Be Proud!

In culture and society, we are raised to believe in ideals and values that can impact our life heading forward. For me, two of these values were: stay humble and don't have a big ego. Easier said that done, right? It isn't a bad think to be humble and not have a big ego, but what do these things say about pride? There are many instances that pride can boost ones ego, and by boosting ego, you then become the opposite of a humble person. Then this goes against our fundamental values and therefore we are taught to stay away from being prideful, even if we are not told that directly.

It's also very strange to talk about this, because as I think of this topic right now, our world is very bi-polar. It is either, stay low, stay humble, keep your head down, succeed in silence, and you successes will talk for you and people will respect you more. Then there is the other side where our society is large, HERE I AM WORLD, take me or leave me, type, and there is nothing wrong with this as long as it is done right, but if it is ever done wrong, then it can come across as being arrogant.

This is why, or at least, I have some problems with pride. I feel like being proud is a good thing, but if I over use it, then suddenly I am arrogant and have an inflamed ego. This has drawn me just to not be prideful period, so I don't make any mistakes. Yesterday, I found out why we should be proud, or at least a little bit...

Yesterday, I was shooting archery and practicing and I was doing really good. I started reflecting on everything I have worked on to get to where I was at in that moment. I was working on minor details like shot time consistency, keeping my front arm straight, not moving my head, and having a consistent anchor point. Every time I had found a little problem with my shot, I dedicated myself to fixing it and keeping my shot consistent or if I found something wrong in my shot, I would try everything to find the problem and reverse it.

Finally, last night I had shot extremely consistent and for once in a long time, I was finally consistent. I had a huge sense of pride, because I wasn't just standing up there and shooting for the kicks and giggles. I wasn't up there practicing and hoping that through just shooting, I would magically get better. In practice I was working on my shot and focusing on it. If I did bad at a competition, instead of pouting, I would look back at exactly what went wrong and I would fix it. My shot currently, is like a piece of art to me now that I have worked on and molded over the years, and really in the last couple months and through my pride in my hard work and my outcome, I gained more confidence. For an example, the picture above showcases a great follow through that I had at a competition. My right arm came around my head when the shot went off, the arm holding the bow stayed straight, and the hand holding the bow was not "death gripping" the bow, so that allowed the bow to bounce back in my hand (which is actually a good thing for archers). It's a very good picture and one that I am proud of!

I think pride is something that is good when used correctly and we can find things in our daily lives that we can be proud about. For instance, I have watched my best friend back at home work herself to the point she is at today. She works for a clothing store where she sells perfume and when she first started off, she was shy and she didn't go up to people and ask them if they needed help, but now she is incredibly outgoing, she has gained many connections, and she has grown into a confident woman. That right there is something that she can internally be proud about and from that, she can gain confidence for the future that her career and her journey can take her.

Another example would be with my mother. She has been a teacher for a very long time and I'm sure when she first started, she was shy, nervous, and not sure how to handle some situations. (That's normally how she is when she starts something new... but aren't we all to some point)? Now that she has been teaching for a while, she has almost encompassed being a teacher. She talks like a teacher, her handwriting is very "teacher-esque," and she carries herself as a teacher. None of these qualities are bad qualities and they are very good, because it shows what she is passionate about and that her job doesn't just stop when she leaves the classroom. She is always giving advice and looking for those teaching moments, either for other people or even for herself. This means that she is living what she loves and this shows her dedication to the profession, because even when she is not thinking about her job or her profession, she still conducts herself in that way. This is something that she can be proud about, especially when tough times arise (because nothing is perfect), she can always look back to this and be proud of her accomplishments to keep her moving forward.

What I am trying to say is that even though you definitely don't want to be arrogant and boast yourself, because no one wants to listen to that, you still should be acknowledging your own achievements and gain some internal pride from those achievements. Even if they are something small, it doesn't have to be anything large. Just as long as we can find these little things to be proud about or notice these small achievements, then we can use these as fuel to continue further!

Defiantly comment, if you'd like, about an accomplishment that you have had recently or something that you are proud about-- something that can help fuel your success moving forward!

"Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else." Gal. 6:4