How to improve your self-esteem

Simply put, self-esteem is your opinion of yourself and your abilities. As we go through life, self-esteem can be high, low or somewhere in-between. It is completely normal to have doubts about yourself sometimes. However, low self-esteem can be problematic if it leaves you feeling insecure and unmotivated all of the time. Low self-esteem can also negatively affect your relationships, your job and your health.

Lucky for us, there are some ways you could improve and boost your self-esteem. Here are some top tips.

1. Be nice to yourself

Oftentimes, all it takes for you to boost your self-esteem is to treat yourself the way you treat others: with love, respect, and kindness. It is really easy to criticize yourself for every single mistake that you make. But instead of self-criticism, try self-compassion. When something goes wrong, ask yourself what you would say to your beloved friend if they were in your situation. Would you be tearing them down further when they are feeling sad? If your answer is no, make an effort to be nice and kind to yourself.

2. Get up and be active

Exercise may be known to help you enhance your mental health as well as your physical strength. But it has also been demonstrated to treat poor self-esteem, social disengagement, sadness, anxiety, and negative emotions. Exercise promotes self-esteem and cognitive function in place of these negative emotions.

In addition, getting active encourages the body to release endorphins, the feel-good hormones which will, well, make you feel good!

3. Focus on the right things

Many times, when we are having a tough time, we focus on things that we cannot change. Instead of doing that, try focusing on things that you can actually work on. Divert your time and energy into identifying the things that are within your control and seeing what you can do about them.

One good habit is to try this little activity: On a piece of paper, write down one thing that you’re not happy with, and three ways you could change it.

Then, try the methods that you thought of to change it. When you focus on things you can actually change, your success rate of changing rate will naturally increase, and so will your self-esteem!

Boosting your self-esteem

Everyone has periods when they are depressed or have trouble believing in themselves. However, if this continues for an extended period of time, it might lead to complications, such as mental health difficulties like sadness or anxiety.

Use these methods to boost your self-esteem and you’ll be well on your way to a happier and more confident you!