Attitude vs. Humility

The entire audience was giving a rousing round of applause...that is when I suddenly realized that it was the end of the speech. What a riveting speech it was..!! It certainly tickled my grey cells and made me think....not about what he was speaking but about the kind of personalities that exists in the world...so distinct...so contradictory...so delightful ....and yet so very effective! It was the inauguration of Entrepreneurship Cell (E-Cell) at my college and we had invited two eminent business personalities that had chucked their cosy careers to pursue their own enterprises and were very successful in their endeavour.

The first one had a royal air about him. He had a lot of attitude in him and spoke very enthusiastically. He did not mince words and was very harsh while explaining the hardships he had to face while he started his business. If at all there was a thin line between attitude and arrogance....that guy was certainly treading on it. The way he spoke gave me an impression that he has certainly used his attitude to his advantage and channelized his vigour in the right direction. I usually hate people with attitude because of all the people I have met they generally exhibit the negative implications of the word called ‘attitude’.  But this guy certainly made me change my perspective.

The next person to speak on the dais was an antithesis. He was absolutely ice cool and very composed. The first few sentences he spoke put the audience completely at ease and it was good enough to break the ice between him and the audience. The person was extremely humble and absolutely unpretentious. He managed to show us a completely different side of the hardships he had to face. He mentioned about the difficulties of starting an entrepreneurial venture which were pretty much in sync with the first speaker but he did it in such a manner that they appeared as challenges and which could be dealt with. At some points he used to contradict to the first speaker but he made sure that he puts his points across quite adeptly and at the same time showing respect to the other person’s view.

While the speech was going on I was amazed at the personality differentiations of both individuals. One very egoistic (though with a positive connotation) and the other very humble and yet both being so effective. Which one would I prefer...???

  

Attitude is something which is not at all hereditary and it is completely influenced by one’s social and family environment and culture. The textbook definition states that ‘Attitude’ is a primitive attribute to the preservation of the self ego or pride. Humility on the other hand is lack of self pride. I kind of prefer the second type of person   – very down to earth and completely non showy. Not that there is anything wrong with the first kind of people but maybe because I think a humble and a modest person is accepted universally. I have always believed in the principle of humility and I think it is a great virtue. I have always been in awe of all sportsmen who have achieved a lot yet they seem to accept each accolade and recognition with the same attitude as if it’s their first. I have even tried to model oneself on one such sportsman but not sure how successful I have been in doing so. J

I personally believe a humble person always has an advantage in terms of winning over more people. They seldom make enemies and even if they do due respect is given to them. The one interesting thing about humility is that it is omnipresent....for those who do not believe in it...life makes sure that at some point of time it will make us feel really very small ...so small that the person gets humbled by itself. It is a great preacher that tells us to accept success with a pinch of salt and not be overwhelmed by it. It is also a great inspiration which asks us to take our failures in the right spirit make profound changes within ourselves and take full advantage of the opportunities that come out from a crisis. Humility is not a greatness in itself.... it is a virtue that makes us accept our mistakes for our own good and accept our achievements by admiring and applauding the efforts of our competitors.

At that moment I recalled a nice little quote on humility that I had read somewhere. It goes like this

“To become truly great, one has to stand with people, not above them.”

With this lovely thought in my mind I joined the audience in applauding the second speaker...!!!