6 Ways to Tame Your Ego

in #life7 years ago

Take the Mask Off



Egos are tricky and can be difficult to manage.

Our ego is what the mind thinks we are. It is an image of ourselves which grows out of our life experiences — our body, sex, race, religion, culture, education, socialization, fears, and desires.

There is a great pressure on us to develop an integrated and assertive ego, and from an increasingly younger age. We are supposed to know exactly who we are and what we believe and are supposed to be able to defend that identity.

And unfortunately, Social Media is like crack for our egos. Waiting for that next notification, upvote, like, comment, snapchat, while those applications profit from the data we are creating.

The more strongly we identify with something, the more strongly must we reject its opposite. Therefore, the strongest, most obsessive egos belong to the least complete beings.

Egos can create unnecessary anxieties and hold us back from our true potentials.


1. Resist trying to be "right" every time.


2. Get over your sense of entitlement


3. Forgive


4. Be Honest



5. Be Comfortable with Your own Presence



6. Practice Gratitude



Meditation and mindfulness can also help quiet your ego. The first step is in simply acknowledging your ego.

Egos are not in charge, you are. Egos distract us from what's truly important.

"Our ego’s are like negative, fear- filled children that need to be loved and disciplined. We need to self correct our negative, immature, childish, fearful, reactive energies – and the only way we can do that is to first become aware of them working within us."

"When you are present, you can allow the mind to be as it is without getting entangled in it. The mind in itself is not dysfunctional. It is a wonderful tool. Dysfunction sets in when you seek your self in it and mistake it for who you are. It then becomes the egoic mind and takes over your whole life." - Tolle

Ego should be regarded as a tool, which can be sharpened and polished to employ your own path.

Thanks for reading!

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It's really a great post! Personally, ego is one of my biggest fights.

"Ego should be regarded as a tool, which can be sharpened and polished to employ your own path."

I don't see any good to any form of ego, though I see necessary the self esteem, like you said be comfortable with ourselves but also at the same time trying to take out the best of ourselves.

But I could be wrong, maybe it could be some way to use the ego like a tool and not like a poison. If you know some way it would be very insteresting and useful to me read about it :)

"Egos can create unnecessary anxieties and hold us back from our true potentials."

I totally agree with this, ego keep us back and limit us to be only who we like to think we are, by example entitling ourselves like masters in some knowledge area or task.

That thought limit us and don't let us keep learning new things. We are never going to know everything, we are all apprentices and we will always be.

Also that make us less useful for other people, creating a wall between you and others, a wall made of how you want to be seem, when it could be better simply be yourself and share, enjoy and learn with others :)

Great post! I hope to see more posts like this, which make us question, think, learn and grow.