something that is outside the scope of this text and for which I don't have certified professional skills) and which contribute to the fear of failure, opens up space for a greater sense of adventure and exploration, in the sense that the lack of fear of failure creates incentives to explore new hobbies, careers and even cultures, which promotes the enrichment of life experiences and contributes to expanding the range of perspectives that can be discovered, considered and developed.

Author's note: this text expresses a personal perspective framed within some parameters, it is not a scientific article, of a medical, prescriptive or binding nature. It is also important to note that it was not intended to be an exhaustive analysis, in the future there will be new texts that will address other ways of looking at these same topics.

A content from Seikatsu Equilibrium® Master your reality.

© 2024 All rights reserved

#seikatsuequilibrium

#masteryourreality

#fearoffailure

#socialcomparison

#selfesteem

#selfconfidence

#accomplishment

#results

#success

#sdgs