Creative Ways to Cultivate Genuine Self-Esteem

Sharon Moore August 25, 2015

In psychology, self-esteem is defined as the person’s overall subjective evaluation of his or her own worth. It answers the question ‘How do I feel about who I am?’

So how do you cultivate genuine self-esteem? Check out these creative ideas.

Get pass the shame.

The failures and misfortunes we experience in life sometimes make us feel really ashamed of ourselves. Maybe you just lost your job. Maybe you are forced to sell your house. Maybe you were turned down by the person you like. Or maybe you just got a divorce. Instead of feeling ashamed about it, be proud of the courage it takes to keep you going in life despite all those challenges. Instead of kicking yourself to shame, moments of downfall and difficulty are actually times to give yourself the love and care it deserves.

Laugh a little more.

It is not every day that things run smoothly. Sometimes, we go through the rough spots. But you shouldn’t blame yourself or measure your worthiness by the mishaps that you encounter in life. Oftentimes, we tend to overthink about even the little nuisances. But it shouldn’t be the case. Focus on the good things. Stay away from the negative stories. They are not worth your time and energy.

Focus on the journey.

No one is born with supreme self-esteem. Building genuine self-esteem is a lifelong process. Sometimes, you’d find yourself having so much of it. Other times, you’d wonder why it never came. Appreciating your worth takes time and practice, and determination too. You need not at your 100% every time. What is important is you focus on feeling the best you can in the moment.

Trust that you are competent.

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, trust that even if you cannot solve the problem all by yourself, you are capable of getting the help, skills, or knowledge that you need to address it. Pay attention to each accomplishment you’ve had, regardless of how small they were. When faced with larger difficulties, remind yourself of the problems you have successfully tackled in the past. And most importantly, give yourself extra credit when the issue you’ve dealt with required extra effort.

Acknowledge and embrace your positive qualities.

Make a list of all your assets, including your skills, talents, experience, physical and social resources, and everything else that makes you feel good about yourself. More importantly, accept that you are not perfect. Like anyone else, you are prone to committing errors. So you shouldn’t feel too bad when failure comes.

Let go of your pride.

Someone might think you are the best leader, while someone else might think you’re not good enough. People have varying opinions about how good we are. But in order to cultivate genuine self-esteem, you have to do the hard thing and let go of your need for external validation. The external world will always change, but you are you for the rest of your life. So take care of your inner self. Love yourself unconditionally. And be proud of who you are.

Being confident, resilient, and optimistic about life starts from having genuine self-esteem. Only when you acknowledge your value do you uncover your real potential.