Human being is a very sociable creature. Because of this, like other kind of primates, humans want to be appreciated from another member of community. This is a very normal situation but if a person wants to be over-appreciated there is a problem which is named “Egoism”.During many years, people discussed that what the egoism is. Who is acceptable as an egoist person? Or what are the symptoms of egoism? When people were discussing about these topics, of course there were lots of philosopher who have opinions about that issue. But there are 2 thoughts that have divided the whole world in to two.
First one is related to Michel de Montaigne. This thought defends that egoism is not a bad thing. Egoism is about just being appreciated. Montaigne says “Underplaying yourself is not humility but foolishness.”For him, people shouldn’t hide their need of being appreciated. Because if you hide it, you can’t get enough courage for any job. You may think “I am not ready for this work; there is no one who congratulate me.” So, you may feel insecure.
The other common opinion is related to Mevlânâ Celâleddîn-i Rûmî. Mevlânâ says “Discard yourself and thereby regain yourself. Spread the trap of humility and ensnare love.” For him, you shouldn’t put yourself into front of the showcase. If you know yourself and what did you do, there is nothing necessary more. It is unnecessary to telling your achievements to other people. Also for Mevlânâ, humility is the best way to achieve something. For example, think about you are the head of a company. You should manage your company carefully. If you mention a lot about your achievements, definitely you will get lots of enemy. Of course you should talk about yourself for advertising but not much.
As for my opinion, ignoring yourself and humility has a very thin line. If you can understand this thin line, you can be a person who is both appreciated by other persons and successful. I think you shouldn’t be a person who always mentions about her/himself. However, you should share what are you doing without exaggerate it. This provides taking criticism from others. If you get them you can decide your next move. Don’t forget this Chinese proverb: “Be like the bamboo, the higher you grow,the deeper you bow.