Beyond the fact that I refer to myself as a practising Stoic, which in itself might be self-aggrandising, it’s particularly through the practise of Stoicism that I’ve recognised boastful behaviours that I’m not proud of.

Because of low self-esteem I’ve sometimes created tenuous links to past experiences to bolster the feeling that I have value in a situation. I’ve used my ability to project confidently and articulate fluently to play a bigger role where that might go unchallenged. Putting these experiences under the spotlight, I saw the need to improve how I feel about myself. That’s not easy, but there is more value in working on self-confidence than shakily elevating one’s self.

This work is on going, but I think I much more readily recognise the contribution of those around me and how I can complement rather than dominate different endeavours. I’m in my forties and still growing up…

I found a thorough description of self-aggrandisement- as manifested in someone suffering Narcissistic Personality Disorder – on the Out of the FOG website. It makes for uncomfortable reading, given the reflection I’ve engaged in for this post.