der Esel nennt sich immer zuerst

Etymology
lit. 'the donkey always mentions himself first'. Probably an alteration of the variant, from the idea that the donkey walks in front of the carriage but is of lesser value than the people on it.

Usage notes

 * It is now somewhat common to say, though with the same meaning as above. The reasoning in this case is that one should humbly consider oneself the donkey that ought to be mentioned last.
 * The accepted polite way of enumerating is 1.) second person, 2.) third person, 3.) first person, 4.) all non-human things. Thus for example: . Of course, this is not always slavishly adhered to, but one should avoid naming oneself first.