Read the given passage and answer the questions that follow
Why does a person become overconfident? The reason lies in over assessment of his capabilities. Sometimes people over assess their competence and jump into situations that are beyond their control.
Napoleon Bonaparte who became Emperor of France would say that the word ‘impossible’ was common only amongst fools. The overconfident Napoleon invaded Russia in the winter of 1812. This proved to be a big disaster.
Overconfidence generally leads people into misadventures, endangering their chances in life. It is wisely said that any achievement is a result of two factors – one’s personal planning and support from the external world. Overconfident people take into account only their planning, generally ignoring external factors. As a result they are unable to foresee future developments. Hence, there is a greater risk of failure.
Then there is the question: how can one manage overconfidence? The formula is very simple. Before taking a decision discuss the matter with other informed people with an objective mind and when it is proved that you are about to go off the path, accept reality and say without delay, “I was wrong”.
Overconfidence is a flaw characterising people who lack the virtue of modesty. Modesty makes you a realist; you become a person who is cut down to size. People of this kind become very cautious; before taking an action they assess the whole situation. They adopt a realistic approach.
Overconfident people live within their own thoughts. They know themselves but they are unaware of others. Living inside their own cell they are unable to make use of the experiences of others. This kind of habit is highly damaging to all concerned.
There is a saying that the young man sees the rule and the old man sees the exception. With a slight change, I would like to say that the overconfident person sees the rule and the confident person sees the exception. Overconfident people are always at risk. It is said that taking risk is good but it must be well calculated, otherwise it becomes very dangerous.
'cut down to size' means to:
- Abelittle someone
- Bcontrol someone
- Cbe cautious
- Ddefer a decision
Solution & Step-by-step Explanation
The idiom "cut down to size" means to make someone feel less important or powerful than they think they are, or to bring them to a realistic level of self-assessment. In the context of the passage, modesty makes you a realist, i.e., it checks your inflated ego and cuts you down to your actual, true size (belittling your overinflated self-worth).