Must Be Nice

Must be nice is a statement said by people who are jealous. Must be nice is a statement said by people who lack understanding or lack perspective. Must be nice is a statement said by people who are complacent in their own life. Must be nice is a statement said by average people. Must be nice is a statement said to people who have found a way to achieve. Must be nice is a statement said to people who have sacrificed, spent countless hours, and have created the life they live. Must be nice is a statement used as a crutch for those who utter the words, but is taken like an insult by the recipient of the phrase.

“Yeah, must be nice you can take time off work to run every day.”

“Yeah, must be nice you can afford to travel the world.”

Yeah, must be nice you can spend time with family.”

Whatever the situation, there will always be someone who tries to blame their circumstances for not being in the same situation you are. The reality is the person who says the phrase does not know what they are talking about. That person they think takes off work to work out, really wakes up at 4:30 in the morning to log miles. That person who can afford to travel the world spent years working 80-hour weeks and pinching pennies just to chip away at their goals. That person who is able to spend time with their family wakes up early, goes to bed late, and finds ways to get everything done. “Must be nice” diminishes the sacrifices it takes to reach the point where people become jealous.

“Must be nice” is nothing more than that person saying, “If I hadn’t blown out my knee I would’ve made it.” They are taking their own individual circumstances and creating walls in their minds for why they have failed to achieve. They choose to believe that since they do not have the same outside circumstances as you, they cannot do what you can do. They believe if they had your circumstances, they would be able to do what you can do. It is a circular theory of thought that misses the whole point. Circumstances did not bring you where you want to be. Neither did luck. Hard work, commitment, and sacrifice did. Uttering “must be nice” is an admission of defeat, jealousy, and internal turmoil all mixed in one. “Must be nice” is disrespectful to the people who have clawed to achieve.

Remove this phrase from your vocabulary. When someone else’s success is viewed, do not move to jealousy immediately. Go deeper, below the surface, and ponder the sacrifices required. Realize anything is possible and you can change your own circumstances. The only “must be nice” you should feel is that it must be nice you decided to change.