How do I tell if my ego is running my career?

You suspect your ego drives most of what you do at work, and you are honest enough to know you would rarely admit it out loud. That admission, even just to yourself, is rarer and braver than it feels. The ego's favorite trick is to stay hidden and call itself something nobler, ambition, standards, principle. So how do you tell? Watch your reactions, not your explanations. Notice when you feel a flash of defensiveness at criticism, a need to win a point, a sting when someone else gets credit. Those small flares are the ego showing itself. They are not signs you are bad; everyone has them. They are just information about what is really steering you. Pick one this week and watch it. When you feel that flare, pause before you react and ask what you actually want here, the outcome, or to look good. You do not have to kill your ego. You just have to see it clearly, because what you can see, you no longer have to obey.