On Life- How Inspiration Can Lead to Deflation

We are living in the era of social media. (Duh, Hannah, you don't have to say that). Facebook. Twitter. Instagram. Pinterest. Blogs. If you don't have all of those...you probably don't actually exist. At times, I love the internet. I absolutely love it. I love seeing what people are up to. I love seeing recipes, or projects, or ideas. I love that it gives me something to do that doesn't take much effort. I love hearing about how people are walking with the Lord. I love reading tips and tricks and things to try.

At other times...
I. Hate. The. Internet.

Have you ever gone browsing, hoping to be inspired, but instead felt so behind, so boring, so not "hip", that instead of doing anything at all...you decided to do nothing but wallow in self-pity because you aren't "one of those people?" That's me. And it's paralyzing.

I want to be crafty. I want to be an organizational super-star. I want my house to be super cute. I want to be able to whip up a delicious, healthy, incredible meal like it's a piece of cake (only not cake, because cake is unhealthy). I want to have an awesome, stress-free exercise plan. I want to eat healthier and not just stick with my bad habits. I want to do these things because they're fun. I want to spend life trying new things. So why isn't it good for me to go on the internet and get ideas? In the midst of trying to do something fun, beneficial, or healthy...why do I instead experience unfortunate amounts on self-consciousness and inadequacy? Why do I shut down and try nothing instead of anything?

I think it's the overload. When I click on my feeds, I see someone mountains ahead of me, and forget about the mountain i'm building. Instead of looking at the one recipe I want to try, I see hundreds. Instead of searching for a way to organize my space I find a mansion that is spic-and-span and perfect in everyway. Look at all of those perfect projects. Wow, her house is so beautiful, so well put together. Man, she really has everything together and organized! Jealousy. Boom. Inadequacy. Boom. Shutting down now. See ya later, computer. Hello, couch.

Am I the only one who feels this way? Why is it so easy?

To work on: get inspired, but zero in on one thing and do it. Enjoy that one thing you're doing- you're doing it for happiness or growth, not to catch up to or compare to someone. Don't scan the pages looking at the picture-perfect illusion of everyone's life. Life isn't lived on a webpage. It's lived away from the screen. Start where you're at, not where they're at.

Goodbye, computer. Hello, having fun trying something new.