I have had the experience of being around other men who liked to 1up me.
What does this mean? It means that they thought they were in competition with me, and whatever I did they could do better.
This was really sad to me. I didn’t and don’t compete with anyone. No one has my skills and past and so its not a fair comparison. If a man is better than me in some way it is easy to acknowledge that. There are always people who know more or are better and some that are worse. That is ok and normal.
Why am I sharing this now? I was talking with a friend and I realized that one of my relatives was this and so was one of my coworkers. I had to deal with them both for years and so I just tried to ignore it as much as possible. Each time they showed that they were superior in some way I accepted it and acknowledged it and then moved on with my life.
Did I compete with them? No. I didn’t have to. There was no need to compare myself to them and I didn’t. They both ingratiated themselves into the decision makers good graces which was fine by me. Its ok not to be the favorite, and I don’t need to be anyone favorite to be content.
When you accept yourself, you learn not to allow other peoples issues to become your issues. No matter how badly other people may treat you, it is a reflection on them not on you. I just try to treat everyone with as much kindness and respect as possible, and hope that in time they grow as a person.
Were these men better than me and I was a terrible person? No. They were different and that was ok. One of them once said to me that he had more relationships than I did. I said great. Your the man. The number of relationships don’t make a man. The quality of those relationships make a man.