Hey Reader,

Yudi here,

Before we start, here's a special mention..

Lately, life has been a bit different for me.

I moved to North Carolina. Still figuring out routines.

There’s something about moving that makes you pause.
You start looking at your life from a distance.

And for the most part… I felt grateful.

Then something small happened.

I came across a post.

One of those “this is what I achieved this year” posts.
You’ve probably seen them.

House paid off. Another property back in India. EB5 investment. Luxury cars. Huge net worth.

Objectively, impressive.

But my reaction wasn’t “wow.”

It was… “Am I behind?”

Because I’ve been here for more than 12 years now.
Built a life. Paid off loans. Figured things out step by step.

And still… that feeling showed up.

First it’s getting a job ->Then it’s salary ->Then company name -> visa -> H-1B -> green card ->house -> investments.

Every time you feel “settled,” the target moves.

And if you’re an international student right now…

You’re not just playing this game. You’re trying to understand the rules while playing it.

You’re thinking about :

• internships
• OPT
• H1B
• sponsorship
• loans
• expectations from home

All at the same time.

So when you see someone “ahead,” it doesn’t feel like comparison. It feels like pressure.

I ended up recording a video about this.

If you’ve ever felt like you’re falling behind in life as an immigrant, I want you to watch this.

Because the more I thought about it, the more I realized…

This feeling isn’t rare. It’s actually very common.

You wake up.
Open LinkedIn.
Someone got promoted.

Open Instagram.
Someone is on vacation or buying a new car.

Open WhatsApp.
Someone got their H-1B.
Someone’s priority date moved.
Someone got multiple interviews.

And you’re just sitting there thinking:

“What am I doing wrong?”

The hard part is… nothing might be wrong.

But your brain doesn’t know that.

It’s constantly comparing your real life​
to everyone else’s highlight moments.

And slowly, without you noticing, it starts to change how you see yourself.

You begin questioning your pace. Your decisions. Your worth.

I did that.

And I didn’t even realize it at first.

What’s different about life here is that the “scoreboard” never stays the same.

Back home, it was simple.

Marks. Results. Rankings.

Here, it keeps shifting. There’s always a next level.

And when you measure yourself against something that keeps moving… you’ll always feel behind.

Even when you’re doing fine.

And I think this is where things quietly start to go wrong for a lot of immigrants.

Comparison doesn’t stay as comparison.

It turns into something else.

You become a little more guarded.
A little less open.
A little less willing to help.

People stop sharing opportunities.
Stop helping with referrals.
Stop talking honestly.

Not because they’re bad.

But because somewhere, they start believing there isn’t enough for everyone.

I’ve seen this. And if I’m being honest, I’ve probably felt traces of it too at times.

But here’s what I’ve learned, slowly, over the years.

None of that actually helps.

Jealousy doesn’t speed things up.
Silence doesn’t create opportunities.
Isolation doesn’t make you stronger.

What has helped me is something much simpler.

Choosing people over comparison.

Some of the strongest relationships I have today started years ago.

I still talk to people I worked with over a decade back.
We meet, we catch up, we help each other when needed.

That didn’t happen because I was the smartest or fastest.

It happened because I stayed open.

And maybe I’m sharing this with you because…

If this thought could affect me,
I know it’s affecting many of you too.

Especially if you’re earlier in your journey.

So if you’ve been feeling behind lately,
I just want to say this clearly.

You’re not late.

You’re just playing a longer game than you realize.

There’s no perfect timeline here.

There’s just your path.

And it might take longer than you expected.
It might look different than others.

But that doesn’t make it wrong.

I don’t have a perfect ending for this.

Just one thought I’m trying to hold onto myself:

Don’t let comparison shrink your world.

Keep building. Keep learning. Keep showing up.

And more importantly…
​keep your circle human.

This was a different kind of newsletter. More like thinking out loud.

If it resonated with you, just reply and let me know.
I read everything.

— Yudi J

P.S.​
If you’re going through this journey and want to be around people who are actually trying, learning, and helping each other… that’s exactly what we’ve built inside the Job Hunting Accelerator.

Not just strategies. A space where you don’t feel alone while figuring things out.

Join whenever it feels right:)