Encountering Pride - A Look Back at the Past

Being proud after achieving is something we all have experienced. We may not openly express our happiness as some people do but we feel this happiness on the inside. I’ve seen people are so happy to the extent that they even celebrate, regardless of the size of their achievement.

It is common to see people celebrating the results of things that they’ve been working on or anticipating for a very long time. This includes graduation, birthdays, marriage, and after being accepted to their dream job to name a few.

In addition, some feel proud and celebrate everyday after completing their tasks. In my observation, this level of being proud is common to laborers after completing a physically demanding job.

Pride Boosts Enthusiasm and productivity

Whatever the reason for someone’s pride and no matter how deep or superficial the reason is, I observed that it increases our enthusiasm and productivity. I encountered and experience this while I was still in college and in one of my previous lines of work.

Education: Taking Pride in our Course

Back in college, we’ve been constantly being told by one of our professors that our course is the best among other courses in our department. However, I also discovered that the same thing is being said in some courses whether it is in our school or other universities. LOL.

Regardless if what they’re saying is true or not, I understand that they just want us to be proud of our chosen field of study. They understand that by doing so, we will be motivated to do our best in finishing our studies. And it works.

Unfortunately, while this strategy works it also has its negative effect. A few of my classmates became too proud to the point that they belittle other courses. I also met a few who had been under the same conditioning - they took too much pride in who they are that they look down on other people.

Workplace: Being proud of our Work

This is also true when I worked for a Fortune 500 company. The nature of the work is repetitive – almost all of the workers on the production line are doing the same thing over and over again, 24/7. To some extent, there are even those who have developed some sort of psychic abilities. They’ve been in the business for years and they can determine if a device is defective just by touching or smelling it. While almost all of their peers would need to use an ISO standard machine to detect it.

Their work is so repetitive and boring that I usually hear their supervisors building up their pride. They want them to be proud of their work so that they will not lose interest which could decrease productivity.

Unfortunately, their pride is being built by looking down on other workers in and or outside of the company.

There are times when I think about these situations that I can’t help but wonder;

Does being Proud have to be Negative?

In normal situations, being proud is generally good as I have already discussed first. However, there are situations where it is really bad. And I believe that it doesn't have to be like that.

In the case of a workplace, they can make their employees proud of their work by making the workplace as enjoyable as it can be. Sponsored vacations, wage increases, or bonuses can also do the trick.

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Thank you for taking the time to read my work.
I appreciate it very much.

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Attributions:
Main image Photo by Joseph Frank on Unsplash
2nd image Photo by MD Duran on Unsplash
3rd image Photo by Arlington Research on Unsplash