We have already looked at what causes low self esteem and how low self esteem is manifested. Improving Self Esteem is a natural way for gaining self confidence.
1. Quit criticizing yourself, and othersTo quote Maxwell Maltz from his extremely popular self help book, Psycho-Cybernetics:
"Watch for self-criticism - the moment you recognize it happening, pull yourself up short and stop it."
Besides hurting your self esteem, negativity - even on yourself - hurts you in other ways by increasing your stress levels. And negativity on others speaks volumes of low self esteem as well, and eliminating such negativity plays its part in lowering stress levels and improving self esteem.
Your motto should be: Accentuate the Positive. Eliminate the Negative.
How about when you do need to make a necessary critical comment? While you would like to avoid being critical for most part, when you do need to do it, always direct the criticism towards the issue at hand, never towards the person.
2. Speak your mind, and receive criticism gracefully Don't be afraid to say your mind. Don't necessarily think in advance what you are going to say; just say it, as long as it is not your intention to willfully hurt someone, of course.
And say it clearly and loudly. Make it a habit to speak loudly and clearly. No need to yell, of course, just as long as you know it is loud enough that others don't need strain their ears to hear you, or ask you repeat.
And be graceful when accepting criticism as well.
You can disagree with it, and say so if you do; or you can learn from it if there is truth in it - either way, try not to be overly sensitive about it.
"Someone's opinion of you does not have to become your reality."
-Les Brown
3. Compliment people when you like themBe direct. It is amazing how complimenting people complements your self esteem.
"An occasional compliment is necessary to keep up one's self-respect." -Mark Twain
Another Idea:
Click to Share Your Positive Self Esteem Tips with Visitors to this page. Sharing friendly advice can be an excellent self esteem booster.
4. Resist being a perfectionist Its perfectly normal to be imperfect, but its normally considered abnormal to be too perfect.
Don't tie your self esteem to always being perfect; it is okay to be less than perfect occasionally, and it is quite normal to fail occasionally, as well."Perfectionism is a dangerous state of mind in an imperfect world."
-Robert Hillyer
Being flexible and taking it easy is also one of the good stress tips for preventing it.
5. Develop a good body language Look your best, stand erect, walk well, look in the eye.
A regular exercise regimen will help attain most of these physical attributes, that help in improving self esteem and building self confidence.
Another Tip:
A one-stop shop for improving self esteem is Peter Shepherd's Start a New Life! program.
Start a New Life! is a comprehensive home-study program that provides a step by step approach to uncover self imposed barriers to self knowledge, freedom of expression, and action.
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