There's a lot of confusion between "jealousy" and "envy". I didn't even realise there was a difference between them until I Googled the terms. Let me start off by explaining why I used the word "envy" instead of "jealousy". Because the world needs to know the truth!
You always hear the word "jealous" being thrown around in relationships. Jealousy is what you feel when a third person is coming in between an already established relationship and that could be just your friends or a boyfriend or girlfriend. There's absolutely nothing wrong with feeling a little bit of jealousy because that means you truly care for the person. Although it can make or break a relationship, so in my experience it should always be talked about. Don't be afraid to voice your insecurities before one of you murders someone. Lol, JK.
"Envy" is felt a lot and we don't even realise it. When someone says to you they're going to a concert tonight and you're not, and you feel sad and angry at the same time. Yep, that's envy. Envy is what you feel when you desperately want something you don't have.
Being envious of material things people have is stupid and we shouldn't want them so much, but alas, we're only human. You can live a happy life without owning a $320,000 Ferrari *cough* Kylie Jenner *cough* or that cool new phone, but it's nicer to live in a warm house than a cold one, I suppose.
You're not a terrible person if you feel envy; we're all pathetic humans that thrive on bragging about what we have, anyway. There's nothing wrong with you if you're suddenly filled with envy when someone tells a great story from their weekend or shows off their new Michael Kors bag (bitch).
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But being envious of things we don't have is what pushes us. We all want the perfect life with the big house, the nice car and no financial worries, and envy can help us achieve that.
Envy can drive us to work hard. You're envious of your friends going to that festival but you don't have the money, so you get a job and save your money so you can buy a ticket. You see a group of people out running and wish you were that fit and had that much confidence, so you join a running club. Envy forces us to be our better selves.
Envy can become a dangerous thing when you're envious of someone's looks or personality. We all do it; look at someone and think, "God, they're so outspoken, I wish I was them" and you can't be. We can all only be ourselves, the world would be a really fucking boring place if we were all the same.
In some ways, it's better for us to be envious of someone's new phone or their social skills because they're things that we gain; we can work hard to buy that new phone, and as cringey as it sounds, we can learn to adapt to social situations. A little bit of envy is good for us because it pushes us and forces us to be better people.
