8 habits to increase self-esteem

Surely you have ever felt discouraged when considering projects or daily tasks that pose a challenge, a common experience that occurs especially when we do not trust ourselves themselves.

It is normal for this to happen from time to time; the way in which we perceive ourselves varies according to the circumstances and, being dynamic, can give rise to moments in which we do not feel prepared to do everything that life asks of us us. However, when this experience is prolonged over time, it is an indication that we surely suffer a low self esteem problem.

The good news is that we don't have to resign ourselves to feeling bad about ourselves. There are several ways to improve self-esteem and although the most effective go through psychotherapy, some are so simple that they can be based on relatively simple habits.

• Related article: "Do you really know what self-esteem is?"

Key habits to increase self-esteem in your day to day

Self-esteem is the way in which we analyze and value ourselves globally, as individual beings. This implies that

self-esteem is composed of a textual part (it can be reflected in phrases and words) and an emotional part which touches us more closely. The combination of these two dimensions of self-esteem makes it influence us in all aspects of life, and that is why it is convenient to keep it in good condition, without letting it drag us towards the tendency to judge ourselves in a very unfair way and linked to self-sabotage constant.

Thus, self-esteem is an essential element in the life of any person, and to increase it we can put into practice a series of very useful habits that can be implemented in our day to day day.

1. exercise regularly

Regular moderate exercise is one of the easiest habits to maintain a good emotional balance, since it influences both physical and mental health. It's not just about getting in shape and liking ourselves in the mirror; The very experience of exercising generates in us an instantaneous effect of satisfaction with our achievements.

The exercise can be of any type, the important thing is that it is intense enough to be challenging and connect us with the here and now, letting go of the intrusive thoughts that usually affect us when we feel low self-esteem.

• You may be interested in: "The 10 psychological benefits of practicing physical exercise"

2. Surround yourself with people who value you.

Human beings are social beings, which means that we need the company of other people to develop and perform healthily, as well as to feel better throughout our life. Much of what we think we know about ourselves comes from the way we see others react. before us, and that is why to maintain a good self-esteem we must know who is worth dedicating our time.

To increase self-esteem it is necessary being with those people who make us feel good or who lead us to see ourselves through the lens of constructive criticism; It's not just about being with sycophants, but with people who feel good sharing with us what they like about our actions and way of being, and that they have no interest in sinking our self-esteem to become dependent on them (something unfortunately common in relationships toxic).

• Related article: "The 6 main types of toxic relationships"

3. Spend free time on your hobbies

Doing what really fulfills us in life and spending time doing those hobbies that make us happy is another of the best ways to improve our levels of self-esteem. It allows us to show ourselves what we are capable of in areas of knowledge or technical skill that bring meaning to our lives.

4. Maintain a positive self-talk with yourself

Self-talk is the way we communicate with ourselves. Some people have a tendency to talk to themselves before performing a difficult task or to encourage themselves before a difficult test.

This habit, far from being an eccentricity, is a good way to communicate with ourselves and something that many psychologists strongly recommend, especially for those with self-esteem issues.

So, to improve our self-esteem we must modify a negative self-talk style and replace it with a more positive one. This means that we should start talking to each other in a positive and respectful way, highlighting where necessary successes and the good things we do and also encouraging us or being understanding when something goes wrong, to learn from others mistakes.

5. Write a personal journal

Increasing knowledge about oneself is the best way to improve our levels of self-esteem, which is why it is so important to fill in a personal diary in the that we write our emotions, fears or daily problems.

When we know ourselves better and are able to identify our emotions, we will also be better able to modify them. by other more positive ones, which will allow us to live better and be happier in life, with higher levels of self-esteem.

• You may be interested in: "How to make an emotions diary, step by step and with examples"

6. Turn self-criticism into concrete proposals

People with low self-esteem have tendency to be self-critical of themselves to excessive levels, since they systematically consider that they do everything wrong.

To overcome this vision of oneself, we must turn self-criticism towards ourselves and our performance in specific proposals, to know specifically what we must change in order to to be better.

7. Avoid dysfunctional perfectionism

Low self-esteem is also often caused by an excess of perfectionism in certain people.

This is that the person is never happy with her performance or with the result of her work. To improve this problem we can set more realistic and achievable goals.

8. Avoid expressing yourself in absolute terms

Some people with low self-esteem often harbor very drastic thoughts about themselves, of the type: "I'm useless" "Nothing works out for me" or "I'm never going to get it".

To improve our self-esteem we must change those thoughts so absolute for some more positive and realistic. In this way we can begin to think "This has not worked out for me, but if I make an effort I will achieve it" or "This is not good for me but other things are".

• Related article: "Dualistic thinking: what it is and how it affects us"

Are you looking for psychological assistance to boost your self-esteem?

Psychology offers very effective emotional management tools to overcome self-esteem problems. Therefore, if you are interested in having professional help, contact us.

In Happy Mind Institute We offer psychotherapy services and training in emotional regulation, self-leadership and Mindfulness.