Don't Keep Up With the Joneses: Be Bold By Being Yourself

We've all heard the phrase, "Keeping up with the Joneses." They have the biggest light display during the holidays, they drive the nicest SUVs, their smartphones are the latest model, and their kids go to the most prestigious colleges.

But are they really better than you?

In a word, no. In fact, it's a bad comparison from the very start. Besides the fact that they're in debt up to their eyeballs, their kids are jerks, and both Mr. and Mrs. Jones are cheating on each other, there are a lot of other reasons why you shouldn't compare yourself to them — or to anyone else, for that matter.

Let's discover why.

Social Motivations

Despite the current viral motivations to avoid it, we are a social species. We live in groups, some small and spread out and others large and very dense. We also have a natural ability as a species to recognize patterns and changes in those patterns. This also gives us an almost pathological need to compare ourselves to others.

This psychological need to determine where we stand in relation to others is deep and prevalent within us. It is a source of pride and embarrassment, depending on how we rank within the current standards of the day.

Is it helpful? Do we benefit as individuals, or even as a society, to constantly compare ourselves to others?

Not really.

If we have nothing to gain by comparing ourselves to the cheating and indebted Joneses up the street, how do we overcome our unconscious desire to do so?

There are some lessons to be learned by taking the Core Values Index psychometric assessment — the most reliable and accurate personality test available — and applying the insights it provides.

The Core Values Index, or CVI, describes your personality's DNA in the most accurate and reliable way possible. It efficiently and thoroughly determines how you are hardwired at a fundamental level. The CVI report lets you know what kind of activities and pursuits make you happiest and which ones will make you itch for a new direction.

The CVI is fast. It only takes about 8 minutes to complete. It is also very reliable. If you take the CVI today and again in 20 years, your scores will likely differ by less than 3%. In fact, the CVI has the highest repeat reliability rating of any psychometric assessment or personality test available, 97.7%.

What happens after you take the CVI and read your report? You learn what kind of activities are best suited for your particular profile. Mr. Jones up the street is rumored to be a financial whiz, something you don't know much about (or care to learn). You, on the other hand, might be really good at creating innovative solutions for a technology company, or at caring for the sick.

Everyone Has Their Own Thing

Everyone has their own thing, you know? We each excel at certain tasks and activities. We also have tasks and activities we'd rather avoid.

The specific profile revealed in your CVI report is what helps you define and determine the direction to take in your personal and professional life.

After reading your CVI report and learning your primary and secondary profile descriptors, keep them in the front of your mind. Remember what you're good at, remember how you're hardwired, and let those drive you toward your highest contribution.

Don't worry about what Mr. and Mrs. Jones are good at. They have their thing, you have yours. Remember where you shine and keep that in mind.

To put it another way, monkeys can climb trees but fish cannot. Fish can swim to the deepest depths but eagles cannot.

What is your spirit animal? Learn where you shine with the CVI and let that be your standard, not the Joneses up the street.

Any resemblance of the descriptions in this article to actual people named Jones is entirely coincidental.