So, being honest: I’ve felt just stupid and useless for years now. Everybody has a job; everybody’s mastered the raising of children; everybody but me is so good at things! Everybody! Except me.
So then my complex inferiority ran across an article like this:
Get specific. As I said, we can know we’re inferior in some ways. If you find yourself feeling inferior, ask yourself: “Okay, exactly who do I feel inferior to?” Narrow it down.
Emotional thinking is always sloppy, so tighten it up to make it less emotional. There are close to seven billion people on this planet (last time I counted). What kind of person do you feel inferior to? Rich people? Good looking people? Very academic people? People you view as accomplished? Most people aren’t these things.
Now get even more specific; name names to yourself. “Actually, I feel inferior to Bob down the street.” Why? How, specifically, is Bob better than you?
I do feel inferior and this quote makes me think that the friends I’ve been comparing myself to for years now are the smart, articulate, academic, successful bloggers that I read everyday and the smart, well spoken, well read contributors on the Diane Rehm Weekly News Roundup and the Slate Political Gabfest every week. No wonder I feel stupid and inarticulate compared to this batch of professional academics, reporters, intellectuals, and social media gurus.
I mean, I am stupid and inarticulate compared to those folks, but probably not compare to whoever’s reading my blog. That is, you. I mean you. Do you think I’m stupid?
(Honestly, I feel just completely stupid!) (But I’m starting so see that maybe I shouldn’t feel bad about that because of how stupid most people, you included, really actually are.)