I subscribe to hundreds of email newsletters that I don’t read, even though I still want to receive them in my inbox. Call it a kind of digital FOMO. But recently, one of these newsletters had caught my attention, and I’m actually beginning to look forward to getting it. It’s the email newsletter by James Clear, the author of Atomic Habits. The interesting thing is that his newsletter isn’t just about habits - it’s whatever he is. This few lines caught my eye:

“To improve, compare little things.

-marketing strategies

-exercise technique

-writing tactics

To be miserable, compare big things.

-career path

-marriage

-net worth

Comparison is the thief of joy when applied broadly, but the teacher of skills when applied narrowly.”

I’d always shunned social comparison of any sort. Envy, social anxiety, status games - these were things I do not enjoy and never want in my life. But in this few short lines of profound wisdom, he makes the case that there’s also a good side to social comparison. Compare the little things - the techniques, the best practices, the methods - and you’ll learn, grow and improve. Sure there might still be some status envy resulting, but I think in being able to learn and grow from it, that negative energy gets to go somewhere more constructive. And indeed, that’s something I should do more of. It’s the other “broader” sorts of comparison that is the “thief of joy”, and something I should continue avoiding.

What little things, what sort of social comparisons applied narrowly should I do more often, so that I can benefit from it?

Compare skills and techniques, not outcomes/results

• Look at what others are doing in terms of their products (especially those in the same fields), and steal from them to use in my own, like create Twitter lists of folks from the indie maker field.

A constructive (instead of toxic) future of social media is going niche, narrow and more closed groups

• Social media like Facebook tend to invite broader sorts of social comparison, so I can tweak my feeds to become narrower by interacting with more specific communities, media outlets, articles, and more work/interest-related folks.  
• Join niche communities of practice and follow niche people on social media, forums, chat groups, so that I can learn the specifics. 

Mute and hide buttons are our friends

• Twitter recently introduced hidden replies features, so that’s a nice step to counter potentially toxic people online. I used the Mute or Block features liberally on social media, even if I don’t know them or are followers/friends. 

What other kinds of social comparison of the little things can I do?