How to Build Self Esteem & Become a Stronger Person

Building up your self-esteem takes practice, but it can be achieved by almost anyone. Learning how to appreciate yourself is an important life skill that will translate into success for you, both personally and professionally. Building up your self-esteem will make you a stronger person and can help you in meeting life's daily challenges.

Instructions

• 1

  Stop your negative thinking patterns, especially about yourself and your life. Thinking negative thoughts about yourself can become a self-fulfilling prophecy, in which what you believe to be true about yourself -- even if it isn't true -- eventually becomes your reality. Replace your negative thoughts with positive affirmations to build up your esteem and confidence.

• 2

  Focus on your strengths and what you excel at. Building upon your strengths helps you to pay attention to your positive qualities, a necessity for high self-esteem. Take on activities or projects that require you to use your strengths so you can see how you make a difference in the world; this will help you to feel better about yourself.

• 3

  Use mistakes as learning experiences. Everyone makes mistakes, but you can learn from them by figuring out where you went wrong and how you can change it next time. Focusing on the negative aspects of a mistake will only serve to bring your self-esteem down; figuring out what you can learn from the mistake will help you to try harder the next time.

• 4

  Stop making generalized or absolute statements about yourself, such as "I always fail" or "I will never amount to anything." Those types of negative statements will continue to bring you down and lower your self-esteem. Instead, think of times when you were able to succeed at a task or a time you accomplished a goal you set for yourself; this will bring up your self-esteem and make you a stronger person.

• 5

  Get involved in activities that make you feel better about yourself. Doing what makes you and others feel good will increase your feelings of self-worth and make you stronger. Volunteer at a soup kitchen, help a family member in need or clean out your closet. Anything that makes you feel more positive will boost your self-esteem.

• 6

  Make a list of the qualities you want to change about your life or situations you are unsatisfied with. Write down how you would like to change these items and how you plan to do it. Give yourself a time limit to accomplish these tasks. Setting small but achievable goals will help you feel better about yourself and help you in making what you believe to be necessary changes in your life.

• 7

  Have a support system in place for when times get tough. Everyone will have off days when they feel poorly about themselves; talking to a close friend or family member will help you to remember that you are a great person and have wonderful qualities. A good talk with a friend can build you up when you are feeling down and give you back your personal strength.