You may well know by now not to bow to your ego. I know you do your best. You don't always know what is your ego, what is whim for some kind of exaltation, or what is desire for Truth. Go for what is in your heart and be not attached. Fine, desire with all your heart to sing. Go ahead.
Yet know that the joy is in the singing and not in what the world or your mother makes of it. You don't have to be aggrandized in the eyes of the world. Your singing does not have to be popular. Sing for the love of singing. If you reach the Hit Parade, enjoy being on the Hit Parade. Just don't let reaching the Hit Parade go to your head.
You know all this.
What you may not have thought about yet is not to fan the flames of other people's egos any more than your own. Yes, you want to uplift others. You want to inspire others with all your heart. You are not looking to earn brownie points, however. Get the difference?
There may be a fine line between flattering another for your own purposes and singing true praises. It may be We are speaking here of your motivation. The desire to give another confidence in himself is a far cry from your wanting to increase your value to another.
You do not extol another in order to enrich yourself. You don't butter up a teacher in order to increase your grade. Of course, be courteous. Be courteous for the right reasons.
When someone does a good job, say so. This is not about making yourself feel good. Your giving true congratulations isn't about lifting your ego. Your desire that you can feel good is about ego. Somewhere you do know the real story. You know, you may have thought you were smart or clever, yet the point isn't that you are to be smarter or more clever than someone else. It's possible that you are swelling your own ego. It is possible.
In this case, you may be using another's heart as a way to make you feel good. Perhaps you are trying to be a do-gooder. Be good unto others, yet not a do-gooder be. A do-gooder tends to pin a medal on himself.
It is somewhat like the difference between being sincere and honest. That you are sincere for your own benefit isn't quite the same as being honest in earnest. You may be sincere in what you profess, yet not fully honest in that you don't live up to your sincerity. You may be wearing flourishes that you fool yourself with.
The meaning of being true to yourself covers many layers. We are not talking about someone else right now. We are talking about you.
Encourage others, absolutely. Inspire others, yes. Flatter others so you can curry favor? No.
We come back to being simple.
Here is a real-life situation. You want your father to give you money for a purpose important to you. Then, to fulfill your desire, you might cater to your father so he will give you the money. Be good to your father in the beat of your heart and bless him and support your father all the time, not only on special occasions that matter to you. A particular situation may seem life or death to you at a given moment. Certainly, you desire the money. You don't want to be clever as to how you ask for it, however.
The fact is that to give you the money or not is your father's choice. Give your father the freedom you also desire. Truly, honor your mother and father.
Be understanding and grateful to your father all the time. Then there is no question of your catering to your father for your own need. To enter into a relationship isn't the same as catering.
Foremost, be honest with yourself, beloved.