What is self righteousness mean

“The more a person is satisfied with himself, the less he can be satisfied with,” wrote Leo Tolstoy. Self-satisfaction of a person correlates with many shortcomings - egocentrism, self-confidence, stupidity . Is it true? Let's try to figure it out and not slide into moralizing (which would also be a consequence of complacency).

Self-satisfaction of a person correlates with many shortcomings - egocentrism, self-confidence, stupidity

Close your eyes and imagine a self-satisfied person. He is probably proud and shiny from a sense of his own importance. He does not and cannot have mistakes and failures. He is right in everything and is glad to persistently carry his rightness to the masses.

In the cognitive sciences, complacency is primarily associated with the Dunning-Kruger effect. This is a cognitive distortion, which lies in the fact that people with a low level of qualification make erroneous conclusions, make bad decisions and at the same time are unable to realize their mistakes due to their low level of their qualification.

This effect is well illustrated by the case itself, after which Professor David Dunning and his graduate student Justin Kruger conducted their study.

In April 1995, MacArthur Wheeler rubbed lemon juice on his face and robbed two banks in Pittsburgh. He believed that lemon juice made his face invisible to CCTV cameras, similar to how lemon juice is used as invisible ink. Wheeler reported that he successfully tested his idea on his own Polaroid camera before the heists. Of course, such an absurdly stupid plan didn't work, and the police caught him in a matter of hours. "But I had juice on me," the perpetrator said, confused when the police showed up at his house.

The police concluded that Wheeler was sane and sober - he was simply deeply mistaken.

Dunning and Krueger became interested in this case and, as a working hypothesis, suggested that although most people positively assess their abilities in certain cases, some tend to mistakenly overestimate them. This hypothesis was supported by two studies.

In the first study, they asked students questions about grammar, logic, and humor, and then asked each respondent to rate their progress both overall and in comparison to other students. As a result, students who answered worse always overestimated how well they did. And vice versa - those who underestimated their assessment, answered better than two-thirds of the rest.

In the next study, the researchers went to the shooting range, where they interviewed amateur shooters about the safety of weapons. As before, those who answered worse were insanely overestimating their knowledge of firearms.

First, it is impossible to communicate with self-satisfied people. Effective communication is an exchange of opinions. And why someone's opinion to someone who is sure that his is the only true one? It is difficult for such a person to be a friend or lover; there is no room for compromise in his world.

Secondly, self-satisfaction does not allow development. This is a ruthless killer career and creative growth . If a person thinks that he is too good to learn something new or expand contacts, his priorities are set wrong and one day (sooner than he thinks), the fool will be overboard.

Perhaps the scariest thing is that complacency leads to more complacency. If an adequate person fails, he analyzes his actions and the next time he acts differently. A self-satisfied person blames everyone for failure, but not himself. But, if success accompanies him, then he takes it for granted and is even more convinced of his superiority over the others.

When can complacency be a problem?

• When you start accepting things you don't like just to make others happy and have a great life.
• When you start to feel embarrassed about situations that turn you on because you feel they go against your principles.
• When you are tired of systematically passing others in front of you and you see that they do not return the favor.
• When you make up excuses because you don't dare to just say no.

The bad news is that in order to solve a problem, you have to admit it. For a self-satisfied person, this is impossible. Some kind of shock can, in theory, open his eyes to his mistakes, but in practice, for every mistake, a self-satisfied person will find a thousand excuses and dozens of guilty ones. Therefore, we can say that there is a lot of work to be done.

The good news is that if you've wondered to yourself if you're not smug, then chances are you're not smug.

If you are happy to share joy, experience and hope with others, without opposing yourself to others, you are definitely not complacent. If you condescendingly explain common truths to fools, you are an inflated self-satisfied turkey.

To stop being one, doubt more often and ask yourself the question: “What makes me think that I am right?”. If you find the answer quickly - doubt more.

• Don't look down on people. Remember that there are more successful subjects than you. Take an example from them.
• Start talking to the people you consider successful. In this case, you will feel your failure in comparison with them and begin to develop.
• Identify your shortcomings and eliminate them. Remember that you are an imperfect person and you have a lot to learn from other people.
• Self-criticism is the best way to get rid of complacency. Remember that all people are imperfect. Therefore, you should work on yourself. Start doing this, and you will realize that you have a lot to learn. And this means that your complacency will disappear.
• Ask your loved one to comment on you more often. Surely you behave not quite correctly with other people. Therefore, it is worth listening to the opinion of the outside. However, not only to listen, but also to correct mistakes.
• Try to think not only about yourself, but also about the people around you.
• Start helping animals that have been left without owners.

There is a huge difference between self-confidence and complacency. A self-confident person is attractive to others, his self-confidence, combined with a sober look at his own capabilities, is the key to his successful career. Self-confidence allows him to grow above himself and overcome obstacles. In short, confidence is the perpetual motion machine that ensures success in life and career.

Complacency is the opposite of confidence. A self-satisfied person makes an unpleasant impression in society, and in career terms, complacency is a direct path first to stagnation, and then to regression. But the worst thing about complacency is that it creeps up unnoticed. You may think that everything is fine, and, in the meantime, sink deeper into the abyss of complacency.

How to avoid turning from an adequate person into a pompous person, who can neither advance on the career ladder (since the boss is also a person, and nothing human is alien to him, including dislike for pretentious people), nor a new round of professional development?

