Bragging
In 2014, the word “humblebrag” was added to the Oxford online dictionary, along with the following definition - “An ostensibly modest or self-deprecating statement whose actual purpose is to draw attention to something of which one is proud.
The Mayo Clinic research group defines narcissistic personality disorder as “a mental disorder in which people have an inflated sense of their own importance and a deep need for admiration.
Storytelling is fun. We enjoy sharing our own successes in life. Parents do this most of the time. They are proud of the success of their sons or daughters. But hearing someone boasting about personal or other’s achievements over and over again can be annoying.
Some years back I met a man while in Germany. Both of us had been in the country for about half a year, so it was sort of inevitable that the question dreaded by every foreigner who has ever failed to learn the local language popped up - How good is your Deutsche?
There’s this idea that, if you do great work at your job, people will (or should!) automatically recognize that work and reward you for it with promotions / increased pay. In practice, it’s often more complicated than that – some kinds of important work are more visible/memorable than others.