Modesty vs. Humility

Many of my friends have heard me joke that "The only thing I brag about is my humility." It's something that I thought was funny at the time and still gets a laugh so I continue to use it. A few weeks ago, for whatever reason, something occurred to me. I was thinking about humility and what it actually means when I realized something. I realized it's relatively easy to confuse humility and modesty for one another. I personally have asked a few people about their own thoughts on this, and what I found in these people was what I suspected. Many think that "modesty" can be used as a synonym for "humility." I disagree.

Modesty and humility, the way I see it, are almost polar opposites. Modesty has more similarity to vanity than humility. Allow me to explain. Modesty, in my understanding, is characterized by a person denying their own proficiency or strength, either in a specific area or overall. For example, if you tell someone modest they're a great basketball player they might say something like, "No way, there are so many much better players than myself." While that can sound like an admirable way to handle the compliment, I prefer the humble person's response which would sound more like, "Well, we're ALL great when we put our mind's to achieving something." You see, the humble person accepts the praise, whereas the modest person deflects...or rejects it. The humble response is better to me for a few reasons. One, it doesn't deny you the praise you're receiving and deserve and two, it's actually motivating and positive to the person you're speaking to.

Above I said that modesty is similar to vanity and here's how: Vanity is about separation and social hierarchy. So too, I believe is modesty. These concepts bring us to deem ourselves as superior or inferior to someone else (and inferior more often than most of us are aware). Being humble is about understanding that we all come from the same creator, and that we all have limitations and an infinite potential to achieve, create, learn, understand, and live. When we strive for humility, we simultaneously strive for unity and harmony. In that scenario, we find that respect replaces fear when it comes to our fellow man. What could be better than that? Talk to you soon

Donovan