The comparison game is real. Just when you start to feel good about your progress, someone else blows right past you and reaches their goals in what feels like record time. And you’re left standing there, thinking … Am I doing something wrong? Will I ever actually reach my goals? Is my best effort enough?  

I’m here to tell you that, no, you’re not doing anything wrong, and, yes, you will reach your goals if you keep working hard. Most importantly, doing your best is (and always will be) more than enough. And if you commit to giving your full effort day in and day out, amazing things will eventually happen for you. 

It’s time for a pep talk! Here are my tips on staying in your lane, focusing on your own progress, and giving your best effort, daily.  

Truth: We all grow at our own pace.

Before I can dive in with all my words of wisdom on how to continually do your best, we have to address this whole idea of comparison. You’ll never be at peace with where you’re at until you’re also at peace with not being where someone else is at, so this is important! Here’s a handy dandy list to help you out when you start to get sucked into comparison:

• Focus on your strengths. Other people may have unique skills and traits, but guess what? You do, too!
• Strive for constant growth. How can you be better than the person you were yesterday?
• Show gratitude (creative ideas, here!).
• Remember that we all have insecurities that we don’t necessarily show on the outside. Every single one of us.

So, you didn’t make the team. Or you didn’t win the competition. Or, you were rejected from your dream role. You know who’s been in the exact same position that you’re in right now? Fashion designer, Vera Wang (okay, maybe not the exact same position, but just hear me out). She spent 15 years working her way up the ranks at Vogue™, repeatedly getting rejected for the Editor-in-Chief Position. But did she give up? Nope. She became a fashion designer … and started a company that now makes more than $343.8 million each year—no big deal (just kidding, it’s a really big deal). 

The point is that it’s never fun to fall short, especially if you know you gave your best effort. But rather than letting your failures convince you that you’re not good enough, use them as motivation to reroute your path to success. 👏 

Go all in.

One thing they don’t tell you about success: Achieving it requires you to be honest with yourself. It’s not enough to be your best some of the time, or even most of the time. Reaching your big goals requires you to go all in. Put your head down, get to work, and keep focusing on your path to success. Most importantly, don’t stop until you get to where you want to be. Here are my final tips on being your best self, daily: 

• Do what you love (trust me, it’s a whole lot easier to get excited about doing what you love than doing what you don’t love).
• Be fully present, wherever you’re at.
• Focus on consuming positive news—use this article for pointers.
• Set daily and weekly goals to hold yourself accountable.

There are a lot of things we can’t control in life—other people, the past, and the future, just to name a few. But do you know what you can control? Choosing to give 100% of your effort, focusing on yourself, and showing up for yourself, whether you feel like it or not. Because your best is good enough.  

Give your best effort to your goals every day and AMAZING things will happen! Read my post to learn how to stay productive (even when you really don’t want to).