Good self-esteem is a crucial quality to have in a person. It directly affects our confidence, self-worth and a general sense of happiness. It helps us to be more motivated in life towards our goals. Research has shown a positive connection between self-esteem and emotional susceptibility to failures. People with high self-esteem are found to be more resilient towards failures. Also, people with high self-esteem are less prone to anxiety. But having high self-esteem is not always an easy task. It comes with hard work sometimes. There are many ways we can improve our self-esteem. Some of the practical ways of doing that have been listed below.
1. Practically Relevant Positive Affirmations
Different people have different levels of self-esteem. So, declaring an extremely positive affirmation might not work for people who are struggling with low self-esteem. For example, a person with low self-esteem might not feel motivated with ‘I will be a phenomenal success’. It sounds a little too good to be true for a person with low self-esteem. So, positive affirmations need to be used correctly and more practically for people to relate to them. ‘I am gonna work harder for my success’ might resonate better with an individual with a fluctuating self-esteem. So, use practical and positive affirmations to motivate yourself.
2. Know Your Strengths And Work On Them
It is important for people to recognize their strengths. We derive a lot of confidence from doing things we are good at. So, find your strengths and invest in them. If you are a good runner, then take part in socially relevant marathons. If you are a good poet, then go for poetry conventions. These small initiatives will help you in gaining confidence in yourself which will seep into other arenas of life as well. So, invest your energy and time in enhancing your strengths to avoid focusing on your weaknesses.
3. Teach Yourself To Accept Compliments Graciously
People with low self-esteem have a hard time accepting a compliment. And this inability becomes very apparent when someone compliments them. They tend to be very awkward initially to acknowledge a compliment and then they tend to be in denial. The easiest way to deal with a compliment is to just say ‘thank you’, even if that makes you uncomfortable. If someone has found something nice about you, you don’t have to display to them your issues. Just say ‘thank you’ and try to feel good about it. Teach yourself to be more open to good things when they come your way.
4. Don’t Be Self-Critical
Low self-esteem is often accompanied by a high amount of self-criticism. A persistent negative voice becomes a normal phenomenon in people with low self-esteem. This negative voice often ends up creating a lot of self-doubt which ends up damaging the self-confidence even more. This is the time when you really need to work harder to bring your self-compassion to the front. When you start thinking badly about yourself, stop and ask whether you would talk like this about someone you love. The answer to that would always be a no. You need to practice compassion for yourself how you do it for others.
5. Find Your Real Worth
Sometimes we tend to take our rejections way too seriously and let that affect our self worth. But it is important that we take on critical thinking in such times. For example, if you have recently lost out on a job, then write down all your qualities that make you a good employee. Then expand on the qualities that you think are more relevant for you to get a better job. This exercise will help you to find a positive perspective in a negative situation without affecting your self-worth.
Little efforts can help in achieving high self-esteem which can power us to achieve great success. So, practice these small things in life to scale great heights.
