Express

Genuineness

Outwardly

 

Ego—that three-letter four-letter word. Everyone’s got one. Yet everyone complains about everyone else’s. Ego as of late has gotten a bad rap. It has become synonymous with arrogance and a self-inflated sense of one’s value and worth. It’s become a three-letter word to toss someone’s way when we want to avoid one of the four-letter words a tad harsher than jerk that our mothers told us never to say.

When we say someone has an ego we‘re basically using a euphemism for one of those harsher four-letter words that starts with a or b or f. If someone does something we dislike or worse someone is someone we dislike, we dismiss it with a flick of the wrist or the finger accompanied with the mindset that they’ve got an ego problem. In reality the one with the problem might likely be us.

Ego isn’t necessarily a bad thing to have. Ego is the Latin and Greek word for I or self. We all need a sense of purpose and self. Without it we’d be drones. Or worse, a burned-out shell. Lack of it correlates to low self esteem and lack of sense of purpose, vision or identity. What is upsetting or bad and therefore what gives ego its bad rap is the exploitation of others to service oneself.

There is a difference between inflated self worth and healthy self esteem. The latter is imperative to functionality in life, in the world, within oneself.

A healthy ego leads to a healthy, productive sense of self. Identity and our sense of self are viewed thru the prisms of our unique life experiences. The good; the bad; the ugly. It all percolates in the kettle of our soul and expresses positively or explodes volatility in the form of ego. All of which is based upon our experiences and how they affect us and most of all how we view life, the world, others and ourselves.

In short, ego is how we define who we are and what our purpose in life is. The ego strives for balance but oft thrives on imbalance. It is when the ego dwells in imbalance when we tread into that inflated or in some cases deflated ego realm. During imbalance is when ego creates problems for ourselves and for those around us. It is also what gives ego its bad rap.

So instead of thinking of ego as something bad, something that needs to be erased or eliminated, think of it as something that needs proper balance. Try this on for size—ego: express genuineness outwardly. For if we are genuine to our unique spirits’ callings and confident in our individual personal identities, then ego is an ally. It will enable you to be a blessing to yourself, others and the world.

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