Superiority complex is the type of complex that develops when a person who suffers from inferiority complex decides to act superior in order to mask his inferiority.
The person who has superiority complex usually claims that his opinion is always better than others and that he’s more important than his peers.
Causes of superiority complex
Superiority complex is usually a direct result of an underlying inferiority complex. Because the person suffers from feelings of inferiority he compensates by moving in the opposite direction which is acting superior.
Superiority complex and confidence
You should not mix superiority complex with self confidence. Some people have developed a feeling of confidence in a certain life field based on true facts they know about themselves.
For example you may feel very confident about public speaking if you’ve been practicing it for years and still it doesn’t mean that you feel superior to others or that you have inferiority feelings. It just means that you know yourself well and that you are confident.
The problem with superiority complex
The problem with superiority complex is that even though the person knows that he feels inferior deep within still he acts arrogantly.
That person may refuse to see a psychiatrist for example because he feels superior to him and will thus never get a proper treatment.
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Feeling Inferior and inferiority complex
What is Inferiority? He was a successful and intelligent person who has got lots of loving friends but something inside him keeps telling him that he is not as worthy as others.
Whenever he meets new people the inner voice whispers in his ears: “Hey, you know you are different, you know you lack something; even if you appear successful, you are still not like them”.
He thinks that every single laugh around him is considered a scorn and every whispering couple are talking about him. He doesn’t feel worthy or in other words he’s feeling inferior.
Inferiority vs inferiority complex
The man was suffering from feelings of inferiority and inadequacy. When such feelings take over the person's life and prevent him from functioning normally then it can be called an inferiority complex.
That man suffered from inferiority complex because during his childhood he was physically weaker than the other kids at his age.
Usually any kid who suffers from a certain physical defect will not develop inferiority complex unless someone makes him believe that he is different.
This is exactly what happened with that kid, his friends used to beat him, bully him and make fun of him and this made him feel different.
Years later he became a very social person, academically successful and a great basketball player. Yet the feelings of inferiority still lived inside him.
Inferiority and the subconscious mind
This man’s subconscious mind still carries the feelings of weakness he experienced earlier and that's why he feels worthless around people.
The man labeled himself with labels such as weak, inadequate, stupid and clumsy.
These labels accompanied him everywhere and despite the fact they were buried deep into his subconscious they were always in control of his behavior and feelings.
Because the man was successful in his life and didn't have any reason to feel inferior he's tried to convince himself that he's fine but this method never worked. This man didn't get the fact that his subconscious mind needs much more proofs than this one in order to help him stop feeling inferior.
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