I want to share a piece of advice that I got from my mom. She often told me, “Don’t talk about yourself.” And just so it’s clear and nothing gets lost here, what she meant was don’t brag about yourself. There’s obviously nothing wrong with telling stories about your own experiences and sharing about life’s ups and downs from your own perspective. However, there is a problem when you’re always the hero in every one of your stories and have to one-up everything that anybody else says.
Well, for some reason, it’s easier to see that type of behavior in other people than it is to see it in ourselves. In light of that, I want to encourage you to make sure you don’t become the person who thinks too highly of themselves. If you do, and you don’t notice it about yourself, it can actually make people not enjoy being around you. As much as that’s true in the workplace or at a neighborhood barbeque, it’s even more frustrating when that sort of attitude shows up in our family life.
When somebody thinks too highly of themselves, it can seem like they’re just talking because they like to hear the sound of their own voice or they think their opinion is automatically right just because it originated in their head. Sometimes, they even come across as thinking their presence just makes everything better. I don’t think I need to go into any more detail than that because it’s pretty easy to see how it would be frustrating and annoying if somebody in our family was acting that way.
That’s why it’s especially important for all of us to avoid doing that kind of thing in our family life. Don’t make every conversation about you, even though that may be tempting. Don’t magnify every hurt you’re feeling and neglect how others feel. Make sure that your kids see that you’re humble and open to admitting and correcting your mistakes. Make sure that your spouse knows you’re willing to serve them and help out in areas that need an extra hand. In other words, don’t make life all about you!