At a meditation group the other day, the topic of ego came up. And the facilitator and others shared their insights on the subject.
It was somewhat enlightening, and after the group, a friend and I talked more about ego. She had a question was about her own ego and whether she has one.
Of course, you do I told her. We all have one. Then I suggested that the question she really wanted to ask was if she had an over-sized ego. Which she doesn't. Her ego seems just right: a balance of humility and healthy self-esteem.
And I believe that is where the line is drawn, having balance.
After all, we need an ego to navigate our way through life and to have a focal point for who we are, to have a sense of "self."
But when we get all puffed up about who we are, what we've accomplished, how smart or good-looking we are, or what we own, then that's an over-inflated ego.
For my ego to work well I have to have a balanced view of who I am: I'm neither the most wonderful person in the world, nor am I the worst. I must walk the balance beam of reality that says there are parts of me that do well, parts of me that need work, and yet other parts that are so-so.
It's a daily maintenance project to keep these things in balance - being neither too self-critical nor too self-aggrandizing. Then my life works well.
A large ego erects walls between us and others, something we never need.
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