Unravel the complex dynamics of the ego, that boastful voice often overshadowing humility. Explore its intricate workings, its influence on our behavior, and the delicate balance between self-confidence and arrogance. Delve into the journey of self-awareness and the pursuit of a more humble existence.
What’s the ego?
People often define it as a kind of social mask, made up of arrogance and defense mechanisms
- The most common definition of ego is haughtiness or arrogance
- An identity that you build with your internal factory
- Your authentic self lies behind this artifice of self, behind the external mask
Five ways to better understand this psychological construct
Ego is one of the most complex constructs in psychology
- Within psychology, many concepts use the prefix ego
- egotism, the egoic mind, egocentrism, or even ego defense mechanisms
- Eastern philosophy has been studying these ideas for centuries
The effects of a distorted ego
You constantly feel as if you’re constantly lacking something
- This reflects a mind obsessed with knowing what others think
- It’s being afraid to fail, not being loved, disappointing your parents, and having fewer money than others, etc.
- These types of fears lead you to develop defense mechanisms
Sigmund Freud’s legacy
Freud believed that human beings are subjected to three counter-opposing forces that determine how they act and respond to the world
- The ego, the id, and the super id
- Ego: the representation you make of the world around you
- Id: the entity that tries to control your impulses and basic instincts
- Super id: satisfies your desires in a socially acceptable way
Healthy Ego
A healthy ego allows you to have a meaningful life because it helps you be in harmony with what you are.
- It helps you understand that everyone deserves respect, that no one is better than anyone else, and that satisfaction stems from tolerance and self-care.
- Although all definitions of ego many confuse you, you need to remember that isn’t either good or bad. It’s part of you.
The spiritual, mystic, and Buddhist perspective on the ego
Buddhists believe that the ego is an incorrect conception of the self
- It comes to you at birth and integrates your image, identity, nationality, passions, culture, education, and beliefs
- We become attached to these processes, but because they’re oriented externally, they hide your authenticity
- The ego is a false identity that brings suffering
The ego from a psychological perspective
The psychological construct that is the ego is a part of you that you’ve built to move around in the social world
