If you believe that ego is basically an over inflated sense of self-worth, and that pride is a sin – then are they really the same thing, and if not, how do they actually differ from each other?
I’m sure that most people will ask this question of themselves at some time during their life.
Ego, in its most basic sense is a feeling of superiority to others and has a rather negative association. Or at least it invokes a feeling of separation from others.
Pride is a feeling of satisfaction we get when we achieve something that was difficult to do. Of course, you can also talk about the sense of pride we feel in what our friends, relatives or football team do, but in this instance we are talking about the feelings of pride we get due to our own achievements.
While pride can appear to be nothing more than an ego boost, it can also be a great motivator for you to perform better at sport, excel in academics, or be more demanding in the expectations that we have of ourselves.
Pride and shame are polar opposites, so you could argue that pride is a positive facet of ego and shame a negative one when the ego is discussed in the real terms of what it is: the development of our mental concept of self.
In many ways, ego and pride are 2 sides of the same coin and both have a basis in vanity. Pride will make you feel good about yourself when you feel that you have achieved something greater than others have. Then the ego may come into play to keep the id in check so that we always portray a socially acceptable face to society. You must have heard the saying “Pride comes before a fall”, and this suggests that the ego that is built up can also be deflated.
Because most people aren’t really interested in delving deep into psychological concepts and choose to accept common mistruths, there’s no easy way to determine what the actual difference is between ego and pride. Each will probably have a different meaning according to who you ask related to their own view of what’s “real”.
So, as you can see, both ego and pride have positive and negative aspects associated with them, so perhaps the only way to contrast them is to compare them. Is a sense of pride in one’s self the same as a sense of pride in one’s ego? The ego can quite happily survive on its own, and so, in that case, is neither good nor bad, whereas a sense of pride in that ego is seen as bad because it is an indication that one feels superior to others in one’s self-development.
As you can see, it’s not a simple matter to discuss, but the next time you feel superior to someone else, why not give your ego a break. And remember that it’s pride that may be pushing you to fall.
At some point during your life, you may be put in a situation where you need to start over. Whatever the reason you find yourself in, setting goals for your new way of life is going to help you tremendously. It could mean the difference between making it work and stagnating. Pursuing the right goals can give you a boost in confidence that change is positive. This is crucial when contemplating starting over.
When starting over, you want to explore as many avenues as possible to see what may work for you. Take advantage of any training that may help you discover what direction you want to take. Setting up solid goals is going to help reduce your risk of becoming discouraged. This is a common affliction with people who are starting over. Writing down your goals and referring to them will ease your mind by showing you there is something to strive for.
While it is a scary proposition to start over, it can also be a time for encouragement. You can think of it as a fresh new outlook on your life and with that comes exciting new experiences that may have been missing from what you were doing before. Think back to when you first started out in your previous situation. Your memories are probably filled with looking forward to going to work each day as you were learning something new. This can happen again for you.
Whatever you want to achieve in life or business, you need to have a clear vision of where you are heading. Without this, how on earth are you going to know if you are on the right track or straying from your path?
Setting clear, distinct goals is like looking down the barrel of a rifle and can ensure that you are ALWAYS aiming in the right direction and keep you on track.
Having a clearly defined path also give you “stickability” because when you encounter obstacles (and you will) it will help you to remain focused on where you need to go.
Without this level of clarity, you are much more likely to give up when the going gets tough and that is doing you a disservice because you deserve the rewards that your goals will give you.
The power of goals shouldn’t be underestimated and they should be set and re-evaluated often (especially your short term goals). Use goals to give you momentum, and more importantly, to maintain it, especially when you are going through the major challenges you are going to face.
Stay strong, be resilient and you will succeed; you are just being tested to see whether you really want it and you do, dont you?
Now, sit down right now and set some goals, and take some immediate action; let’s go get ’em!
