In many circles, the debate between self-esteem vs. ego is still hot topic. The reason why is because there are two sides that have strong arguments to make. And it’s not always easy to tell which one wins out. But the bottom line is that you have to take a close look at these two concepts if you want to improve your self-esteem and achieve your goals.
The ego is nothing more than a human psychological concept. It states that you place a value on yourself. You believe that you are worth something. Ego can create all kinds of problems and even self-loathing when you allow yourself to be involved in these situations.
When you place a value on yourself, you’ll tend to see success as an end result. When things don’t go your way, you’ll blame yourself. Instead of seeing the opportunity for achievement, you’ll focus on what could’ve gone wrong. You’ll also think you know what’s wrong because you’ve been where you are before. Your mind runs on linear thought patterns rather than creative ones.
This is unhealthy ego thinking. It will lead you to be overly focused on failure and what you did wrong. You’ll be focused on the negative instead of the positive. And worst of all, you’ll give up too soon rather than working to turn it around and reach your goals.
To get over your self-esteem vs. ego issues, it’s best to re-think your approach to success. Instead of looking at failures as a gauge of how far you’ve come, look at them as challenges that are necessary for growth. Rather than viewing success as an end point, you’ll begin to look at it as a means to an end.
When you’re self-esteem is tied too much to your goals, you’ll give up too soon. The road to success doesn’t begin and end with the destination. In order to reach your goals, you need to work hard. And the harder you work, the better results you’ll see. And the better results you’ll see, the more confidence you’ll have in yourself. When you build self-esteem, you build the foundation for reaching goals.
When you view failures as a setback, you’ll constantly doubt yourself. This can cause you to procrastinate until the problem becomes too big to ignore. It’s normal to feel discouraged. But you must always remember that what’s true for you is true for everybody else. If you think poorly of yourself, then you’ll feel bad for everyone.
That’s not to say you should never take criticisms. If someone points out a flaw in your performance, use it as an opportunity to improve. Don’t let the criticism itself change the way you perform. When you build self-esteem vs. ego, you’ll realize that all the critics in the world won’t really matter. Only you can set your own goals and you’ll get there faster and stronger.