I’m a proud person. Because I am content with who I am, I feel blessed for the things I have experienced until today and am pleased with the direction I’m going in.

Does feeling proud mean that you are selfish and arrogant? I don’t think it does.

I think it implies that you respect yourself. You are confident in the values-system that guides you and most importantly, you understand your own self worth.

Being proud requires you to set boundaries for yourself on how much you tolerate certain actions or attitudes. It basically means: “how much shit am I willing to take before I refuse, avoid, or walk away from a situation?”

Being proud does not mean that you have to adopt an obnoxious personality. It means that you should become aware and protective of your dignity. Your reputation might not mean much to you but it risks being damaged if you don’t defend your pride.

I’m definitely not advocating for people to go out and impose their pride – or willingness to defend it – onto other people. I’m just saying, you should think about your pride and self worth if you are in a space where you are being unfairly abused, humiliated, or discouraged.

If you’re a good person then why should you allow for unpleasant conditions to affect you? You should know when to speak up and refuse to have your pride hurt.

There are things worth defending. Be proud. You deserve to be, no matter who you are.