True humility is contentment.

Humility is often mistaken for putting yourself down, which is just another way of keeping score. The real thing is quieter: you are not measuring, so there is nothing to defend and nothing to win. Someone who is genuinely content has no reason to shrink or to inflate. The restlessness that makes people boast is the same restlessness that makes them grovel.

Watch for the moment in a conversation when you feel the pull to correct someone’s impression of you, upward or downward. Let one of those pass without acting on it, and notice how little is lost.