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> Envy can be a positive and healthy force. E.g., I've always wanted to work with people whose skills I envy. That gives me reason to learn more and progress.
by JadeNB 4y ago
> Envy can be a positive and healthy force. E.g., I've always wanted to work with people whose skills I envy. That gives me reason to learn more and progress.
My understanding of the word is borne out by the formal definition, e.g., in Wiktionary (https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/envy https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/envy): “Resentful desire of something possessed by another or others (but not limited to material possessions).” That ‘resentful’ part is key to why I think that envy is (almost?) always negative. It is good to work with people whose skills you admire; if you envy their skills then you not only want to have those skills yourself, but resent that they have them.
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- yazzku 4y agoOk, that was a polite way of saying "English, motherfucker!"
- karmakaze 4y agoI'm not good at emotions and can really only recognize about 3 or 4 in myself. I do try to understand what value each emotion can have, on the presumption that if it had no value, it ought not to continue existing. Envy is the hardest one for me to find value in. At best it can be a kind of competitive motivating factor. That's all I've got. I think I avoid envy by first believing that 'I' could have been anyone on the planet, but just happened to be 'me'. Given that as a starting point, do the most with what you have. Even then I don't do near close to the max, so I'm not in any position to complain or desire beyond my means which I haven't realized.
- jamiek88 4y ago>Even then I don't do near close to the max, so I'm not in any position to complain or desire beyond my means which I haven't realized. Interesting perspective, i like that a lot. How can I begrudge others things when I haven’t even maximized my own capability and or circumstances in life?