EGO STRENGTH

Ego strength is the capacity to stay connected with oneself and one's values in the face of adversity.  

A few famous examples of people who have had incredible ego strength are Harriet Tubeman, Susan B. Anthony, Viktor Frankl, Mahatma Ghandi and Nelson Mandela.  A fictional archetypal example is Russell Crowe's character Maximus in the movie Gladiator.

One of the two opposites of ego strength is collapsing into addictive behaviors.  Addiction arises, at least in part, as a result of an unwillingness to feel unwanted emotions.  If we are simply willing to feel what we feel - then we can avoid the pull of addiction and retain our inner freedom.

The other opposite to ego strength is identification with reactive emotions.  When we identify with reactive emotions, we lose contact with our heartfelt values and the deeper more connected yearnings of our Self.  Behavior driven by reactive emotions may seem to be strong - but it is the opposite to the strength of character that I am pointing to here.  When we are dominated by reactive emotions we may imagine we are fighting for freedom - but it is a disassociated imitation of true freedom.  When we are exercising true freedom we do not disconnect from our care for others and the values of our deeper self. 

It takes discipline and inner poise to refuse to psychologically regress under pressure.

One of the symptoms of a lack of ego strength is the widespread empathy deficit that we have seen in society lately in relation to Covid, as well as more generally.

Ego strength can be increased by becoming more aware of the temptation to engage in mental, emotional, physical and/or spiritual bypassing when under pressure, and making the commitment to use none of these.

One domain where a person's ego strength becomes apparent is in their capacity for flexibility in power relations with others.  People with a lot of ego strength are naturally in their own power, while simultaneously celebrating others' power.  Therefore they are able to flexibly flow between being told what to do by someone else (being below), taking responsibility for others (being above), and dropping all pretense and being exactly equal with others (being beside).  In contrast, people who lack ego strength have fragile egos that are reactive to others' power, and/or unwilling to stand in a place of responsibility in a system, and/or unwilling to drop all pretense and be full equals with all others.

With a high degree of ego strength our values and are commitment to our selves and others are never in doubt.  Because we are strong, we are able stay the course - even when it is difficult - while at the same time not indulging in any extra unnecessary suffering.