With so many types of media available at our fingertips today, it is easy to get caught up in a virtual “cat and mouse” game. From athletes representing nearly all professional sports teams to the celebrity “flavor of the month”; Their ideas, opinions, recent interviews and current indiscretions are plastered on every news stand and portrayed on the daily talk shows. Affected by this, we find ourselves blogging about what we had for breakfast in order to fit into societies perception that being egocentric will make you more “successful”.
Contrary to “popular belief”, Vicki Robin, author of Your Money or Your Life, thinks differently. To illustrate, it is common knowledge today that the social need to impress others is a simple by-product of self-esteem issues. Although demonstrating confidence is important, especially in business, you must realize that balance is vital. It is not in your best interest to brag*. No matter how great your golf game, your marathon finish time, your stock portfolio, or your individual accomplishments might be. When you focus exclusively on yourself, you systematically disengage others as well as inadvertently creating a competitive environment.
Instead, enter into conversations with worthwhile information that has little or no relevance to your personal attributes. The neutral environment will create an opportunity for each party involved to communicate something of actual value instead of perceived value and to also establish a basic commonality.
All of this leads me to a quote from the author of the aforementioned book, one that makes me smile every time I see or hear it: “Stop trying to impress other people. Other people are probably so busy trying to impress you, that they will, at best, not notice your efforts. At worst, they will resent you for one-upping them.”
*This reminds me of another book I read entitled: Brag! The Art of Tooting Your Own Horn Without Blowing It by Peggy Klaus. A book which I will likely refer to in the near future!
