The Power of Pride and 
How to Embody It 

Any kind of accomplishment takes a certain type of mindset, whether you are an athlete or professional anything.

The difference between those who reach a higher-level of success and consistency and those who struggle to do so can come down to too little belief in themselves or too much focus on approval from external sources. 

Stating the obvious- more belief in oneself, even if it is from an unhealthy and wounded place, is much more conducive to achieving success than if one has low confidence in oneself.

The sweet spot lays in the in-between, closer to the more confident side.

Arrogance itself has two poles as well- a more positive on of pride and a negative one of vanity.

What’s the Difference?

At first glance, pride and vanity may seem like two sides of the same coin. Both involve a sense of self-worth, but there’s a key distinction:

Vanity is self-centered. It’s about looking good, seeking external validation, and measuring success by superficial standards. 

It’s fleeting and often unfulfilling, especially in the long-term.

It typically leads athletes to have an imbalance in their levels of intensity and discipline.

Ideally, both should be high, but with vanity, either intensity is high and discipline low, or both are at an subpar level.

Vanity is rooted in fear.

Deep down these athletes are fearful of not being good enough and recognized by others, so they want to show and tell everyone how important they are, including trying to convince themselves.

They are terrified of being perceived as inferior, which leads to them struggling to be resilient if they stay in that mindset.

As you can imagine, these individuals are challenging in team settings.

Pride, on the other hand, is tremendous for success in groups.

It is rooted in self-respect, hard work, and a sense of accomplishment. 

It is internal and sustainable, motivating athletes to push past their limits for the right reasons.

When everyone on a team can use the frequency of pride together, it boosts the energy even more.

They are much more resilient when faced with adversity.

Setbacks are used as an opportunity to grow and evolve.

Pride is the more heart centered aspect of arrogance.
 

How to Shift from Vanity to Pride in Your Performance

Put your focus on yourself:  

Be radically honest with yourself that sometimes you care how you appear to others.  

Then, witness your thoughts when that happens.  

Take a deep breath and come back to your pride.

Focus on the Process: 

Celebrate the effort you put in and your growth, not just the outcome. 
 

Don't let setbacks define who you are and instead find out what you need to do to improve and increase your levels of intensity and discipline.

Stay Humble: 

While it’s important to take pride in your accomplishments, remember that true pride comes with humility. 

Acknowledge your team, your support network, even your opponents and officials and the effort it takes to get where you are and where you want to go.