With all the many activities happening around us daily, it is very easy for one’s self-esteem to shift from moment to moment or day to day. Sometimes, you feel so good about yourself, but shortly afterwards, you start having negative thoughts again.
This can be exhausting because a constant pursuit of high self-esteem is unhealthy, but do you know it is possible to maintain your confidence and self-worth every day without drifting back into low self-esteem? Yes, it is, and in this guide, we will explore 5 steps for boosting self-esteem and maintaining your happiness every day.
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What is Self-esteem?
Self-esteem is how we perceive and value ourselves; it is your opinion and belief of your abilities and limitations. Your self-esteem can be shaped by your experiences, relationships, and thoughts and can also be related to culture, societal status or religion. So, many things come together to shape your self-esteem, that is why it is difficult to change.
Some people have low esteem while others have overly high self-esteem, and both are unhealthy, so you must strive to get healthy self-esteem. People with healthy self-esteem have a more balanced view of themselves; they accept their flaws and abilities and have realistic expectations. If you feel you have low self-esteem, reading this guide to the end will give you the answers you seek to regain your confidence.
Why is it Essential to Have a Healthy Self-esteem
Healthy self-esteem lets you see and believe in your abilities; it enables you to learn, achieve goals and contribute to the world around you, understanding that your ideas, opinions, and feelings are just as important as those of others.
Self-esteem also impacts your decision-making process, mental health, relationships, and overall well-being. It can also improve your motivation; with a positive view of yourself, you will be inspired to achieve your goals and take on new challenges.
Healthy self-esteem is a mindset or frame of mind that allows you to explore and celebrate your strengths and feel good about yourself while challenging your weaknesses and striving to become the better version of yourself.
5 Steps for Boosting Self-esteem
Now that you understand what self-esteem means and why it is important to have a healthy one, here are 5 proven steps for boosting self-esteem.
Write Out the List of Things you Love About Yourself
It may seem awkward to just sit down and write nice things about yourself, but acknowledging your abilities, skills, and all the good things you like about yourself can help improve your self-talk.
This is the first step for boosting self-esteem, which is vital because it all starts with you. So, you need to work on how you see yourself. You can start by keeping a journal of what you have done and enjoyed and all the little achievements you have every day.
This will go a long way to remind you of what you love and appreciate about yourself instead of negative self-talk.
Stop Comparing Yourself to Others
Your progress and self-worth are personal; they are not connected to how well others do. Yes, you are doing just fine at your own pace; it is very important to stop comparing yourself to people or wishing you were someone else. There will always be someone who is doing better than you and also someone you are doing better than. It doesn’t mean you are not doing enough. So, focus on yourself and your progress.
Accept Your Flaws and Forgive Yourself for Past Mistakes
As you work towards building healthy self-esteem, you should not only appreciate the amazing things about yourself, you also need to face your flaws and accept yourself for who you are. You are not perfect, and that’s just fine.
There are so many things that are awesome about you, and there are also things you wish you could change about yourself; you can choose to work on them, but they shouldn’t impact your self-worth.
So, in this step, you need to accept your flaws, know that mistakes are part of life and forgive yourself for past unpleasant actions and experiences.
Set Realistic Goals
One of the things that can have a great impact on your self-esteem is not achieving the goals you set out for yourself. You may think you are not good enough, but what if the goals are too much for you? An effective way to improve self-esteem is to start setting realistic and achievable goals and stop putting yourself under so much pressure to do more than you should be doing.
Setting realistic goals will help you feel a sense of accomplishment and progress, which is very good for building healthy self-esteem.
Practice Self-care
Self-care is very important for everyone; if you are always busy, try to take a few minutes of your day to engage in activities that promote peace and well-being; for example, you can take a walk, cook a healthy meal, spend time with loved ones, exercise, read a book and so on.
Activities like these are important for your mental health, and a good self-care routine can help improve your self-worth and self-esteem.
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Boosting self-esteem is not an easy challenge, but it is worth it. Low self-esteem is a serious challenge for many people, and it is often overlooked because most people do not know precisely what to do or how to seek help. So, do not wait until it hurts your academic, social and occupational life before you fix it. If you follow the 5 steps for boosting self-esteem we have discussed, you will surely restore your self-esteem in a short time and live a happier life.
