3 ms·

I have recently come to realize that life can suck pretty bad if you don't have a high opinion of yourself. In short you have to believe that you are the best

I have recently come to realize that life can suck pretty bad if you don't have a high opinion of yourself. In short you have to believe that you are the best regardless of what the real world feedback is. Belief in absence of evidence is the very basis of religion , which is something we did ever since the very beginning of the specie, so it is certain that the brain is capable of going that route. The extra step is to go from belief in absence of evidence (which is typical of religion) to belief in absence of evidence AND also absence of real world positive feedback all around you (which is needed for strong self-belief). The person who can master this skill is going to have a hell of a good time, the separation between self-confidence and actual real world feedback would be so fundamental and pivotal in humans that it would completely eclipse the separation between Church and State.

bgdkbtv 4y ago
The fact that you got downvoted means that you are spot it.
mise_en_place 4y ago
Yes, better to be a knight of faith than a knight of infinite resignation.
haswell 4y ago
It's unclear what utility this mindset has and how it will not lead to self-delusion. If I convince myself I'm the most visionary product manager who ever lived, and I really believe that, it will either a) create blindspots and prevent me from proper self-reflection and self-correction or b) force me into a state of cognitive dissonance where I believe I'm the best, while knowing I'm not, creating a new and unnecessary problem for myself as I try to navigate the world. Feedback from those around you is an important form of evidence. While it is true that ideally one should not internalize that feedback or bow to its pressure if it's related to a moral or ethical stance, it is similarly problematic to discard it entirely, and delude oneself into a form of irrational hubris. > ...to belief in absence of evidence AND also absence of real world positive feedback all around you (which is needed for strong self-belief) Belief in yourself is important, yes. Not taking feedback personally is important, yes. Ignoring feedback entirely is problematic.
- mise_en_place 4y ago
  I don't think it's about convincing yourself of anything. A leap of faith doesn't work that way, you can't just say "I believe" and delude yourself into that belief. It requires actually having faith, which is experiential.
  - haswell 4y ago
    A leap of faith and blind faith are not the same thing at all. A leap of faith is evidence of self-belief, and is hopefully founded on some reasonable basis. A leap of faith takes something you know, and makes a bet based on it. Blind faith is based on nothing other than a wish, and persists even when presented with hard evidence that disagrees.
- Bubble_Pop_22 4y ago
  > It's unclear what utility this mindset has and how it will not lead to self-delusion. You gotta believe you are the best and let the chips fall where they may. Matter of fact if self-confidence and faith is high enough, you'd be having such a blast that you won't care where the chips fall at all. It's a way of cutting the corner, before you'd need accomplishments to be happy with yourself...after acquiring the faith you skip to the good part directly.
  - haswell 4y ago
    > you'd be having such a blast that you won't care where the chips fall at all Why is this a good thing? This sounds like delusion, not having a blast. Humility is required to self-correct when you're off track. Humility and blind faith are incompatible. Humility and self confidence can co-exist, however. My religious parents will tell you how happy their faith makes them, but they also managed to traumatize their kids in the process. Blind faith leads to blind spots, predictably. Blind faith leads to dogmatism, which is at the root of today's tribalism. Blind faith should not be celebrated. Blind faith begets religion, of the god-variety and otherwise. But blind faith isn't required to be confident in oneself. It sounds counterintuitive, but If you want true peace, accepting and embracing your limitations is a freeing endeavor. The stoics figured this out, and have quite a few wise things to say about it. Maybe you and I have different interpretations of what you mean by blind faith, but the version I've been exposed to is a road that leads to more problems than it solves.
Tarq0n 4y ago
Absence of a positive self image is pretty much the definition of depression. Normally people have a defense mechanism against this in the form of cognitive dissonance. This is why people are so good at contextualising as the protagonist, or excusing their own wrongdoing, but on the flipside the better you are at honest self assessment the more vulnerable you are to breaking this defense mechanism.
borroka 4y ago
I like this passage from the very underrated book "Winners" by Alastair Campbell. He writes when he discusses leadership: "Obviously, no skin should be so thick that you become impervious to critics who may have a point. But it does need to be thick enough to live with the hurt that criticism and attack may inflict. And thick enough to withstand criticisms that are just part and parcel of being a leader in any situation where others are entitled to express a view. Let them. But don’t let them stop you taking decisions that have to be taken. And don’t let second-guessing of what they might say guide the decision-making process."

