Think You’re Great? Try Being Humble

When seeking a solution to any problem, our first task is to understand it fully. This requires carefully dissecting the issue, identifying its components, and recognizing the cause-and-effect relationships between them—the sequence in which they unfold and the way they evolve over time.

Nowhere is this approach more vital than in the realm of human character. Here, complexity abounds and subjectivity runs deep, making it especially difficult to gain clarity—whether we are evaluating ourselves or others.

Our sages, particularly through the lens of Chassidic teachings, offer us a prism through which to view this inner landscape. Their guidance provides not only insight but also a path toward a more authentic understanding of ourselves.

At the heart of this journey lies humility. More than a single trait, humility is a condition - a state of being that both transcends and permeates all others. It is not the absence of self-worth, nor the denial of one’s abilities, but rather the negation of self-centeredness.

True humility is an honest awareness of both one’s strengths and weaknesses, paired with the recognition that our strengths are gifts from G-d, entrusted to us for a greater purpose. It allows us to acknowledge greatness—whether in ourselves or in others—while remembering that it all originates from G-d and is meant to serve a higher mission.

This is why the king of Israel was chosen by G-d specifically for his humility, as the verse teaches: “So that his heart will not be haughty toward his fellows.” In Judaism, true greatness is not measured by pride or power, but by humility—the quiet strength of those who see themselves as vessels for something higher.