Like many Americans around my age, I spent a lot of time at a skating rink as a teenager.

I was an awful skater, I would spend time at the rink simply to socialize.

I spent more time talking with friends than I did skating. I was barely good enough to get around the oval a few times, and when it was a couples skate, I usually depended on the girl to help me keep my balance.

On one rare occasion I was skating while a few friends were hanging out along the outside of the rink. A young child suddenly fell down in front of me and I had no time or skill to maneuver around him. I was going relatively fast and couldn’t stop myself in time.

I reacted by literally leaping over the young boy who was sitting upright. I landed on my wheels and kept moving forward. I looked back at the boy, and then I turned to look at my friends who all saw me make the seemingly miraculous jump. I couldn’t believe it happened, and I couldn’t believe all my friends watched it happen.

The next time around the rink, I was feeling a little too good about myself, I waved at my friends, assuring they would be focused on me. And for no reason at all, I lost my balance, fell backwards, and slammed to the hardwood. All my friends, and many others watched it happen.

Pride literally came before the fall.

That’s a small example of being full of yourself. Others take self elevation to extremes. It’s always destructive to see yourself as superior to others. You may be more skilled or talented in some way, but you can always learn something from another.

Confidence is a good thing. But over confidence will lead to embarrassment.

Be careful to not set yourself up above anyone else. No one is beneath you, and everyone has immense value.

The truth is, a few people struggle with an out of control ego. And those type of people rarely will admit it. But it seems to me there are far more people who deal with the opposite issue. Those that lack confidence, have a low self-worth, or don’t understand their own value.

These people are often talented, creative, and compassionate, but they doubt themselves to the point of self-imposed irrelevance. These people are the ones the world needs to be confident in who they are. Society needs thoughtful, caring, noble people who believe in themselves enough to make a difference.

The odds are, many of you reading this undervalue your potential contribution to the world around you.

The young people in your life need you to be confident in who you are. God can work through you to inspire many.

Make sure you have balance when it comes to who God made you to be.

You and I are no better than any other.

But, no one else is more valuable than you.

-Tom Wise