I am pretentious.

I am good at what I do, and I know it. But what’s wrong with that? Everyone seems to believe that being even a little bit pretentious is a highly negative thing. I asked several people what they thought was so wrong with being pretentious and they all said something along the lines of, “It’s just a bad habit!” or “It’s mean!” I completely disagree. It’s my pretentiousness that gives me the self-confidence to walk into an audition with my head held high, or to perform in front of an audience of hundreds without fear. It’s my pretentiousness that keeps me from being intimidated when I am performing next to other performers. There is a huge difference between feeling proud of my own talent and hard work, and putting another person down.

When I say this to others I usually get chastised and told that I should be humble. To me, neither humility nor pretentiousness is mutually exclusive. It is possible for someone to stand in a room surrounded by other people and think, “I am the best ___ in this room. These people think they are on my level? Keep dreaming,” while also thinking, “I am lucky to have this talent and opportunity, and there is always something I could be doing to improve.” On top of that, I work hard to ensure that every performance I give is better than my last, that every audition is an improvement, and I deserve to be proud off all my hard work and improvement.

Being pretentious is not something to be ashamed of.

It is not an insult. It does not make me a bad person or someone who is not humble about the talent I possess. I had to work just as hard as everyone else to get to where I am today. The path I took to improve was littered with long nights, empty coffee cups, and undereye bags. Anyone who dedicates their lives to improving on their craft deserves to be proud of their accomplishments, as long as they are also proud of the accomplishments of others. Anyone who spends 15+ hours a day working towards their own improvement deserves to consider themselves something of an expert at whatever they are working on, as long as they realize that someone somewhere is more knowledgeable or more trained than they are. In the grand scheme of things, who cares if someone walks around mentally telling themselves, “I am the best person for this job,” or, “I am the best of the best” if it helps that person remain self-confident. After all, perhaps they are the best person.

I challenge everyone who reads this article to tell themselves one pretentious thought before your next big event.

This can be a presentation in class, a job interview, a big exam, etc. Whatever the occasion, take note of the effect. You might just find yourselves with that tiny boost of self-confidence that you needed.