Stop Being Pretentious, Instead Be Authentic and Experience Abundance

Do you consider yourself to be pretentious?

Do you recognize your own pretentious behavior?

If you answered ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to any of those questions, you may want to read further and discover something new about the human persona.

Most of us do not recognize our pretentious behavior.

All of us want to be nice, friendly, and accepted by society. But in the process of being nice and friendly, we change our behavior to fit into the society, and started pretending to be someone else.

When you continue to live life with this kind of “pretentious” behavior, in the long run, it severely affects our personality and personal growth.

In this article, I will explore the various manifestations of pretentiousness and provide a few suggestions on how to overcome this detrimental behavior and embrace authenticity.

The goals of this discussion are:

1. To understand the meaning of “being pretentious”
2. Identify the pitfalls associated with pretentiousness
3. Learn how to overcome pretentiousness
4. Bring yourself back to your true self

Introduction

In today’s fast-moving society, where we have more interactions with digital devices and fewer face-to-face interactions with fellow humans, we have unknowingly morphed our behavior, becoming increasingly secluded from the outside world.

When we spend more screen time with our digital devices, we become less communicative and more socially withdrawn. Nowadays, both kids and adults spend significant amount of time playing video games, watching television, texting friends, engaging in social media, or binge-watching programs.

As a result, many of us have grown accustomed to living a “lonely” lifestyle consuming virtual data, which has become our comfort zone. We have started seeking pleasure and satisfaction through our interactions with digital devices.

There is minimal human-to-human interaction.

Occasionally, when we do meet with friends, family, and acquaintances, we often find ourselves pretending to be nice and courteous in order to maintain social acceptance.

This phenomena of “being pretentious” has become a habit. It is more prevalent today, and most people do not even realize they are practicing this behavior. Many individuals, consciously or unconsciously, engage in pretentious behavior, presenting a false image of themselves to the world.

While pretending to possess knowledge, wealth, or sophistication may seem appealing, it ultimately hinders your own personal growth. This also prevents developing emotional connection with fellow human beings.

If you find that you often identify as being pretentious in your social interactions, then hopefully, some of these suggestions may help overcome this behavior, improve your personality, and perhaps your relationships.

Understanding Pretentiousness

Even if we have a general understanding of what pretentiousness mean, let us observe this objectively.

Pretentiousness is the act of deliberately presenting oneself as more important, knowledgeable, high standard, or cultured than one genuinely is. This often comes from a desire to impress others, gain social validation, or fit into certain social circles.

Unfortunately, this behavior manifests in different ways, such as name-dropping, or flaunting material possessions, or pretending to have expertise in various fields.

Dangers of Pretentiousness

While pretentious behavior may initially attract attention or admiration for a short period of time, it has several negative consequences.

1. It alienates genuine connections. People are drawn to authenticity, and when confronted with pretentiousness, they may feel disengaged or even deceived. Most people avoid people with pretentious behavior. These people have less friends.
2. Pretentiousness inhibits personal growth. By pretending to possess knowledge or skills, individuals deny themselves the opportunity to learn and develop in genuine areas of interest. If you walk around with the notion of “I know it all” behavior, then you will miss out on all the good advice, or knowledge the world has to offer.
3. It creates an unsustainable facade that can lead to anxiety and a constant fear of being exposed. This is the worst situation anyone can get into.
4. Even if you mingle among the crowd, you will always remain lonely.

Overcoming Pretentiousness

• Recognize your behavior and cultivate self-Awareness. Consciously try to recognize your own motivations and insecurities that drive pretentious behavior. Many people are unaware that they are being pretentious. Most of their loved ones hesitate to make them aware of such behavior, lest they offend them and damage their relationship.
• Reflect on the areas where you might be prone to exaggerating or misrepresenting yourself. In this world you do not have to impress anybody. Just be yourself.
• Try to embrace humility. Acknowledge that everyone has limitations and areas of growth. Embracing humility allows for genuine interactions and opens doors for learning from others.
• Be authentic, as authenticity blossoms relationships. Focus on being genuine in your interactions. Share your true thoughts, experiences, and emotions with others, fostering deeper connections based on honesty and vulnerability.
• Pursue true knowledge in your area of interest. Instead of trying to appear knowledgeable about everything, channel your energy into areas that genuinely interests you. Engage in self-improvement courses, and pursue knowledge with a genuine desire to learn.
• Start practicing empathy. Understand that others may also be struggling with the same situation. Extend empathy and compassion towards them, fostering a supportive environment for growth and authenticity.
• Be honest. Allow yourself to be honest, and admitting when you don’t know something or need help. Authenticity thrives in an environment where imperfections are acknowledged and embraced.
• Celebrate your uniqueness. Embrace your individuality and resist the urge to conform to societal expectations. Your true value lies in being yourself, not in trying to fit a predetermined mold.

Conclusion

While pretentiousness may offer temporary validation, it hampers personal growth, impedes genuine connections, and creates a constant need to maintain a facade.

Embracing authenticity, humility, and honesty allows individuals to shed the burden of pretentiousness and embark on a journey of self-improvement and genuine connections.

By celebrating uniqueness and pursuing knowledge with a genuine desire to learn, we can create a more authentic and fulfilling life, free from the constraints of pretentiousness.

Let us strive to be true to ourselves and foster an environment where authenticity thrives.

Remember being true self is our nature.

I hope you enjoyed this story of self-improvement. Please feel free to leave a comment or suggestions.