Dear South Sudanese: Excessive pride is a dead end; modesty is the path to growth and development!

By Dr Sunday de John, Nairobi, Kenya

Friday, April 14, 2023 (PW) — Pride may be defined as a profound fulfilment or success arising from one’s accomplishments, characteristics, or assets. Pride can be beneficial when founded on actual accomplishments or traits and when it results in increased self-confidence, self-esteem, and a sense of personal worth. However, pride may take a bad turn when it is out of proportion or misdirected.

This can result in traits such as arrogance, egotism, and a sense of superiority over other people. In this regard, children and teenagers must have a healthy pride in their accomplishments, abilities, and other aspects of their personhood. This can help them develop confidence, self-esteem, and resilience, all of which are vital for their general well-being and the success they will have in life.

Conversely, young people need to be careful not to become overly proud or arrogant since this might have unfavourable effects on their lives. An unhealthy amount of pride may result in entitlement, a lack of empathy for others, and an inability to accept feedback or learn from one’s errors. In addition, it can result in strained relationships with one’s family, classmates, and those in positions of power and limit possibilities for personal growth and development.

Because of this, young people need to strike a balance between healthy pride and humility and cultivate a growth mindset that places a high value on learning, feedback, and ongoing progress. This way, they will be able to cultivate a robust sense of self-worth and realise their full potential if they do so; in addition, they will be able to cultivate meaningful connections and contribute to the well-being of others.

Having an unhealthy amount of pride may be detrimental to intellectual progress since it reduces a person’s motivation to study and improve. People must acknowledge their errors or take criticism to avoid missing out on personal development and advancement possibilities. They may also be less prone to seek new information or dispute the attitudes and assumptions they already operate with.

To advance intellectually, one must cultivate a sense of humility, curiosity, and openness to admit when one is ignorant of something or has made a mistake. We may increase both the scope of our knowledge and the depth of our comprehension of the universe by maintaining an open mind towards feedback and new information.

On the other hand, if we are unable to admit that we have shortcomings or to take constructive criticism, we run the risk of becoming rigid in our thinking and stunting our intellectual development.

Considering this, it is essential to have a healthy feeling of pride balanced with humility and a growth attitude. This can make it easier for us to maintain openness to new ideas and points of view, welcome challenges and chances for personal development, and keep broadening the scope of our intellectual pursuits.

There is no requirement to brag excessively about one’s academic accomplishments in conversation. While it is customary to take pride in one’s achievements and to want to tell people about them, it is also possible to come across as pompous and egoistic if one repeatedly talks about those successes. It is also possible to put other people off and give them the impression that they are disconnected from social circumstances.

Finding a middle ground between boasting about one’s achievements and acting modestly concerning those efforts is essential. Instead of continually discussing one’s accomplishments, it may be more beneficial to emphasise the skills and information obtained via education and how they may be utilised to assist others. For example, rather than always talking about how much wealth one has, one could talk about how much time one has spent volunteering.

We can motivate other people to follow their educational ambitions and influence the world by drawing attention to the significance of education and how it may contribute to individual and social development. It is appropriate to take pride in one’s educational accomplishments.

Yet, it is critical to exercise caution in communicating these accomplishments to others and refrain from engaging in excessive self-promotion. Instead, we should concentrate on the many advantages of education and how it may contribute locally and globally to society.

It is also okay for those with less education to pass judgement on others with more education. Formal education is not the only measure of intellect or competence; it may give a vital foundation of information and abilities to build upon. Many people might still need to complete their official education but have accumulated a wealth of knowledge and experience in other spheres. Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg are good examples in this sense. 

It is frequently beneficial to seek out various opinions and input from people from various backgrounds and have had various experiences. This can assist us in widening our grasp of a subject, revealing blind spots or places for development, producing new ideas and insights, and suggesting areas where change is needed.

In addition, it is essential to understand that education is not a one-time occurrence but rather a continuous process of learning and development throughout one’s whole life. As a result, regardless of the amount of formal education that a person has, we may all gain something from the feedback and evaluation that others provide.

In this regard, those functionally illiterate individuals who boast excessively about their degrees have room for improvement and can contribute to the value of their degrees. While we possess academic degrees, we must keep in mind that papers for the sake of papers do not contribute to the greater good of society. If papers were knowledge transmitters, those possessing fraudulent academic papers would demonstrate competence. 

Even though having a formal education might be a helpful sign of knowledge and abilities, it should not be the only measure of intelligence or competence. Assessment from various backgrounds and experiences must be prioritised because it may support continual learning and progress and maintain openness to feedback.

The author, Dr Emmanuel Sunday de John Along (M.D), is the chairman of the South Sudan United Front Progressive (SSUF/P), and can be reached via his email: Emmanuel Sunday de John Along <sundaydejohn4@gmail.com>

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