Tangible Tips to Build Self-Esteem
By: Lexi Nass, LCSW
Many people often struggle with low self-esteem. Self-esteem is the feeling of confidence in your skills and abilities. Having healthy self-esteem is about learning to view yourself as worthy, valuing your opinions and decisions, believing in yourself, and accepting who you are. Building positive and healthy self-esteem allows you to not only focus on positive qualities and strengths, but also allows you to acknowledge and accept your imperfections. If you are someone that struggles with low self-esteem, or are looking to build on your self-esteem, here are some realistic and easy ways to help grow your self-esteem:
Watch your favorite feel-good movie: Keep a list of your favorite feel-good movies and throw one on when you’re alone or with friends. What a better way to feel good than to watch a movie that makes you, literally, feel good!
Have a day for yourself: Plan a day for yourself focused on things you love, places you’ve wanted to go, or doing activities that bring you joy. If you have trouble finding a free day, start small and aim for a free hour or two!
Buy something special you saved up for: Buying something for yourself can feel even better when you know you worked hard for it or took the time to save up for it. Being able to purchase this item represents your ability to accomplish something you set your mind to. If you haven’t yet saved, set a goal for how much you want to put away and start saving!
Listen to things that inspire you: Listen to videos, podcasts, movies, TV shows, or songs that inspire you, teach you, excite you or, bring you joy.
Make an extra effort to care about your presentation: When you take the time to look your best, you often feel your best. Whether it means adding a little makeup, spraying perfume, blowing out your hair instead of walking out with a wet head, or picking out a cute new outfit, putting in a little extra effort can go a long way in how you feel about yourself.
Do something nice for someone else: Compliment someone, go out of your way to reach out to someone, give someone advice, share helpful resources, or teach someone something new. You can even participate in charity work, give back to those less fortunate than you, or donate old goods that you no longer use. It feels good to be able to do something for someone else!
Check something off your to-do list: Make a to-do list every day and focus on checking-off at least one thing every day. The satisfaction of crossing things off can help motivate you to be productive and succeed at completing your list.
Learn to say “No” more: Set boundaries and make choices for yourself that feel good. Normalize saying “no” to things that do not serve you, especially if it something that adds more stress to your life.
Spend time with people that build you up and make you feel good: It’s important to surround yourself with people that appreciate you, value you, and always make you feel your best.
Create a list of your achievements and accomplishments: Think about the things you are most proud of and the goals you have achieved. Make a list of those accomplishments and reference it when you need a reminder of how far you have come.
Learn and master a new skill: Whether your interests are cooking, crossword puzzles, singing, dancing, or playing a sport, focus on spending time practicing and mastering that skill. Conquering a new skill will help to build confidence.
If you are someone that struggles with low self-esteem, you are not alone. If you want to work together to learn more ways on how to build self-esteem, reach out to us at hello@upsidertherapy.com to set up your first session.