Brisbane Counselling Professional, Corey Human, is passionate about helping people to build a positive self image. Here, he provides some simple activities to boost self esteem …
Self esteem refers to how much a person likes and appreciates themselves. It plays an important role in a person’s motivation, drive and success throughout life.
Signs of a Healthy Self Esteem
Some signs of a healthy self esteem include:
- Being confident;
- The ability to say no.
- A positive outlook on life.
- Being aware of one’s own strengths and weaknesses, and accepting them.
- Life is not impacted by negative experiences.
- Can express needs (Cherry, 2017).
If this is an area you would like to improve in your own life, here are a few simple activities to boost your self esteem:
- Groom yourself and dress nicely. Shower, wear clean neat clothes and use deodorant and perfume. It is amazing the positive impact this can have!
- Think positive and kill any negative thoughts. This does not happen overnight, it takes time to train your brain to change the way it thinks. Be aware of your thoughts, and how you speak about yourself.
- Be kind and generous. This might sound weird, but it works! It is also a biblical principle. Galatians 6:7 states “…for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he reap”. If you sow kindness you will reap kindness; the same with a positive attitude. It always makes you feel good, when you do something for another person.
- Be prepared. Whether you must sit an exam, give a speech, go for a job interview or to an important function, be prepared, know your work / topic, or have an idea what you will talk about at the function when you meet new people (Zenhabits). You cannot feel confident unless you know what you need to know. Get yourself educated, keep learning, do your research and never stop reading (Goldsmith, 2010, p. 28).
- Speak Slowly. This plays an important role in how people perceive you. It is noteworthy that a person with authority often speaks slowly, while a person who does not feel he is worth listening to, often speaks fast. Even if you do not feel confident, remember to slow down as you talk – it might take time, but you will get used to it.
- Stand tall. Be aware of your posture, standing tall automatically makes you look confident.
- Smile. This is an easy one! By smiling you are perceived by other people as kind and approachable.
- Volunteer. To volunteer is part of being kind and generous. Again, volunteering will make you feel good, get you to meet people who might be likeminded to you, and you also have an opportunity to have a positive impact in your community.
- Do something that you have been postponing. Look at the tasks that have been on your to do list for a while. Get the item you have been avoiding, done first thing in the morning – this will make you feel good about yourself, and give you a sense of completion.
- Get active. Start to get active. Start slowly especially if you have not done any exercise in a while – remember, doing something, is better than doing nothing. Getting active will also make you feel better about yourself. There are various ways to get active: go for a walk or a jog, go for a bike ride, join a gym or an exercise group in a park. Exercise can be an empowering activity (Zenhabits).
- Be patient with yourself. If you are not successful in what you are attempting the first time, keep trying. Do not give up. Always remind yourself that you are learning and that each attempt at something is a way of learning and growing as a person (Goldsmith, 2010, p. 25).
- Embrace your fears. By embracing your fears and not avoiding them, you create a more practical way of dealing with these feelings. It is also helpful to know why your fears exist and then you can deal with them (Goldsmith, 2010, p. 32). A counsellor will help you to discover the origin of your fears, and together you can work on strategies to deal with them.
- Do not isolate yourself. We are not created to be alone. Studies have shown that people who cohabit with others live longer than people that do life on their own. We do need some alone time, but contact with other people is vital for our mental and emotional health and wellbeing. (Goldsmith, 2010, p. 57 & 58).
A very effective way that a person can boost self esteem is to go for counselling. Your counsellor can work with you to discover the reasons for your self esteem problems, help you to deal with them, and then guide you with various strategies and activities to boost your self esteem.
Author: Corey Human, B Th (Hons), M Counselling, Dip Youth Work, Dip Youth Justice, Dip Couns, Dip Pentecostal Theology, Dip Ministry. Member of PACFA and CCAA.
Corey Human has nearly 20 years’ experience working with teenagers and young people at risk, or struggling with self esteem, depression, video game addiction and other problems. He provides counselling to adolescents, adults, couples, parents and families in both English and Afrikaans.
To make an appointment try Online Booking. Alternatively, you can call M1 Psychology Brisbane on (07) 3067 9129
References:
- Cherry K, 2017, What Exactly is Self-Esteem? https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-self-esteem-2795868
- Goldsmith, B. 2010, 100 Ways to boost your self-confidence. The Career Press; Franklin Lakes
- Zenhabits, 25 Killer actions to boost your self-confidence. https://zenhabits.net/25-killer-actions-to-boost-your-self-confidence/