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Building self-esteem takes time and effort, and a lot of mental willpower, but what are the benefits? Is it really worth going through the trouble of building your self-esteem? While you may have made it this far with lower self-esteem, having higher self-esteem can benefit so many aspects of life. That’s why we talked to some people who have made it a priority to build their own self-esteem. Take a look at how building your own can positively impact your everyday life!
Improve Your Confidence
One of the major benefits of higher self-esteem is better self-confidence. Confidence helps us through so many challenges and situations on a daily basis that you might not even recognize it. It affects our ability to take risks and think outside the box or to try new things, all of which we’ll cover below.
“Having confidence is something most of us struggle with growing up,” says Sumeer Kaur, CEO of Lashkaraa. “It can be difficult to build self-esteem and feel confident when you’ve grown up in a world where everyone was always compared to each other. Social media definitely hasn’t helped this situation. Building self-esteem can give you more confidence in yourself and your abilities to do what you want with your life.”
The Glass Is Half Full
Are you an optimist or a pessimist when facing challenging circumstances? Having higher self-esteem can help you look at situations with a positive outlook rather than jumping to the worst-case scenario. Being positive affects not only your mental wellbeing, but it affects everyone around you as well.
“Think about it: do you want to spend time with someone who is always down on themselves and every situation, or would you rather hang out with someone who has a positive outlook on life?” says Zach Goldstein, CEO of Public Rec. “Developing a higher self-esteem can help you be that positive influence on your circle of family and friends, and you can improve the way people think of you while also positively influencing them.”
Enter Situations With an Open Mind
When you have low self-esteem, you’re more likely to shy away from new or threatening experiences. Entering situations, whether it’s at work or in your personal life, with an open mind can help you experience new things and discover more about yourself in the process.
“People with low self-esteem often get stuck in their ways because they lack the confidence to try something new,” says Kim Walls, CEO and Co-Founder of Furtuna Skin. “At work, this could make you seem argumentative or stubborn when it comes to listening to the ideas of others. When you improve your self-esteem, the world doesn’t seem as threatening, and you’re able to hear and experience things with an open mind and less fear of the future.”
Dealing With Disappointments
Disappointments and let downs are a part of life. When you have low self-esteem, it can be very difficult to pull yourself out of a funk once you’ve been disappointed in something. Whether a friend canceled plans or your ideas just didn’t pan out, it can be tempting to be hard on yourself and cause even more problems.
“Rather than beating yourself up or wallowing in your disappointments, people with higher self-esteem are able to pivot and look for a new idea or something positive to grasp in that moment,” says Michael Fischer, Founder of Elite HRT. “When you’re able to let these things roll off your back, pulling yourself together becomes a much easier process.”
Be Your Own Advocate
Speaking up for yourself in situations where you feel you’re being treated unfairly or that something is being done that shouldn’t happen can be terrifying to someone with low self-esteem. While these situations may always be a bit uncomfortable for some, having higher self-esteem can give you the confidence to advocate for yourself in times of need.
“You have to stand up for yourself,” says Jodi Neuhauser, CEO of Ovaterra. “If you don’t voice your thoughts or opinions on things that are important to you, your feelings will never be known. Don’t let your lack of confidence stop you from becoming all that you can be because you’re afraid to speak up. Learn to advocate for yourself and your values in all spheres of life.”
Improve Your Work Quality
Did you know that improved self-esteem has been linked to better work quality? It’s true! People who are more confident in their own self-worth have been shown to produce higher quality work because of their willingness to go above and beyond without fear of breaking the rules.
“High self-worth lets you take calculated risks and try new things, which often lead to better work and higher productivity,” says Chris Thompson, CEO of Sober Sidekick. “People with low self-esteem often aim for ‘safe’ work and stay within clearly defined expectations. An employer doesn’t promote a person that follows the rules and never thinks outside of the box. They look for the people who are reaching for the stars and willing to take these reasonable risks to advance themselves and the company.”
Trust Your Own Judgment
Learning to trust your own judgment is a big part of the risk-taking process that was mentioned above. Building your self-esteem can positively impact your judgment skills because you’ll be more willing to take those risks due to your improved judgment.
“We’re often our own worst critics,” says Den Montero, Marketing Director of Moeflavor. “Learning to trust our own judgment typically involves learning to ignore the toxic negative thoughts that tell us we’re not smart enough or brave enough to try this new thing. Developing positive self-esteem helps us learn to navigate the world through new eyes with positive self-talk and the ability to trust our own reasoning.”
Build Stronger Relationships
It’s been touched on already, but you’re not the only one affected by your low self-esteem. Building your confidence can help you build stronger and deeper relationships with those around you. Relationships require a level of trust that feels dangerous to someone with minimal self-esteem; this can cause you to hold back or self-sabotage friendships rather than moving them forward.
“Relationships are hard. Whether we’re talking about romantic, friendly, or familial relationships, there’s a large amount of trust that you have to have in the other party in order to open up,” says Breanne Millette. CEO of Bisoulovely. “People with low self-esteem either don’t share because they’re afraid to open up and show themselves to people, or they go the opposite route and share too much in an effort to receive positive words of affirmation or condolences from their friends. The first can cause friendships to remain very surface level or even dissolve if the other party feels their openness is not being reciprocated. The latter can lead to relationships where the other party constantly feels drained by the need to validate their friend.”
Adapt to Change
Change is one of the only consistent things in life. As we’ve mentioned a few times, people with low self-esteem often struggle with risk-taking or adapting to disappointment. In the same vein, change can cause a lot of stress on a person with low self-esteem because they often find their comfort and confidence in their routines rather than in their own self-worth.
“Change is hard for a lot of people, but for individuals with low self-esteem, life changes can be particularly challenging,” says Rachel Roff, Founder and CEO of Urban Skin Rx. “Big life milestones that should be exciting, such as buying a house, starting a job, or the birth of a child, lead to feelings of self-doubt and toxic, negative thoughts. Improving your confidence can positively impact your life by allowing you to respond positively and with excitement to these changes rather than doubting your abilities as you move into a new chapter of life.”
Try New Things
Trying new things can be especially daunting for someone who has low self-esteem. New things, like change, often bring feelings of anxiety and doubt. Instead of looking forward to learning something new or the opportunities that await, people with low self-esteem often assume the worst will happen.
“Trying new things is how we grow our own worlds,” says Randee Machina, Director of Marketing at Simpli Pleasures. “While you may be happy where you are right now, imagine if you hadn’t tried your favorite hobby for the first time or took a chance at starting a relationship with your significant other. There are things that we love about life that were once ‘new’ to us. Building your self-esteem can help you find new passions, loves, and opportunities that would otherwise pass you by.
Conclusion
Improving your self-esteem can positively impact your everyday life in many ways. It can boost your confidence, giving you the ability to explore your world with less fear and anxiety about new things or what others think about you. Hopefully, these impacts have made you think about how you could improve your life by building self-esteem and what you could do to explore that process.
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Vohs, K. D., Raumeister, R. F., Campbell, J. D., & Kreuger, J. I. (2013, May). Does high self-esteem cause better performance, interpersonal success, happiness, or healthier lifestyles? Psychological science in the public interest: a journal of the American Psychological Society. Retrieved September 14, 2022, from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26151640/
