Experts, Beware of Pride

Last weekend, I was reminded of one of the world’s cardinal sins: PRIDE.

In a professional setting, we often think of pride as a good thing. We associate it with dignity, confidence, and honor. We take pride in our work, our accomplishments, and our companies. In these respects, pride is positive.

The cardinal sin of pride, on the other hand, is sinister and destructive. This is the pride of arrogance, vanity, condescension, and superiority. In its extreme, pride is a form of enmity—the hatred of others.

We may feel pride when we win new business contracts or accomplish important professional milestones. Success engenders self-praise. But pride is not just the byproduct of winning. Pride may also manifest when we feel hostility toward our customers, colleagues, or competitors. It appears just as readily when we lose as when we win. When the proud win, they believe they are smart, but when they lose, they believe the opponent is stupid or unskilled.

Probably the most dangerous form of pride can be found among our experts, the master craftsmen. Because they possess verifiably superior knowledge or skill, they may think they are a cut above. They wield their competence like a club. They expect deference and compliance. The proud think highly of themselves and lowly of others. They are takers of accolades and givers of condescension. Bad decisions are almost always embraced because of pride.

I once worked with a highly skilled business leader who was proud—way too proud. He interrupted everyone and imposed his will in every conversation. As a result, he drove most people away. Despite his vast technical competence, few would do business with him because they could not stomach his arrogance and pride. He often reminded me of the adage, “If you think too highly of yourself, eventually you will not be thought of at all.”

Today, it feels that pride has infected everything. Our politicians (left and right) are filled with pride, as are our business leaders, pundits, celebrities, and professionals. The rich are proud, but so are the poor. (I excuse not myself.)

It is rare to find a highly competent expert who is also humble, yet that is exactly what we need. We need experts who are competent yet compassionate; ingenuous yet unpretentious; masterful, yet modest; confident, yet kind.

If I could change just one thing about our vast array of professional experts, it would be a steep reduction in our abundant pride. We need highly skilled professionals who are competent beyond measure, but who see their mastery as a refined tool for helping and lifting others. Please, become an expert in your domain but be the expert the world needs, the Master who is stripped of pride.