Today I learned about muting my ego. I went home on Tuesday because my uncle was in town. I’d always had great respect for my Uncle because he seemed to be a person I would want to be like. He is always calm, he is kind, and he is always so generous. I knew going home I would learn from him and that’s exactly what happened. With just the two days I spent with him I was reminded of his peaceful nature. I observed him conduct himself in a way of a man who is at peace with himself. I observed him conduct himself in a way of a man “who had nothing to prove.” He is of course human and there were times when his ego did show. But overall it was obvious that this man let go of his pride a long time ago. Observing him eventually led me to this idea today. My uncle is not only a humble, peaceful man but he is also one of the most successful people in our family, in practically all areas of life. It is now obvious that his humble manner is correlated to his success. I believe that his conscious or unconscious practice of a restrained ego has yeilded him more of a peace of mind, more focus on what is truly important in life, and made him more of a contributor to socecity. The negatives that come to mind when thinking about this idea are that it is a delicate balance, sometimes a little more ego is necessary. Sometimes you have to remind yourself who you are and what you’ve done to take on the next challenge. Another negative that comes to mind is that in putting this idea into practice people may see your humbleness as a sign of weakness and prey upon it to their advantage. Particularly in the world of business. Though, these people can only do so for such a short time. Poor behavior always exposes itself. I’ve had my struggles with ego more so than ever. With living in Baltimore I’ve adapted well to dealing with the negativity of others. I’ve come to embrace the petty intimidation games that come my way. I’ve come to find myself testing other people for fun. That is wrong. That is prideful behavior. Testing other people for fun is not a good longterm habit. It is a prideful act. I’ve observed that a common trait of people who are unsuccessful is pride. My ego is always going to be present so I’m going to always have to fight it. One way to break out of it is to cling to a purpose larger than myself.