People on Boards who judge other people

My mother wanted to pursue a particular career that was very hard to get into in those days, especially for girls. She met a fair bit of resistance from some - not all - members of her own family who would have been working/lower middle class, if you were to categorize them. They felt she was reaching a bit too far, had notions, thought a bit too much of herself, and worst of all, thought she was better than the rest of the family etc. She only got to pursue her ambitions by leaving Ireland and studying abroad where she was able to leave that behind, and she felt guilty over it.

She succeeded in her studies and her chosen career, and while the pointed remarks became far fewer, she still gets the odd jibe that life as it was wasn't good enough for her, and there are one or two who would have really enjoyed her failing and being put back in her place. So there certainly used to be a kind of - if not begrudgery - perception of someone getting above themselves and by extension putting others below them, even if it was very far from the truth. I'm not sure how widespread it was then, but I'd expect it to be much less now. A cousin of my mum told me once that she always thought a lot of herself, and it wasn't meant as a compliment. I think that kind of thing is much rarer these days and upward mobility is much more common and not seen as notiony or threatening anymore.

I think how people receive success is often to do with how that success is presented. The more discreet you are, the less likely you are to put peoples backs up, if you care about that kind of thing.

aaronjumper wrote: »

Nah, I left my glasses at home.

You're cracking me up, Aaron.