--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's not about ego. Really. If it was…" description: "\"It's not about ego. Really. If it was ego, I'd be telling you about my awesome... oh, never mind.\" — Bruce Perens" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abc/bruce-perens-44492_ego_it-s-not-about-ego-really-if-it-was-ego_2779271.jpg" --- # It's not about ego. Really. If it was ego, I'd be telling… ![“It's not about ego. Really. If it was ego, I'd be telling you about my awesome... oh, never mind.” quote by Bruce Perens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abc/bruce-perens-44492_ego_it-s-not-about-ego-really-if-it-was-ego_2779271.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abc/bruce-perens-44492_ego_it-s-not-about-ego-really-if-it-was-ego_2779271.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abc/bruce-perens-44492_ego_it-s-not-about-ego-really-if-it-was-ego_2779271.jpg) > “It's not about ego. Really. If it was ego, I'd be telling you about my awesome... oh, never mind.” [Bruce Perens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-perens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker downplays ego, emphasizing authenticity over self‑promotion. **In simple terms:** Ego isn’t the focus; be genuine. Key Takeaway Prioritize honesty over bragging. Themes authenticity humility self‑awareness Mood reflective serious Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - personal branding - public speaking - leadership - team collaboration Key Concepts psychology social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How do you recognize hidden ego in yourself? - What steps can you take to stay authentic? A Different Perspective Ego can still subtly influence behavior even when denied. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ego](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ego/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) ## Related quotes > [The Ego, however, is not who you really are. The ego is your self-image; it is your social mask; it is the role you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/the-ego-however-is-not-who-you-really-are-the-ego-is-your-self-image/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [When you abide in the I you're abiding in the ego. The I is really the ego, the small I. It turns into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-adams/when-you-abide-in-the-i-you-re-abiding-in-the-ego-the-i-is-really-the/) [Robert Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-adams/) > [We put so much of ourselves onstage and we work so hard, that I never get tired of people telling me 'you're awesome.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/okieriete-onaodowan/we-put-so-much-of-ourselves-onstage-and-we-work-so-hard-that-i-never/) [Okieriete Onaodowan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/okieriete-onaodowan/) > [“Narcissists: Hurt their ego by telling them they should develop empathy for another human being and they change their profile picture to get more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sacredfire/narcissists-hurt-their-ego-by-telling-them-they-should-develop/) [Robin Sacredfire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sacredfire/) > [I don't really have an ego. I'm not that bothered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/i-don-t-really-have-an-ego-i-m-not-that-bothered/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [The thing I like to stress about TV is that it's a team exercise. You really can't have too much of an ego.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monty-don/the-thing-i-like-to-stress-about-tv-is-that-it-s-a-team-exercise-you/) [Monty Don](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monty-don/) > [To be successful, you really have to put your ego in the background and try to be diplomatic to achieve what you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-adam/to-be-successful-you-really-have-to-put-your-ego-in-the-background/) [Ken Adam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-adam/) > [I think if you feel weird and self-conscious about that kind of stuff - which happened to me at some points - that means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-vernon/i-think-if-you-feel-weird-and-self-conscious-about-that-kind-of-stuff/) [Justin Vernon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-vernon/) > [My ego is really good. I don't need to watch myself on TV, like some others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-jackson/my-ego-is-really-good-i-don-t-need-to-watch-myself-on-tv-like-some/) [Randy Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-jackson/) > [As big as my ego may be, I'm really not of the belief that I can't be replaced. I didn't invent the wheel. There's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-stanley/as-big-as-my-ego-may-be-i-m-really-not-of-the-belief-that-i-can-t-be/) [Paul Stanley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-stanley/) > [For people who have done comedy after a certain point in time, I think there's a base level of, 'O.K., I think I'm decently…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-ferrell/for-people-who-have-done-comedy-after-a-certain-point-in-time-i-think/) [Will Ferrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-ferrell/) > [I think it helps to have a good old-fashioned trajectory, plodding along. Obviously one has an ego and it's really easy to have that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-marie-duff/i-think-it-helps-to-have-a-good-old-fashioned-trajectory-plodding/) [Anne-Marie Duff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-marie-duff/) > [All ego really is, is our opinions, which we take to be solid, real, and the absolute truth about how things are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/all-ego-really-is-is-our-opinions-which-we-take-to-be-solid-real-and/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [“Of course , if I am nothing but an ego, and woman is nothing but another ego, then there is really no vital difference…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-herbert-lawrence/of-course-if-i-am-nothing-but-an-ego-and-woman-is-nothing-but-another/) [David Herbert Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-herbert-lawrence/) > [When you put your hand on the Bible, you are saying something much stronger than just telling your peers that you're going to tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-greenwood/when-you-put-your-hand-on-the-bible-you-are-saying-something-much/) [Lee Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-greenwood/) ## More by Bruce Perens > [No one cares what operating system you run as long as it stays up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-perens/no-one-cares-what-operating-system-you-run-as-long-as-it-stays-up/) [Bruce Perens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-perens/) > [The strategic marketing paradigm of Open Source is a massively-parallel drunkard's walk filtered by a Darwinistic process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-perens/the-strategic-marketing-paradigm-of-open-source-is-a-massively/) [Bruce Perens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-perens/) > [The reason for the success of this somewhat communist-sounding strategy, while the failure of communism itself is visible around the world, is that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-perens/the-reason-for-the-success-of-this-somewhat-communist-sounding/) [Bruce Perens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-perens/) > [But the most reliable indication of the future of Open Source is its past: in just a few years, we have gone from nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-perens/but-the-most-reliable-indication-of-the-future-of-open-source-is-its/) [Bruce Perens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-perens/) > [Well, lets just say, if your VCR is still blinking 12:00, you dont want Linux.