Know thyself

There is a nursery rhyme you probably heard and maybe even said:

Sticks and stones
May break my bones
But words will never hurt me.*

Public accusations by an insecure colleague are simply calling attention to his insecurity.  Nevertheless, it’s crummy being thrown under the bus.  It may even affect your reputation if others choose to believe the accusations.  And, yes, those people who believe the accusations regardless of the facts are showing their own insecurity.  But it still feels awful and could have lasting ramifications.

What the nursery rhyme is trying to convey is this: you know the truth about yourself regardless of what others say.  You know if you’re good at your job, if you’re respectful of others and if you’re fair.  If you are, you are.  And that’s how you can respond with calm, confident, factual information.  There’s no need for an emotional defense, because there’s nothing to defend but your honor, but you know your honor is intact.

I used to think our reputation was our greatest asset, but that’s giving others too much power.  Our deepest knowing of ourselves is our greatest asset.

 

*The phrase is presented as advice in Tappy’s Chicks: and Other Links Between Nature and Human Nature, by Mrs. George Cupples, 1872.