Solve problems.

Illumination rarely comes in calm. As a rule, a storm is needed to generate a revolutionary idea. Be where the storm is! You don't have to interfere with the normal operation of the company or provoke colleagues into conflicts, but try not to stay away from the pressing problems of your own organization. This will allow you to avoid complacency, and, in addition, you will be able to distinguish yourself from other employees.

Be unhappy . When you are happy with everything, there is no reason to change anything. Progress is change. Therefore, progress can only come about through discontent.

Stay away. Do not try to hide from everything that is not part of your main duties. Help colleagues, cooperate with them, in a word, stay "included" in the common cause. Renegades are of no interest to anyone.

Stay passionate . Do not let even the most severe fatigue develop into apathy. Your keen interest in your own work is the main guarantee of its success.

Remember who you are . Jobs change, but you stay. Invest time and energy in yourself, and you will be rewarded.

Work on yourself. Think, for sure, in your field of activity there are certain knowledge and skills that you do not possess. If there are none, you are probably just ill-informed. Even if you are Stephen Hawking, crossed with Steve Jobs, you still always have room to grow.

Relax . Sometimes even the most passionate and enthusiastic employee turns into a boring person who does not care what happens at work. It happens when he gets tired. Rest is one of the important components of productive work. So take a vacation, dude.

Doubt is a sign of the mind, that's right. But if there are too many doubts, then the reaction to success may be the impostor syndrome, which will appear in the near future. This is the name given to the psychological phenomenon in which a person is unable to attribute his achievements to the fact that he worked hard or discovered the innate talent of . Despite outward evidence of their success, people affected by the syndrome think they are cheaters and do not deserve the success they have achieved because they feel like they have not really achieved anything. They attribute success to luck, a combination of circumstances, or the fact that they were able to convince people that they are more talented than "really."

If you are experiencing impostor syndrome, there are many ways you can help reduce the level of unpleasant emotions. The most important thing is to remember that you are not alone and that these feelings are normal.

Focus on the facts

Imposter syndrome makes you feel like you're not doing a good job. But often this feeling is based on fear, not reality. The best way to deal with impostor syndrome is to separate emotions from facts.

The Conscious Leadership group calls this technique Facts and Stories. Facts are something that can be observed or filmed. Stories are how you interpret those facts.

You can't stop your brain from creating stories, but you can focus on the facts. The next time you find yourself in a situation where you feel like an impostor, remember the facts and stories. For example, if you feel bad after speaking out in a team meeting, focus on what your colleagues said.

Fight impostor syndrome with facts. Regularly compare what you felt with what actually happened. So you can understand how to stop paying attention to what you cannot control.”

Be aware, check and let go

Just because your interpretation of what happened is history and not fact does not mean that your feelings can be discounted. Dealing with impostor syndrome doesn't mean ignoring emotions. On the contrary, the best way to deal with it is to admit to yourself that you feel bad, confirm that this is normal, and then let go of these emotions if they are not based on facts.

Tell me how you feel

Imposter syndrome makes you feel lonely. But above we have already said that this is a very common problem. Nearly two-thirds (62%) of knowledge workers have experienced impostor syndrome. So the next time you feel it affects you, try sharing it with someone.

There are two benefits to sharing your feelings:

Instead of storing emotions in yourself, you become aware of them and move on. When you keep the feelings associated with impostor syndrome under wraps, they become harder to deal with. Sharing them with someone is a good way to become aware of them and get one step closer to defeating the impostor syndrome.

You can find someone who is also experiencing impostor syndrome. Unfortunately, workplace impostor syndrome is very common. You may find that the person you confided in has also encountered him. This will help you understand that you are not alone.

Look for evidence

If you don't feel better after realizing your emotions and telling your colleagues about them, try to deal with them with facts. The impostor syndrome often has nothing to do with reality, so you should focus on the facts in order to overcome these feelings in yourself.

If you often feel like you don't get your work done on time, go back to recent projects. Review your work to see if these feelings are factual. If so, then you have specific aspects that need to be worked on to improve the situation. If not, remember these facts every time the voice in your head tells you that you're not good enough.

If you find it difficult to analyze your work, try using a work management tool such as Asana. Such tools help organize work, analyze completed projects, and tune in to the successful implementation of future initiatives.

Reframe your thoughts

Our thoughts are very powerful. The way we perceive the world can influence the formation of our reality in both positive and negative ways.

If you are suffering from negative self-talk, start tracking your inner voice and changing it as much as possible. This technique will not bring immediate results, but over time it will help you behave more positively in different situations.

For example, the next time you make a mistake, try thinking "I didn't do well, but I'll try to do better next time" instead of "That was terrible." By reformatting your internal dialogue, you rewire your brain, forcing yourself to think more positively.

Find a mentor

To combat impostor syndrome, try to work on developing professional and communication skills. Then every time the voice in your head whispers that you're not good enough at something, you can always reply that you're working on getting better.

A good way to develop yourself is to get a mentor. Find someone in your company or industry who can support you and give you practical advice. This may be the head of your or even another company.

Finding a healthy balance between confidence and insecurity is not a one-year task - many seek it all their lives. The main thing is to search. Find a place in your heart for doubts, but don't let them follow you all the time.

Smug Smug | What is Self-satisfaction? to show boundless satisfaction with oneself, to be overly pleasing to oneself, not to see one's own shortcomings, to put oneself above others.