5 Simple Ways to Boost Self-esteem

Low self-esteem and confidence are more common than we think. According to betterhelp.com, an estimated 85% of Americans suffer from low self-esteem. So, don’t feel bad if you are one of the 85% because chances are you’re not the only one in your life who suffers from low self-esteem. Need more information on self-esteem? Read 5 Clear Signs of Low Self-esteem.

If you’re still not sure if you have low self-esteem take our self-esteem quiz now.

To go from being unconfident and self-conscious to being confident and sure of yourself is a journey. You’re not going to wake up overnight totally in love with yourself and overflowing with confidence. It will take you time and you’ll have to be proactive about it.

Let’s look at a few ways you can boost your self-confidence and self-esteem…

1. Look at your past wins and achievements

You won’t know where you’re going until you can see where you’ve been. The best way to feel good about yourself is to recollect all those times when you had little and big wins.

Write each win and accomplishment down on a piece of paper. Even if you think there’s none, rest assured that if you thought hard, you’d definitely find a few times in your life when you achieved a goal and were over the moon about it. NO ONE is a total loser.

Looking back at your past wins will boost your self-esteem by reassuring you that you can genuinely do anything you put your mind to.

One of the best things to do with this practice is to think of a situation that had you totally freaked out and fearful. You thought that you couldn’t do it and that there was no possible way you would succeed but you did. Use this memory to feel proud of yourself and to celebrate yourself.

Once you have several pieces of paper with your wins, place them all in a jar and look at them daily or whenever you’re feeling down. These wins will remind you that you can be proud of yourself and confident enough to do any and all things you put your mind to.

Looking at your past wins is an easy way to boost your self-esteem.

2. Set new goals

Very often, people with a lack of goals/ambition feel like they’re bobbing at sea with no direction. In a way, this is true – but an insidious side effect of this situation is that you feel listless, directionless and like your life is being wasted.

Over time, you’ll lose confidence in yourself because you feel like you’re not progressing while everyone else seems to be. A quick fix to this problem will be to set a few goals for yourself.

What are your desires? What do you wish to achieve? Why do you want to achieve them? Are these goals what you truly want?

Your goals do not have to be anything extreme. Setting simple goals such as making your bed each morning or waking up earlier will make you feel more accomplished and better about yourself.

Once you answer these questions, you can create a plan to work towards the goals. As long as you’re consistent and keep progressing, you WILL reach your goal in time to come.

With each win, your sense of self-confidence will get a boost. The most successful people are often very self-confident because they have a lot of wins under their belt and know that they have what it takes to succeed. This knowledge is enough to make you confident in most cases.

3. Gratitude journaling

Spending 15-20 minutes a day writing in a journal about what you’re grateful for can remove a lot of negativity in your mind and heart. All of us have thousands of things we can be grateful for… but so often, we forget that we’re blessed.

Every morning you can journal about 3 things you’re grateful for. To add more substance you can even write 5 affirmations to help you feel good about your day.

It is best practice to do gratitude journaling in the morning before you get your day started. Doing gratitude journaling will help you start your day off positive and productive.

We let ourselves get negative and look at what’s missing in our lives. Gratitude journaling realigns one’s focus to what matters, and when you see just how much you have to be grateful for, you’ll be much more confident.

Once you realize how much you truly have to be grateful for you will continually find more things to be grateful for.

4. Avoid negative people

The world is filled with sour, angry people who can only feel better when they put others down. One of the best things you can do is to keep away from people who make you feel unconfident.

Negative people are often dealing with low self-esteem and insecurities of their own and will usually project their bad energy onto you. So, for you to build your self-esteem it is important that you protect your space and yourself from negative people that will find a way to bring you down.

Get rid of the negative people and start surrounding yourself with positive people who have the same goals and ambitions as you. It is known that you become what you surround yourself with. So surround yourself with others who uplift you and encourage you.

Avoiding negative people can be easier said than done, simply because some of these negative people may be family members or close friends. Not wanting to cut off family and friends is understandable but if the person is toxic that it affects your self-esteem and confidence then you should choose yourself over the relationship you have with that person.

5. Self-love affirmations

Self-love affirmations are another way to boost self-esteem and probably one of the easiest ways.

Self-love affirmations are positive statements that we say to ourselves or others. In this case, we are going to use affirmations on ourselves.

There is no right way to use affirmations but one of the best ways to use affirmations is to come up with an affirmations list with affirmations that resonate with you and where you are in your life. Need affirmations to make your list? Check out our list of 70 self-love affirmations.

Once you have your list of affirmations you can say the affirmation out loud to yourself, say the affirmations in your head, or write the affirmations down in a journal.

Use whatever method is most comfortable for you. Make sure you use these affirmations until you believe them full-heartedly. Affirmations are not an overnight quick fix but as long as you believe what you are saying they will work.

More tips on boosting self-esteem

Self-esteem is one of the most important factors that contribute to our success and happiness in life. Remember, low self-esteem is common among most Americans, so don’t feel bad if you have low self-esteem. Instead, be proactive and start doing the work to boost your self-esteem.