Why did Naval say, "Don't tie your happiness to external comparisons"?

Okay, let's talk about this fascinating perspective from Naval.

Why Does Naval Say Happiness Shouldn’t Come from Comparing Yourself to Others?

Hey friend. That's an excellent question because it pretty much hits the core of modern anxiety. Essentially, Naval is pointing out a path to inner peace.

Let's break this down, and you'll see he makes a really strong point.

1. It's a Game You Can Never Win

Imagine your life is a race.

If you define happiness as "running faster than the person beside me," you'll get fleeting pleasure. For example, making 10K a month compared to your colleague's 8K feels good. But soon, you notice your department head makes 30K, and your happiness vanishes. When you finally battle your way to becoming head, you see directors pulling in a million a year...

See the problem? This "comparison" track is infinite. There will always be someone richer, smarter, better-looking, or with more accomplished children. Once you start playing this comparison game, you're doomed to constant anxiety and dissatisfaction. It's like a hamster running endlessly on a wheel – no matter how hard you run, you never get anywhere.

Naval believes that truly "winning" means quitting this meaningless contest.

2. You Give Away the Remote Control to Your Happiness

When you tether your happiness to external comparisons, your mood is no longer under your own control.

Your neighbor gets a nicer car, and your mood instantly sours.
Someone posts a vacation in the Maldives on social media, and suddenly your takeout doesn't taste as good.
At a class reunion, you see someone you used to outperform now thriving, and you spend the whole evening fuming.

Your joy and pain become entirely dependent on what others are doing and what they have. Their lives become the "remote control" for your emotions. Isn't that tragic? Your life should be defined by you; your happiness should spring from within, not from someone else's social media feed.

3. You Ignore What You Actually Have

Once trapped in comparison mode, your eyes become like a radar, scanning specifically for things you lack but others possess.

You probably have a stable job, a healthy body, a few genuine friends, and a warm family. These are incredibly valuable assets. But because you're constantly focused on someone else's bigger house or cooler car, you become blind to everything you already hold.

Psychologically, this is a form of "loss aversion" – the pain of "not having" something far outweighs the appreciation for what you "do have." This traps you in a persistent sense of scarcity, making happiness impossible.

4. Comparison Distorts Your Desires

Take a common example. You used to think your current apartment was fine – not too big, not too small, cozy and comfortable.

But because you see friends moving into school districts or luxurious apartments, you suddenly think, "I should have that too." Is this "want" a genuine, deep-seated need? Or is it just the urge to keep up, born solely from comparison?

Very often, comparison drives us to pursue things we simply don't need or don't truly like, just to secure a "ranking" in that comparison game. This wastes immense amounts of our time, energy, and money, ultimately bringing not satisfaction, but a greater void.

So What Should You Do? Compare Yourself to Who You Were Yesterday

Naval's antidote is simple, yet incredibly powerful:

Your only real competitor is the person you were yesterday.

Stop looking left and right. Turn your attention back to your own path.

Did I read one more page today than I did yesterday?
Am I a little bit healthier this month than I was last month?
Have I learned one new skill this year that I didn't have last year?

When you shift your comparison to your past self, you discover:

It's a game you can win: You can always make incremental progress through effort.
You take back the remote control for your happiness: Your satisfaction comes from your own growth, which no one can take away.
You become more grateful: You clearly perceive the progress you've made and appreciate what you already have.

In short, Naval reminds us: Looking outward invites an endless cycle of jealousy and anxiety; turning inward, focusing on your own growth, unlocks true, lasting peace and happiness.

Happiness is an innate capacity we develop, not an external competition we win.