Hey jhoran, how's it going. I'm new to steemit and just came across your post. While I disagree with some of it, I do very much like that your overall tone and message is thoughtful and positive. I think we all need more of that but I would like to say what I disagree with. As far as ego and low self esteem go, I don't believe one can attribute to the other as their very nature to one another is contradictory. The ego is that voice that tells you, you deserve this/you're entitled to this or that you are somehow more deserving of something or someone than another person may be and things of that nature. Low self-esteem on the other hand is the exact opposite. Low self-esteem carries with it that voice that tells you you're not good enough or don't deserve whatever. What they do have in common (and what I think was the point you were trying to make) is that they are both highly damaging to the overall wellness of the individual. You also mentioned something about being "very oriented toward the self" in a way that made that seem negative. I believe the contrary. We all should be oriented toward the self, to an extent. We should put our health, financial situation, self-respect/love/esteem, education, happiness, etc. first. If we ourselves are not in the best place possible, or at least striving for that position, how can we ever hope to be in the place where we can have the most positive impact on the lives of other's (which should be the goal we all strive for)? You also mentioned that the drive for self comes from a lack of self-esteem which I do agree with but, to a very small extent. The drive for self is what motivates us to succeed in life and try and get the most out of it in the time that we have. I believe the fact of the matter to be that there will always be narcissists, highly egotistical people, conceded people, whatever and while most of them possess the ability to inflict negativity into the lives of the rest of us, we too have a great power that we need to use more often in dealing with those types. We can ignore them! We can focus on ourselves in positive ways to get the most out of our lives and, just as important if not more so, we can learn from them. We can learn how not to treat people while at the same time learning how to love and respect ourselves more. I realize that this was posted last year but I must say that I do hope you're still a part of this community as I feel you are the type of person I would like to exchange thoughts and ideas with more. Be well jhoran and thanks for the great post