A PRIDE of lions - the best pic I could come up with. Sue me!

Pride – what an interesting double edged sword this 5 letter word is.

On one hand, there is the good side of pride: a feeling of self-respect and personal worth. Being proud of myself and who I am. A strong, well balanced sense of personal pride shows on the outside in my appearance and on the inside in the way I speak and how I feel about myself.

Then there is the dark side of pride – having an unreasonable and inordinate sense of personal worth. In other words, being so proud of myself that I don’t see my own mistakes, weaknesses, or where I need help in my life.

Here’s how the dark side of pride shows up:

• I am always right (I do not need to learn new things)
• Nothing that happens to me is my fault (I am not responsible for my life)
• I don’t need help from anyone for anything (I can do everything on my own)

At the root, the dark side of pride is a complete self focus as in:“I know all the answers in life and if one of them turns out to be incorrect and I end up failing and looking like a doofus, it’s someone else’s fault.”

In dating, pride shows up in one primary way: not learning from past mistakes and then moving on.  So, you made a few mistakes in your dating career and your ex-girlfriend/boyfriend was a jerk a few times – so what?  It’s time to leave this where it belongs: in the past.

Telling the story over and over again to others, playing the role of victim, or wondering what the heck is wrong with people will not help the situation.  If this is happening to you, it’s time to take responsibility, move on, and get back out on the field to show people how amazing you are.