Nowadays, society seems to be conducive to this way of thinking, new technologies and social networks promote a way of relating to others, little by little we believe that we are unique and special. For this reason, there are people who confuse having a good self-esteem with being self-centered, two aspects that are very different from each other. The first is healthy and totally recommended for everyone, the second is rather something you want to avoid. But what exactly are we talking about?

Egocentric people are those who firmly believe that their opinions, likes and concerns are much more important than those of others , so that they always prioritize themselves. They are those who never put themselves in the place of other people and insist that others are the ones who are wrong, only they are right. It does not occur to them that their way of thinking or seeing things is not shared by others. The extreme of this behavior has a name: Narcissistic Personality Disorder . However, one can still be self-centered without falling into the pathological. Therefore, in this article we teach you to know yourself a little more and know if you are an egocentric person.

Am I self-centered?

1- Do you worry about others?

You can start with a small experiment, although it requires perseverance. For two or three, write down a notebook (which you will carry with you all the time) when you find yourself thinking of someone other than you. We are not referring to the love of your life if not a person in your environment who is significant to you, for example a friend or member of your family. Do you think about how you are dealing with a certain situation? Do you worry about how he is doing? If at the end of the record you notice that less than 25% of the time you think or worry about others, it is probably because you take too much care of yourself.

2-Will you hide the conversations?

Another thing that you should record during the first few days is the time you spend talking about yourself when you have a conversation with another person. Was someone telling you something and have you cut off the conversation to talk about your things? Has a friend come to you to tell you about a concern that has led to your own? “Well I …”, “I the other day …”, “I was …” If that happens to you often, you are probably self-centered.

3- Do you think your interests are the most important?

Do you think your hobbies are more interesting than other people’s hobbies? It is normal that we lose something of interest when they talk to us about something unknown to us. But if you always categorize the topics of conversation as “interesting” or “useless” without middle terms then apart from radical you are agocentric.

4- Are you an inconsiderate person with others?

Being inconsiderate is not caring about the feelings of others , having little sensitivity . Therefore, think about how many times you have believed that you had priority over others. A good example is being late, do you usually make people wait when you meet them? If so, apart from being rude, you are giving the image that others have nothing better to do than wait for you. Is your time more valuable than others? If you think so, you are undoubtedly egocentric.

5- You like to be the center of attention

You like everyone to be aware of you, praise you and remind you how special you are. It bothers you that other people can overshadow you and you try to stand out above others. It is also typical that you have no interest in certain people who have always been by your side but as soon as they start to move away from you you have the urgent need to get them back. Do you start to “like” that person just when he has fallen in love with another? Are you trying to get that attention back to yourself?

6- You have a lot of sensitivity to criticism

We all are affected by what they say about us, especially when it comes to loved ones. However, the egocentric worries about what the whole world may think in general, not just his loved ones. He wants to be on everyone’s lips and be continually admired but he can’t stand a bad face. Although I do not admit it, the self-centered person is very offended by bad evaluations , they believe that they are too important for others to come and get them off the car. If this happens they will surely back up saying that it is all envy.

7- You are someone envious

People with a lot of ego tend to be envious, not so much with regard to the material (which also) if not in relation to the success of others, they cannot stand that someone can surpass them in something, especially in activities in which they consider themselves really good . For example “I have to be the best in basketball …”, “I have to be the first in the exam to get registration “, etc. It’s okay to be ambitious, yes, but if you notice that anger invades you when another is above you in something that you consider special, then you have a high ego. It is also difficult for them to receive help … and more if it comes from the person who previously “surpassed” him.

8- You are a manipulative person

You yourself realize that many times you are only interested in people to the extent that you can take advantage of them . One way to increase your ego is to check the degree of power you have over others. That is why a person who only thinks about his “I” will be reinforced every time he realizes the power he has over others (who are usually blinded or admired). He also uses others to achieve his goals and loses interest in them when they are no longer useful.

To what extent can it affect you?

If you see yourself reflected in most of these aspects you have to be careful because a person who only thinks about his “I” usually ends up alone . Those around him end up getting weary as soon as they find out how unsympathetic he is and run away. Little by little the egocentric will feel more and more isolated and alone. In addition, people with a lot of ego grow less intellectually because it is difficult for them to accept the point of view of others, they are more rigid and it is difficult for them to take into account the appreciations of others.