On The Barbed Wire Fence

Right now, even, I'm afraid to start this post because of my pride. Haha!
Perfect.

So, how does pride get in my way?

Well, I'm known in a certain circle of friends as someone who is powerful. SO, when I really feel like I should reach out to someone for assistance -- down ANY avenue -- I don't because I am afraid of what they will think. I don't want them to view me as weak.

At work, I don't ever want help in growing, I want to do it all on my own, because I don't want someone to see me as weak there, for fear of jeopardizing my job security, so I hold in all my frustrations, take them home with me and analyze them here on my own, and then go back the next day and take on the job again, with a new, self-clarified vision. Part of that is that I don't want to look stupid for needing help, and the other part of it is that I don't want to look stupid by trying someone's suggestion and not doing it correctly. If they've mastered it such that they can teach it to me, and I cannot pick it up on the first (or heaven forbid, second) attempt, then I am an utter fool and will never learn, and their judgment of me in that moment will prohibit me from ever moving up, or growing professionally in my career. Either way, they are both self-limiting beliefs, and both stem from fear of looking stupid. Because stupidity = weakness. And weakness = uselessness. And uselessness = lack of connection. And lack of connection = death.

Pride endures until you ask it not to. So let's start easy. How does living in pride work against you? I'm not saying we all live in it all the time. But even the most enlightened of us live in it in moments. Moments stack up to become a lifetime. What are you AFRAID of (for pride is just an overcompensation for fear) so much that you'd rather live in arrogance? So much that you'd rather live a life that is harder for you?

They took your life
But they could not take your pride.
--U2
"Pride (In The Name Of Love)" from the album "The Unforgettable Fire"

Do you need to be the one who is seen as the provider? The one who is successful in her/his career? Do you need to be seen as the most pious? As the best at following rules? Do you need to be seen as the most offbeat? The most musically inclined, or artistically talented being?

What gets in your way? Please share with us.