Ego is The Enemy

2023-04-01

What is ego? It is something which says I am an entrepreneur because I struck out on my own. It is what which says I am going to win because I am currently leading. It says I am important/special because I think I should be/I am chosen. It says I am rich because I made some money. Privately thinking you're better than others is still pride. Ego looks at your past achievements and gets you satisfied with it preventing you from doing real work.

When we face failure, ego tells us that we do not deserve this failure. Ego tells us we deserve better.

We fail a lot and ego stops us from going through the failure. Life throws challenges at us when everything seems to be going good. Every moment, in the adversity, you can choose to have it as an alive time - the time when you are learning, stretching and growing or you can choose to have it as dead time - the time spent on complaining like misfortune is due to fate, I don't deserve this etc. Whatever maybe the situation, make it as an alive time.

Little temporary success spoils you. Ego cries for self-importance. The self-pride which you get after a little success kills further successes. It blinds you from doing real-work.

The world validates your work, your purpose - they may reject your work or recognize your work. Your job is only to do the work and keep moving towards the purpose, even if failure comes where ego asks you to stop.

How to stay away from ego? Choose humbleness.

Stay a student. Genghis Khan was adaptable, the army learned new things and internalized the knowledge of other communities. That's the way forward.

Be disciplined. After work, there is work. Your mind will resist work as it is hard. We talk to reassure ourself, make us feel good. Talking dissapates energy. Doing great work requires wrestling with the void, overcoming the fear and temptations. Embrace boredom. Stare at void if you don't feel working. Work even when you are depressed, sad, happy - no matter what your mood is because your work is your craft which takes you to your heights.