The Convenience of Narcissism

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This is not a self-help book. There is an endless supply of self-improvement resources available today. Some deal with topics such as self-esteem, self-awareness, and self-discovery. Self-promotion has never been easier than it is right now. With so many social networks to share our selfies on, SELF has become the root word, or basic concept behind much of our current behaviors as a society. This trend started decades ago with the creation of phones that take pictures, and video storage websites that have empowered the masses to share their proverbial inner "YOU". That is not to say that me-ism is a result of our current centristic lifestyles. No, this obsession with SELF has been around for almost as long as humans have exercised free-will on this planet.

The purpose of this work is not as a criticism of advancing technology, or of those who would use it to the infinitieth degree. Self-respect is a basic human need. When we are deprived of it for long periods of time, it may even lead some to contemplate ending their own life. This last point is one of the critical reasons why I felt compelled to put pen to paper (in reality, fingers to keyboard).

One of the unfortunate side effects of focusing on one's self is, like a drug; it gives you a high, which is followed by a crash (since no one can sustain a constant unbroken flow of attention from others). This may be why so many actors in the entertainment industry often struggle with long bouts of depression once no longer in the limelight.

The title of this book, in fact, will send many running, or at least keep them from reading it. I am not writing it for those people. I am writing it to help you manage your own feelings while you deal with 'those people'.

When you awaken to the convenience of this self-truth you begin to see life differently. This new reality should not place you on a soapbox, in order to have ammunition with which to be judgmental to others. If you use it in this way, it will only further this centristic behavior in yourself and cause others to label you as a self-centered person.

There are many works on the topic of narcissism. These works give detailed points that help to diagnose the condition. It is not the intention of the author to challenge or add to such works. Rather the scope of this book will be to analyze, not the condition of narcissism, but the philosophy of it. You see narcissism like every other "ism" is a set of beliefs acquired, not through college degrees, but rather, through trial and error. Humans have an inherent ability to test various vehicles in order to produce results. This is what helps us to advance in the fields previously discussed. These tendencies will cause us to mentally catalogue what works, and what does not. This is a useful tool for scientists, advertisers, and politicians. For those who would use others for their own selfish goals, it is a weapon of mass dissent. For an intrenched narcissist, the philosophy of SELF is the greatest idolatry the world has ever known. If you would like to be a survivor, then turn the page.