We Cannot Compare Ourselves To Others

Hey Sparklers!

My name is Alyssa Olson, and I am the new intern for Shimmer Sparkle Shine.  I am 22, and a student at Brigham Young University- Idaho.  I am studying political science with an emphasis in foreign affairs.  I love to play sports, especially basketball!  My favorite food is ice-cream, and I probably have an addiction, but we all need huckleberry ice cream weekly, right?  I love to travel, explore, and learn new cultures.  I recently traveled to New York and Chicago, which has become one of my favorite cities (mostly because of the pizza, let’s be real).  I am also engaged to an amazing guy, who makes me feel like a princess every day!

The Shimmer Sparkle Shine mission pulls at my heart strings because I believe every girl struggles with finding her self-worth at some point in life.  For me, it was all through high school.  I never had any huge problems, I was a good student, and was active in sports, band, and other extracurricular activities.  But I still never felt good enough.  I am the youngest of five children and I had a major problem comparing myself to my siblings when I was younger.  My sister was a genius and I always told myself I would never be as smart as her, and teachers would never like me as much as they liked my sister.  My work was compared to hers in some of my classes which discouraged me a lot.  One of my brothers was a star athlete and I told myself I would never be as good as him at basketball, and I shouldn’t even try.  My second brother was an extremely hard worker, and I always told myself there was no way our boss would ever think I worked as hard as him.  I thought I would never accomplish as much as him.  My third brother was so likeable, and I always thought I was too awkward to get people to like me the way that people liked him.  All through high school I compared myself to my siblings in this way.  I focused on their talents and how they were making their mark on our school, our friends, and our town.  I never stopped to focus on my talents and what I could contribute.  My senior year of high school I started realizing that I had my own, unique talents that my siblings did not have.  I realized I am very good at helping people when they are going through hard times.  I realized I was a good leader as I led a week-long girls conference at a university in Minnesota.  I became more comfortable with who I was and what I was doing in my life.  I also started to appreciate my siblings more, because I wasn’t angry anymore.  I realized that we all have our own special talents, and we cannot compare ourselves to others.  I may not have the same talents as my family and friends, but that is a good thing!  If we all had the same talents we could never help and support each other!  Being different and being unique is what helps us make good teams and work together.  We should all embrace our talents and our differences in this life.

Much Love,

Alyssa