The Best Way to Come to Terms Without Feeling Like a Jerk
Being able to show off your accomplishments or abilities without making everyone around you roll their eyes is an art. There is a time and a place for this , and according to recent research, there is even a right and wrong way to do it.
Research by Carolyn Van Damme and published in Self and Identity suggests people will be less likely to put up with your humble bragging when you compare yourself to someone else. For example, if you’ve been running, you don’t want to say, “I’m much faster than Johnny.” You’d better say something like, “I was able to cut the time by a mile by a full minute.” Better yet, let your humble bragging be the story of how you cut your time by a mile. It makes you seem passionate and less like a hound of glory. If you brag humbly in moderation, avoid exaggeration, and don’t demean others, this can actually be helpful in certain circumstances.
Why Self-Improvement Is Disliked: The Arrogance Hypothesis and Disgust for Overt Claims of Superiority | Self and identity through the science of us