If you were to really boil down your desire to work hard, what would you find? An honest passion burning underneath the surface, or a burning jealousy of other peoples successes and the constant comparison of yourself to them?
How should we ever expect to succeed if we are only measuring ourselves by ourselves? After all, we are only human. Even if for 15 minutes one of us seems to be greater than all the rest. Don't be fooled by fame. A labor in love will continue on with or without the recognition from its peers.
But times have changed. Now we live in a world of celebrity magazines and selfies, where comparison is a normal way of life. When we look in the mirror, we don't see ourselves, but we see every little thing we don't like about ourselves. The same goes for our work. When we create something we don't hold it up to our own standards, but rather we compare it to the work of our peers. This isn't just harmful to those starting out, but it can suffocate the life right out of even the most well respected.
Stop looking everywhere else for inspiration. In fact, stop looking to be inspired so much. Have some alone time and get to know yourself. Likes. Dislikes. Sit down and create work that comes from deep inside. Just sit down and work. In doing so, my own heart began to change from a place of comparison to really celebrating the work and success of others. And I'm convinced this is a much better place to live, and work, from.