Comments on: On Following Your Pride

By: Madeleine Kolb

Madeleine Kolb — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 15:04:26 +0000

Hi Jeffrey, I absolutely agree with this post. However, it does get complicated for some of us. Maybe it’s as Angela says about being raised to think that it was unlady-like (or bragging) to talk about herself confidently when people asked what she was doing.

Even now in the 21st century, sometimes in social situations people don’t ask me what I do. (They ask my BF but not me.) I guess they think I don’t do much of anything. I have plenty of pride and competence and confidence, but I’m still trying to figure how how to deal with this. Any ideas?

By: Michy

Michy — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 21:38:58 +0000

I really like your idea, but I would disagree with the wording. There’s a difference between pride and confidence. I subscribe to the older definition of pride as being an inordinate opinion of one’s importance or an unduly high opinion of oneself. Pride is more than simply feeling self-respect and having a healthy sense of self-worth.

That nitpicking having been said, I still agree with the message of your post! It’s very true, and I would say that it would probably be good and healthy for us to regularly re-assess what we’re doing to see if our lives contain things that we would be ashamed to admit.

By: Angela Artemis

Angela Artemis — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 19:57:51 +0000

Jeffrey, very thought provoking post. Why do we put ourselves/projects down when people ask us what we’re doing? I was raised to think anything I said about myself was bragging, and very unlady-like. It’s a hard habit to get over, but an important step in our growth. To be respected we must first respect ourselves.

By: Melissa Gorzelanczyk

Melissa Gorzelanczyk — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 17:15:04 +0000

I loved the rewritten bullets. LOVED.

Have a good weekend!

By: Jeffrey Tang

Jeffrey Tang — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 15:01:00 +0000

Speaking of megalomania – have you read Chris Guillebeau’s World Domination Manifesto? If not, give it a try. I bet you’d enjoy it.

By: Jeffrey Tang

Jeffrey Tang — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 14:59:55 +0000

Uncertainty can either be a great motivator or a great demotivator – it just depends on how you approach it. If you see uncertainty as something that needs to be eliminated, planned away, swept under the rug, then it will haunt you and hold you back.

On the other hand, if you see uncertainty as one facet of opportunity, if you take pride in stepping forward and finding the path as you go, then uncertainty becomes your advantage, because you’re willing to go where others fear to tread. :)

By: Jeffrey Tang

Jeffrey Tang — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 14:58:07 +0000

In my opinion, the way we’re taught to hide our pride and always hide behind self-effacing statements is a terrible thing. Why should we have to silence the rush of accomplishment or success? That’s a great example of a social norm that ought to be challenged. If you’re genuinely proud of something you’ve done, don’t hide it!

By: Jeffrey Tang

Jeffrey Tang — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 14:56:09 +0000

Exactly, Quinn. Pride needs to come solely from doing great work, not from undercutting the work of others, however tempting that may be at times. Pride should be an expression of what we love about our work, not an expression of our jealousy towards others’ work.

By: Mike Tiojanco

Mike Tiojanco — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 04:38:02 +0000

Love it. I went through this a couple weeks ago at a networking event.

For the first time I introduced myself confidently as “a blogger.”

Yes, I still have my full-time job, and yes, my blog is on the newer side. But if I don’t believe I’m a blogger, or if I feel like I have to be ashamed of what I want to become, then I’ve got no shot.

By: Sibyl - alternaview

Sibyl - alternaview — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 02:49:41 +0000

Great post. I really liked your recommendation to embrace the opportunity of uncertainty that Amber Rae described in her post. You both made great points because the reality is that we can easily become intimidated by uncertainty. It seems understandable that we all want to know what is coming next and even more understandable that we may become uncomfortable when we don’t. But, we really do just have to push ourselves beyond our comfort zone. It is the only way we grow and really set things up so that life can unfold.