A few weeks ago, I wrote about the idea of confident humility vs false modesty. in which I talked about the need to be confident in your abilities and not to be afraid to share that confidence with others.
Her joyful comment was met by someone still living in my hometown with the oh-so-supportive, “LOL, bragging much?”
I find it so disheartening when you share something joyful with someone and you get accused of bragging or being “too big for your britches.”
I shared this on FB and my very wise friend Cynthia Vaughn said:
I love Bold Brags. Share your sassafrass! I have no respect for “Dream Stealers.” A true friend or colleague celebrates the achievements and happiness of others.
And a little later:
I’m looking forward to reading your blog post about this topic.
Well, Cynthia, here you go. (She knows me so well.)
DEEP BREATH.
STOP IT.
Stop being a dream stealer. It is toxic. It is unsupportive, it smacks of
-
-
- Jealousy
- Bitterness
and - Pettiness (or “Bettiness,” as I nearly wrote, which might mean being in the state of Betty Draper on Mad Men, my least favorite character on the show, and someone who is probably the embodiment of all three of these characteristics – but I digress)
-
As Heidi Skok, another friend of mine (an accomplished teacher who has also worked at the Metropolitan Opera, and with whom I shared a stage at Wolf Trap way back when – me in the chorus, she as Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni) commented on my post:
Let your light shine.
Thank you, Heidi. Thank you, Cynthia. Thank you to everyone else who posted affirmative comments.
As Deanna Maio said,
A wise person once told me “it’s not bragging if it’s true.“
If I’m too big for my britches, it’s because of chocolate. Those are my literal britches, and yes, they’re kinda snug right now.
As far as my metaphorical and professional britches, they fit just fine, thank you very much.
