EVERYONE READ THIS!! I am serious — the degree to which you can identify is the degree to which you need to correct or perhaps even get help. I would be hard pressed to name anyone I have known to be completely free of this problem, but some are worse than others (Note: I am not eliminating myself — but don’t think I am the worst by far 
). KUDOS to the author of this article — knowing it is an ISSUE says a lot, doing something about it, well, KUDOS, and even more so for writing about it in the first person publicly!! Particularly for all leadership and management
Excerpt: What do I direct at one person that’s meant for another?
It’s hard to see that kind of behavior in yourself. At first, I didn’t notice anything. But I kept looking. I even spent a couple of days trying to talk less, just noticing my urge to talk and then examining where the urge came from. Was I speaking to the right person?
A pattern began to emerge, one I’m embarrassed about but that became hard to ignore: I do and say things specifically to impress people, even people I don’t know.
Put aside for a moment that trying to impress someone is highly unimpressive. Why do I do it? Do I really care what complete strangers think of me? Who am I truly trying to impress?
Read full article via Who Are You Really Mad At? – Peter Bregman – Harvard Business Review.
