Eric Hoffer -The Passionate State Of Mind Part 4

Secretiveness is a source of pride. It is a paradox that secretiveness plays the same role as boasting - both are engaged in the creation of a disguise. Boasting tries to create an imaginary self, while secretiveness gives us the exhilarating feeling of being princes disguised in meekness. Of the two, secretiveness is the more difficult and effective. For the self-observant, boasting breeds self-contempt. Yet, it is as Spinoza said: "Men govern nothing with more difficult than their tongues, and they can moderate their desires more than their words." Humility, however, is not verbal renunciation of pride but the substitute of pride for self-awareness and objectivity. Forced humility is false pride.