Entitlement Prevents Growth
Entitlement makes you mistake privilege for what you're due. Your birthright is meaningless; the world owes you nothing, and you should be grateful for this.
There are two things that all human beings are entitled to just by being alive: your time and your effort. You are entitled to work for as long and hard on whatever you wish. Your time and your effort are what you have control over in life. Use them as your joysticks for navigating through it.
Being Selfish HurtsYou Most
As hurtful as entitlement is to others, the person it is most detrimental to is yourself. When you feel entitled, you don't go all in on anything, because you don't believe that you have to.
You never try hard enough. You never work a full, arduous day, living life like you're getting through it—taking each day for granted.
Failures Lead to Mastery
Failure is not just a possibility, it's a certainty. So, when it happens, fail with self-compassion. Rather than viewing failures as setbacks, consider them as essential components of your personal growth. Each failure is an opportunity for learning and improvement.
We don't get better by beating ourselves up. Punishing yourself for failing makes it harder to do better next time. Instead, evaluate your failures as a curious, nonjudgmental observer. Gain insights into what went wrong so you can stop making the same mistakes. You can't properly evaluate yourself if you are coming from a place of judgment. You will never make progress if you beat yourself up each time you make a mistake. Don't be afraid to fail, and don't be afraid of the the dissappointment that comes with it.
Don't be Afraid of Dissappointment
Life gives us all opportunities for success, money, and happiness (some many more than others), but we are not entitled to any of this. There are only two certainties in life: your birth and your death. You had no say in your birth, and the circumstances of your death are primarily out of your control. The journey between these two points has no guarantees, but you will generally get out of life what you put into it.
Wherever you are now, start there. Accept your limitations so that you can move beyond them. If you aren't honest about where you are and think you are owed more than you've earned, you will be disappointed.
Lean into this feeling. Disappointment is your mind's way of expelling your sense of entitlement. Like most feelings, resisting it will only make it stronger. It's natural to feel disappointed when we fail. Society falsely label this feeling as unfavorable. It isn't.
Disappointment and failure are opportunities to learn about previously unknown limits to our abilities. By blaming others or factors outside of ourselves for our failures, we ensure we never surpass these limitations. We can improve only when we take on the responsibility.
Embrace Vulnerabilty, Humility, and Gratitude
Entitlement limits our growth across all domains of our lives. It makes us think we deserve more than anyone else based on misconceptions about the world and how it works. These misconceptions isolate us, as friendships only last if both parties are willing to compromise, ask for help, and admit when they're wrong.
We all have some misconceptions that make us entitled in one way or another. Instead of feeling shamed into silence, we should discuss these misconceptions as they arise. By sharing our fears and doubts, we will take less for granted and serve others better.
Entitlement gives us the illusion that we don't need help. In fact, we're too afraid to ask for it. This silence isolates us, making us resentful and lonely.
If we open up to others, we fear that we might confront an irredeemable truth about ourselves. We put up a wall between ourselves and others, separating us to maintain our illusion of self-perfection.
Humility, vulnerability, gratitude, and acts of service are the antidotes to entitlement. When you let your walls down, you realize you were surrounded by friends the whole time. Don't be too afraid to ask for help—ask for help because you're afraid to.
The Bottom Line
Find the courage to be vulnerable when you notice you're feeling entitled. Be grateful for each day, living each like a fantastic journey in the making. Put your all towards each endeavor, and accept the outcome—positive or negative—with humility.
