“Poor ego, it gets such a bad rap, being so often confused with ‘megalomania’ and ‘vanity’ and all kinds of other nasty things, but strictly speaking it is only a psychological term popularized by Freud meaning the conscious (as opposed to the unconscious) mind, or the awareness of one’s own identity and existence."

That's a quote I found and included in my story I linked. I go on to say:

"Don’t say 'ego' when you mean 'less than desirable personality aspects.' In this case, less, while pithy, is not more. It leads to throwing the baby out with the bathwater."

That's my position. We can agree to disagree. Most would see things through your lens.