Self-esteem is esentially the opinion that we have of ourselves and. if you’re human, you’re more likely than not, to experience self-esteem issues at some point in your life…after a break up…a job loss…a serious accident or illness, these are all common causes of a ‘wobble’ in self-esteem.
Luckily, there are some simple changes that you can make now, to help you mend your self-esteem and get on with the life that you always dreamed of. In this blog post, we briefly show you how you can turn things around.
Step 1: Find something you’re good at
Knowing we are good at something instantly lifts our mood and eventually, self-esteem. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a coding-nerd or bookwork, or even a talented musician or artist, or if you have a flair for gardening. We are ALL good at something. Start noticing what you’re good at, what you do easily or differently and notice the compliments that people give you. From this, you will develop a sense of who you are and where your talents lie.
For example, I’m an amateur artist and I happen to think I’m rather good at what I do. Why?
- Because people have told me so – and I trust that they aren’t lying!
- Because I have a Redbubble store, where people have bought my work.
- Because I have a long history of people commissioning my artwork and receiving feedback on it.
The point is, I never would have thought of myself as a talented artist. In fact, it was because I went through a long period of surgeries and ill-health, where I took up drawing and returned to digital arts. I turned a negative situation into something positive, which made me feel better about myself – and you can do too!
Step 2: Exercise compassion in your life
WAs we mentioned in our last post on self-esteem, we are often too critical of ourselves and would all benefit from some compassion. Traditionally, most of us have no problem exercising compassion towards other people, but how about giving yourself a break? We all make mistakes, we all do things we’re not proud of, we all fluff up occasionally and, doing so is part of the human experience. If you’re finding it difficult to be compassionalte towards yourself, have a think about what you’d say to a friend who was in the sae situation…and say that to yourself. Be kind to yourself, you deserve it.
Step 3: Be assertive
We all have an expectation that, when we interact with others, they will respect our boundaries, opinions and needs, in the same way that we offer this to others. It can be difficult to be assertive; as in requesting or demanding that others respect your boundaries, needs, opinions…and really, your basic human rights. It is not abnormal to want respect in this way, yet some struggle with it more than others.
So, if your assertiveness isn’t where you want it, there are somen things you can do to improve it. Our best advice is to find a friend or relative who IS assertive – and start to notice the words they use, their body language and techniques that they use when they’re being assertive. For example, repeating their needs, repeating their expectations etc.
Being assertive is not about being somebody that you’re not, it’s about enforcing your boundaries and expections.
Closing notes
USA are currently ‘celebrating’ self-esteem awareness month, so we thought this was a perfect time to give you a nudge to focus on your self-esteem this month. Try out these suggestions and when you look back at the end of the month, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised how good you feel .
If you’re still struggling with issues related to your self-esteem, please contact us to ask how we can help you.
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Sources used:
NHS
We do our best to provide suggestions based on our experience as hypnotherapists and using nationally recognised good quality health education material, such as that provided by the NHS (UK). Information contained on our site does not constitute medical advice and is not intended to replace medical advice. You should speak to your doctor about any health concerns that you have and before making any radical changes to your lifestyle and health and fitness goals, including your quest to reach those goals.
