We think our ego will never get the best of us and that we are aware and we know what’s best, but the truth is, our biggest obstacle in life is our ego. Our ego can run everything in our life. For instance, a pilot runs a huge airplane and gets tons of metal in the air. How do they do it? With the control panel. Same as our ego, it appears we are the plane and our ego is the control panel to everything we say do and think. You see, our ego is that part of our mind that contains our consciousness and memory. It is quite involved in the process of controlling, planning, and conforming to this reality.

What we fail to recognize is that our ego gets in the way more often than not, and it can cause a great deal of suffering whether it is personal, emotional, professional, physical or social. Here’s the thing, we sometimes unconsciously place ego in front of everything else and this causes us to lose objectivity. It stops us from moving forward.

When ego gets in the way, we are blinded by feelings of superiority and lose touch with what is really going on. We lose sight of what is right in front of us. Our ego is what can make us jealous, what can create fear in us, it is what can make us feel anxious, and it certainly is in charge of your judgmental self.  Part of that is because our ego wants to protect us, but in doing so, it causes more harm than good.  We many times have to pick up life messes that ego has created.

That is how blinding ego is. Now hold on and don’t get your ego all stretched out over this. It is natural that our ego defends us so do not get offended. Ego has a purpose however, the idea here is to recognize when and how our ego gets in the way and what we can do to walk a path of awareness. The first thing to remember when taming ego is to know that ego is not bad, it is simply misguided and our job is to use our awareness and allow ourselves to move past the ego.

The first way we can try and tame our ego is to think before you talk. Stop being so reactive. Practicing the integrity of your words will result in a better quality of life for yourself. If I know I am going to be reactive, in my mind, I count to five before speaking alas, sometimes my ego wins and I am given the opportunity to try it again.  Speaking of talking and speaking, try to watch what you say. You see, ego loves to make itself right. It loves to justify itself. So watch carefully as you speak and make sure you are talking from your heart, and not your ego.

Ego wants to be right.  The truth is you don’t have to be right. It’s okay to not be perfect now that is ego when you look for perfection.  Another great way to tame your ego is to admit that ego gets in the way. You do not have to admit it out loud, but it is best to at least admit it to yourself.  Go ahead, whisper to yourself “Ego, shut up!” The most courageous thing you can do is when you are wrong, promptly admit it to yourself.

Ego tries to shape our perception. Be careful then of how you choose to perceive things and try your hardest to move in the direction letting go of the ago, and aligning it with who you really are. You will feel better and those around you will feel better as well. So, leggo of your ego.