- You cannot control others, only how you respond and what you allow into your life (Stoicism)

- You can be kind, but you also have to be kind to yourself (psychology)

- Collaboration works only when participants share goals (game theory)

- Everyone contributes to one shared output (systems thinking)

- Respecting your profession and honoring the effort that got you to your position (Aristotelian and Confucian role ethics)

- Success comes from discipline, self-restraint and honoring your responsibilities (meritocratic work ethic)

- Identity (and therefore respect) is not reducible to your role, position, recognition, skill level, or socioeconomic status (Eastern philosophy)

I see, so would “self-assured syncretism” be unfair?

As such, is the definite certainty justifiable or more of a personality choice?

Not picking on you, exactly, trying to find why I’ve been hearing this kind of language used so confidently among more or less equal peers, and what it’s actually doing for people.

Cunningham's Law: "The best way to get the right answer on the internet is not to ask a question; it's to post the wrong answer."

If I am wrong, someone will point it out and I will have learned something new in the process.

That was rewarding, thanks for the chat.