“Whenever you take offense at someone’s wrongdoing, immediately turn to your own similar failings . . . by thinking on this, you’ll quickly forget your anger, considering also what compels them — for what else could they do?” — Marcus Aurelius
It’s an insidious little sentence that your ego whispers to you during stressful situations: when you’re arguing with someone, or when the checkout line is moving too slow, or when you’re prevented from doing things your own way.
“I’m smarter than they are.”
Okay, maybe that’s the truth . . . but so what? The folks you’re passing judgment on all have the same high opinion of themselves. Every person in the world thinks they know something other people don’t — it’s how our brains are wired.
And even if you really are the smartest person in the checkout line, how does that justify your dislike for your fellow shoppers?
No one, regardless of their cognitive skills, can just decide to be smarter. They’re doing the best they can with the intelligence they were given — which is all that any of us can do.
Remember: even if you’re the smartest one in the room, there are still plenty of people in the world who are more intelligent than you. Would you want them to look down their noses at you just because your IQ is a few points lower?
Of course you wouldn’t . . . because it doesn’t matter who’s the smartest. What matters is that we’re all human beings, that we were made to help each other, and that we all have unique and vital roles to play in life.