5 Simple Ways to Boost Your Self-Esteem

It’s no secret that many people struggle with self-esteem and self-image. But the problem is worse than you may know. As many as 85% of people have trouble with self-esteem.

Low self-esteem can lead to depression, lack of motivation, substance-abuse, and more. It not only affects you, but how you treat the people around you.

If you are someone who struggles with having confidence in who you are, how you look, and where you’re at in life, there’s good news…

You can improve yourself self-esteem.

We don’t always think of our self-esteem as something we can directly affect. Instead, we focus on trying to get in better shape or earn more money or gain more friends. While these aren’t inherently bad, they take a lot of work to make happen, and they won’t necessarily change how you feel about yourself.

And having low self-esteem makes them even more difficult to accomplish.

That’s why if you’re wanting to improve your life, you should start with your self-confidence and how you view yourself. Here are some simple areas to focus on.

With a little intentionality, you can start to see major improvements in self-esteem.

1. Treat yourself positively.

If you had a friend who always said you were a failure or called you ugly, you would (hopefully) stop hanging out with them. Yet so many of us speak this way about our own lives. We focus on our mistakes, reprimand ourselves for our failures, and constantly dwell on what we lack.

This kind of mindset drains self-esteem while promoting self-defeat.

To improve your self-esteem, you need to increase self-awareness. Catch yourself when you start to go down a negative path and reverse it. Compliment yourself. Look at what you have done and what you can do. You don’t have to be unrealistic or inflate the truth.

Just focus on the good.

It will take some work changing your mindset, but once you do, you’ll find yourself feeling much more optimistic.

2. Don’t compare.

We live in a time where we see arguably too much of each other’s lives. This has created a dangerous game of comparison as we wonder why we’re not as cool/adventurous/artistic/successful as the people we follow on social media.

Not that this is an entirely new problem. Outside of the digital world, we look at people’s jobs, cars, homes, and more, and we start to feel insecure about our own belongings and achievements.

To make things worse, start to despise the success of others. Even that of our own friends. It can be difficult to turn this habit around, but it’s critical to bringing your self-esteem up. It may take getting off social media for a while. Much like with the previous step, you’ll need to become aware of what’s happening in your mind. Stop the negative thoughts and try to turn them around.

Instead of being jealous of someone’s car, just be thankful that you have one.

Instead of acting bitter towards a friend’s success, celebrate it with them.

Instead of feeling inadequate because of someone’s achievements, be motivated by them.

Whatever you do, don’t start putting down someone else’s life to feel better about your own. This will only create a false sense of worth bread from insecurity.

3. Take care of your body.

Love is a verb, which means to truly love your body, you need to treat it properly. That includes stretching and exercising it, eating a balanced diet, getting rest, and going to the doctor as needed. A healthy body plays a major part in how you feel day-to-day.

That doesn’t mean you have to achieve six-pack abs or become vegan. Just treat your body better, and you’ll likely start to feel better about your body.

4. Look (and live) outside of yourself.

Sometimes, low self-esteem comes simply from focusing on ourselves too much. You can get so caught up in yourself, that you end up over-analyzing your life. By focusing on others and helping to make the world around you a better place, you can actually improve how you feel about yourself.

Try volunteering or mentoring. Your local church likely has opportunities to get involved. Or you can look for your own. Check with your local community center and see what’s available.

Just investing more in the people already around you can make a difference. Ask your friends, family, and coworkers how they’re doing, what’s going on in their life, what they’re dealing with.

5. Pray

As a Christian, praying is something we should do in any circumstance. When enduring times of self-doubt and uncertainty, seek God’s love and direction. Remember that God loves you and considers you to be of great worth. Rely on His strength when yours gives out.

Christian counseling can help with self-esteem

Identifying the sources of insecurity and implementing methods to overcome isn’t something you should do alone. While a friend or mentor may be able to build up your confidence, you may need professional guidance to truly overcome issues with self-image.

A Christian counselor has the capacity to lead you both psychologically and spiritually through seasons of doubt and depression. If you feel like you’ve tried everything, and you can’t change how you view yourself, seek counsel.

To find a Christian counselor that’s right for you, use torrch. It’s a completely free tool that connects you with the help you need.