Matthew Castillo5 said:That's some high-quality thinking right there. 👍
I don't quite agree with that final sentence, though. People with tiny egos often lack both the motivation and the sheer strength required to actually drive meaningful change in a larger environment—whether that's a political party, a city, or the entire country. They usually end up only making changes within their own little micro-circles.
I've had plenty of my own experiences with this if anyone wants to dive deeper into the details.
History has shown us time and again that "top-down" leadership—acting from the level of a major organization, a municipality, or the federal government—can be incredibly toxic to the very people it’s supposed to serve. Now, whether the issue lies in a kind of negative selection process where positions are filled by those with oversized egos but a total lack of intelligence and principles (or something else entirely), I couldn't say for sure. 😁
Honestly, ego is actually quite necessary at a micro level, since its basic function is to ensure the survival of the individual and those they consider "their own" through protective instincts. No matter how you look at it, ego is a primary tool used when fighting over limited resources, whereas larger social systems are designed to distribute those resources within a community. But that only works up to a certain point, because the structures themselves tend to favor those whose main motivation is grabbing as many resources as possible—for themselves and their inner circle.
The mix of Western individualism and structures born out of collectivist cultures creates a pretty unstable construct that has been showing signs of decay for a long time. If we want any coherent change, we really need to address this fundamental mismatch and figure out how to dismantle it without causing massive upheaval. But that’s nearly impossible while you're sitting at the top of the pyramid—unless, of course, your ego has inflated to the size of the Hindenburg, allowing you to just float away into higher spheres while the whole house of cards comes crashing down around everyone else.
Ultimately, I believe the only right way to act is at the micro level (think globally, act locally). In that context, ego still serves a purpose, provided it's redirected toward a different function and balanced with the idea of the common good. It's a difficult, deeply personal process that everyone has to navigate individually before we can ever hope to find some sort of collective agreement. 😁