Your Pride Can Be Poison For Your Soul

Just yesterday I came cross this post on Instagram that read in beautiful, bold typography the following:

"Pride is nothing to be proud of." And it really hit me because feeling proud of myself, the work I do and how I am, was a serious goal that I was genuinely working towards. Something I bet I am not alone in.

We all want to be proud of ourselves. But what if that's not such a good thing to strive for?

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Let me break this down for us.

Pride as an emotion has the power to be both - it can motivate you or it can poison your soul.

We are encouraged to feel proud when we accomplish something. It makes us feel great. The taste of success always feels good. And it gives rise to more positive behaviour. For instance, if a student works hard in his subject, studies before an exam, pays attention in class and ends up doing well, then in his head, working hard will be associated with positive results.

But (and there's always a but), being proud is completely different. Being proud can make us appear as arrogant, self-absorbed and as someone who has an inflated ego. And the last time I checked, none of us want to be around someone who is super proud for no rhyme or reason.

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While in no way are we implying that you shouldn't be proud of yourself, it's not okay to be proud in excess either.

When does pride become excessive? When you begin to flaunt an exaggerated appreciation for yourself by devaluing others. A time when you turn other people into competitors.

And that's not it. Being excessively proud can give rise to negative behaviours that will do you no good. Being proud is like living with a distorted notion, where you start to think you are superior and everyone else is inferior. Once you imbibe such a mindset, you will look down upon people who might not have what you have, you don't treat them well, disrespect them or even demean them.

No wonder then that we see so many entitled people behaving rudely with staff, waiters or just people from financially weak backgrounds.

Are we friends with such people? No, we aren't.

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Just remember, being extremely proud stems from issues of low self-worth. Excessively proud people put down people, make other people feel inferior only because they don't feel too good inside.

Don't be that person.

Your greatness should be measured in how humble and compassionate you are instead of how proud you are. Make yourself feel good by doing good to others. Don't make yourself feel good by devaluing others. Something you will do by feeling too proud.