Self-esteem vs Ego: Draw the line, notice the difference
Times of Bennett | Updated: Mar 22, 2023 13:30
By Ipsitaa Bhaskar
Self-esteem or ego , what do you think is the right word that would fit in order to describe a person’s personality? Well, going by the usual narrative, people often tend to confuse self-esteem for the word ego and knowingly or unknowingly are the first ones to criticise people who have the guts to take a stand for themselves knowing that they deserve this and much more. But who’s going to actually go ahead and differentiate the meaning of these words for the general public. Years ago, I, myself thought that these words meant the same and it’s only fair to give your 100% to your dearest ones while completely ignoring yourself. But today I can proudly say that I know my worth and as and when time comes I would put in all my efforts to prove me. Though I’m just 19, still I have my share of experiences. So things date back to seventh standard, when the 12-year old Ipsitaa always used to fight for her friends or her brother with any stranger out there, but when the time came to fight for herself, things felt wrong. I always thought that if I would fight with my friends then it would lead to me hurting them and as a result I would end up loosing them, and how could a then extrovert like me afford this? Therefore, I never used to defend me and always ended up doing things that were in their favour. Time passed until one day my friend made me realise that the way I was doing things is not right, and if I don’t change this narrative then life is not going to be easy for me. Something in that speech struck my mind and I finally changed the way I thought. Years later, COVID hit us which gave me ample amount of time with myself and slowly that degree of self-worth started increasing and bam!! Five years later, after quite some learnings, I was a completely different Ipsitaa. A more happy, content and proud yet grounded one. And maybe this version is a good one, who knows. Ego is often used in negative senses denoting that the person is self-centred and thinks highly of themselves, while looking down upon others. On the other hand, self-esteem refers to a state wherein one appreciates, acknowledges, and respects themselves while respecting other peoples point of view. Trust me guys, there is a huge difference between ego and self-esteem, and the sooner you realise it, the better it gets. Sharing my experience with you with the hope that maybe in some way I’ll be able to help you and maybe after reading this you’ll start valuing yourself more. A very popular cliché states that “ you won’t love anyoneuntil and unless you love yourself’, but trust me , until and unless you don’t value and respect yourself the way you deserved to be , someone else would become the sailor of your life boat , and you don’t want that to happen. Well this was it for today’s blog . I hope you liked. Will be returning next week with much more interesting and relatable conversations.
Bbyee!
Bbyee!