What is ego? Psychology, ego. The meaning of the word "ego"

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

What is ego? Even for philosophers, this question is one of the most difficult. Many people believe that our ego is made up of memories, aspirations, and habits. In this article, we may break your ideas about this concept, or summarize all the knowledge about it.

We are not unique?.

Let's first find out what is meant by "ego". The meaning of the word seems to be simple: from Latin it is translated as “I” and, according to the theory of a number of psychoanalysts, is one of the components of the personality structure. Simply put, it is a set of our thoughts, beliefs, our daily habits. We always turn to our own “collection” of thoughts in order to make this or that decision, evaluate something, make a choice, thereby turning life in a certain direction. Often we claim, and we ourselves firmly believe in this, that all thoughts are our own, while in fact most of them have passed to us from friends, family members, colleagues, acquaintances, and even strangers. In order for a really original idea to arise in your head, you need to engage in deep introspection for a very long time. But in everyday life, it is difficult for us to do this, so we simply accept what is given to us. Agree, we have to keep up withpopular now fashion, religion, ideals. Those who, as it were, fight off the general mass, are looked upon as outcasts or eccentrics. We usually back up our positions with statements such as "But everyone else thinks…" or "What will people think…". Essentially, this brings us back to what is called “herd mentality” in psychology.

Herd mentality and ego

Psychology refers to the herd mentality of the desire of people to accept certain types of behavior under the influence of others, to follow trends. This is clearly reflected in what goods we buy, what films we watch, what clothes we wear. It is in the fashion of accessories, clothing, cars, music, home decor, and even superstition and religion that we can say that people are essentially devoid of exclusivity in terms of ego. A striking example of modernity is the widespread use of all kinds of advertising. And now people no longer think about what exactly they want: the choice has long been made for us, all that remains is to go and buy, express someone else's opinion, agree with the crowd … Sociologists and psychologists study the relevant sections of group intelligence, the wisdom of the crowd and decentralized decision-making.

Have your say

Actually, having a so-called own ego is very difficult. It's okay to trust people - those we know well. But, as we have already found out, not all our thoughts are our own. But that doesn't mean they shouldn't be trusted. Don't ignore them. As the samurai say:“Hug your enemy. Then he won't be able to draw his sword. This simple principle is quite applicable to our thoughts: “hug” any thought that comes to your mind. Ideas come and go. Remember the first rule of fitness? After training, wait one hour before eating, however much you want to. So the thought must be processed. Wait, see what happens in the first few moments before you say a word, chastise a colleague, or give a harsh opinion about something.

How to deal with the speed of thought

What is ego in terms of "speed of thought"? In a stressful situation, it is sometimes very difficult to get together and respond correctly to the situation. Probably, each of us noticed what a series of thoughts visits our head during critical periods. Someone says something, we are forced to respond quickly, merging phrases into the stream, although it would be possible to answer more calmly, thinking over each word. It is at such moments that it is important that you express those thoughts that are close to you, and not imposed by someone. Remember the famous phrase: everything you say can be used against you? Often we become hostages of other people's ideas, someone else's ego, and ours simply turns into a false ego.

Hint

So, what to do so that someone else's quick thought does not get fixed in your head and does not influence the formation of a point of view on this or that fact? After all, the next time you look at a person with whom a conflict or an unpleasant conversation has occurred, it is precisely that first, crazy thought and those phrases that will pop up in your brain in the first place,who will follow her. In such a situation, in order not to break firewood, one has only to stop for a moment, take a deep breath three times and … look for other options for an answer. You will notice that it is not as difficult as it seems, and the dialogue will become structured, calm and productive. Calmness and focus is what can set you apart from the crowd and kick your ego up a notch. So what is the ego in terms of our thoughts? These are inseparable concepts, but among all the mass of thoughts that visit our head every second, one should single out the main ones, close in spirit only to you.

Conclusion

Obviously, most of us would like to have original ideas and views, thus creating our own reality. In this case, you may be advised to follow a few tips:

1. 

   Recite the one-word mantra to yourself every day for at least thirty minutes. Choose a word that has a positive connotation and that you can easily remember. This will help calm the internal monologue.

2. Meditation is a key factor in the formation of the ego. Psychology welcomes this method: after all, everyone needs to spend some time every day in silence. Silence renews the soul and purifies the mind.
3. "Turn off" outside influence. Think well before you turn on the TV or radio, even in the background, be prepared for the fact that other people's thoughts submitted in this way you may at some point take for your own.

If you follow thesethree rules every day, then after a while you will notice that new and original ideas are born in your head. They appear randomly in your brain. Yes, some of them may well seem strange, wild and even a little crazy, but often they are exactly what you need. And then the answer to the question “what is the ego” will become obvious to you: the ego is my personal perception of the world, this is Me.