bgdkbtv 4y ago

The fact that you got downvoted means that you are spot it.

mise_en_place 4y ago

Yes, better to be a knight of faith than a knight of infinite resignation.

haswell 4y ago

It's unclear what utility this mindset has and how it will not lead to self-delusion. If I convince myself I'm the most visionary product manager who ever lived, and I really believe that, it will either a) create blindspots and prevent me from proper self-reflection and self-correction or b) force me into a state of cognitive dissonance where I believe I'm the best, while knowing I'm not, creating a new and unnecessary problem for myself as I try to navigate the world. Feedback from those around you is an important form of evidence. While it is true that ideally one should not internalize that feedback or bow to its pressure if it's related to a moral or ethical stance, it is similarly problematic to discard it entirely, and delude oneself into a form of irrational hubris. > ...to belief in absence of evidence AND also absence of real world positive feedback all around you (which is needed for strong self-belief) Belief in yourself is important, yes. Not taking feedback personally is important, yes. Ignoring feedback entirely is problematic.

mise_en_place 4y ago
I don't think it's about convincing yourself of anything. A leap of faith doesn't work that way, you can't just say "I believe" and delude yourself into that belief. It requires actually having faith, which is experiential.
- haswell 4y ago
  A leap of faith and blind faith are not the same thing at all. A leap of faith is evidence of self-belief, and is hopefully founded on some reasonable basis. A leap of faith takes something you know, and makes a bet based on it. Blind faith is based on nothing other than a wish, and persists even when presented with hard evidence that disagrees.
Bubble_Pop_22 4y ago
> It's unclear what utility this mindset has and how it will not lead to self-delusion. You gotta believe you are the best and let the chips fall where they may. Matter of fact if self-confidence and faith is high enough, you'd be having such a blast that you won't care where the chips fall at all. It's a way of cutting the corner, before you'd need accomplishments to be happy with yourself...after acquiring the faith you skip to the good part directly.
- haswell 4y ago
  > you'd be having such a blast that you won't care where the chips fall at all Why is this a good thing? This sounds like delusion, not having a blast. Humility is required to self-correct when you're off track. Humility and blind faith are incompatible. Humility and self confidence can co-exist, however. My religious parents will tell you how happy their faith makes them, but they also managed to traumatize their kids in the process. Blind faith leads to blind spots, predictably. Blind faith leads to dogmatism, which is at the root of today's tribalism. Blind faith should not be celebrated. Blind faith begets religion, of the god-variety and otherwise. But blind faith isn't required to be confident in oneself. It sounds counterintuitive, but If you want true peace, accepting and embracing your limitations is a freeing endeavor. The stoics figured this out, and have quite a few wise things to say about it. Maybe you and I have different interpretations of what you mean by blind faith, but the version I've been exposed to is a road that leads to more problems than it solves.

Tarq0n 4y ago

Absence of a positive self image is pretty much the definition of depression. Normally people have a defense mechanism against this in the form of cognitive dissonance. This is why people are so good at contextualising as the protagonist, or excusing their own wrongdoing, but on the flipside the better you are at honest self assessment the more vulnerable you are to breaking this defense mechanism.

borroka 4y ago

I like this passage from the very underrated book "Winners" by Alastair Campbell. He writes when he discusses leadership: "Obviously, no skin should be so thick that you become impervious to critics who may have a point. But it does need to be thick enough to live with the hurt that criticism and attack may inflict. And thick enough to withstand criticisms that are just part and parcel of being a leader in any situation where others are entitled to express a view. Let them. But don’t let them stop you taking decisions that have to be taken. And don’t let second-guessing of what they might say guide the decision-making process."