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-perens/well-lets-just-say-if-your-vcr-is-still-blinking-12-00-you-dont-want/) [Bruce Perens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-perens/) > [It used to be that, when something strange happened, we'd hear on the news "Police believe this is the act of an isolated nut."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-perens/it-used-to-be-that-when-something-strange-happened-we-d-hear-on-the/) [Bruce Perens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-perens/) > [Before Ruby on Rails, web programming required a lot of verbiage, steps and time. Now, web designers and software engineers can develop a website…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-perens/before-ruby-on-rails-web-programming-required-a-lot-of-verbiage-steps/) [Bruce Perens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-perens/) > [The world is beating a path to our door](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-perens/the-world-is-beating-a-path-to-our-door/) [Bruce Perens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-perens/) [Explore all 9 Bruce Perens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-perens/) ## More Ego quotes > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [For us who are now in power, we need to be challenged to serve the people and ignore our own egos and personal interests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/for-us-who-are-now-in-power-we-need-to-be-challenged-to-serve-the/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [I love playing ego and insecurity combined.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-carrey/i-love-playing-ego-and-insecurity-combined/) [Jim Carrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-carrey/) > [“sometimes when everything seems at its worst when all conspires and gnaws and the hours, days, weeks years seem wasted – stretched there upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/sometimes-when-everything-seems-at-its-worst-when-all-conspires-and/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [I'm a straight shooter, and most of the time my ego doesn't interrupt my relationships.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-macht/i-m-a-straight-shooter-and-most-of-the-time-my-ego-doesn-t-interrupt/) [Gabriel Macht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-macht/) > [Thinking, or more precisely identification with thinking, gives rise to and maintains the ego, which, in our Western society in particular, is out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/thinking-or-more-precisely-identification-with-thinking-gives-rise-to/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Beware of self-indulgence. The romance surrounding the writing profession carries several myths: that one must suffer in order to be creative; that one must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brin/beware-of-self-indulgence-the-romance-surrounding-the-writing/) [David Brin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brin/) > [“There are two kinds of people: goal-oriented and ego-oriented. Goal-oriented people work together and get things gone. Ego-oriented people don’t work.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charbel-tadros/there-are-two-kinds-of-people-goal-oriented-and-ego-oriented-goal/) [Charbel Tadros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charbel-tadros/) > [Heart surgeons do not have the world's smallest egos: when you ask them to name the world's three leading practitioners, they never can remember…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-paretsky/heart-surgeons-do-not-have-the-world-s-smallest-egos-when-you-ask/) [Sara Paretsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-paretsky/) > [I hate acting when I see it. I don't want to feel it, I don't want to see it, I want to be taken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rutger-hauer/i-hate-acting-when-i-see-it-i-don-t-want-to-feel-it-i-don-t-want-to/) [Rutger Hauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rutger-hauer/) > [It's a constant man-ego-check going on in the streets, in this world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tupac-shakur/it-s-a-constant-man-ego-check-going-on-in-the-streets-in-this-world/) [Tupac Shakur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tupac-shakur/) > [“... a man doesn't like to have his ego popped, especially when he prides himself on his sagacity, and then to be proved wrong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-a-bucchianeri/a-man-doesn-t-like-to-have-his-ego-popped-especially-when-he-prides/) [E.A. Bucchianeri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-a-bucchianeri/) > [Our real nature is not our imaginary, limited ego. Our true nature is vast, all-comprehensive, and intangible as empty space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anagarika-govinda/our-real-nature-is-not-our-imaginary-limited-ego-our-true-nature-is/) [Anagarika Govinda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anagarika-govinda/) > [The man of wisdom is devoid of ego even though he may appear to use it. His vacant or fasting mind is neither doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramesh-s-balsekar/the-man-of-wisdom-is-devoid-of-ego-even-though-he-may-appear-to-use/) [Ramesh S Balsekar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramesh-s-balsekar/) > [Show me success without ego!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivana-trump/show-me-success-without-ego/) [Ivana Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivana-trump/) [Browse all 3,462 Ego quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ego/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's not about ego. Really. If it was ego, I'd be telling you about my awesome... oh, never mind.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bruce Perens" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-perens/it-s-not-about-ego-really-if-it-was-ego-i-d-be-telling-you-about-my/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ego" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-perens/it-s-not-about-ego-really-if-it-was-ego-i-d-be-telling-you-about-my/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abc/bruce-perens-44492_ego_it-s-not-about-ego-really-if-it-was-ego_2779271.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abc/bruce-perens-44492_ego_it-s-not-about-ego-really-if-it-was-ego_2779271.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abc/bruce-perens-44492_ego_it-s-not-about-ego-really-if-it-was-ego_2779271.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It's not about ego. Really. If it was ego, I'd be telling you about my awesome... oh, never mind.” — Bruce Perens", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Bruce Perens", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-perens/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It's not about ego. Really. If...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-perens/it-s-not-about-ego-really-if-it-was-ego-i-d-be-telling-you-about-my/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-perens/it-s-not-about-ego-really-if-it-was-ego-i-d-be-telling-you-about-my/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```