9 Ways to Improve Your Self-Esteem
Self-esteem is about how you feel about yourself—good (high esteem) or bad (low esteem). In today’s fast-paced, opinion and judgment saturated society, it’s easier than ever for one to find themselves struggling with low self-esteem.
There are countless long-term ways to improve self-esteem, such as creating healthy habits, mastering a new skill, or attending therapy, but there are also many self-esteem solutions that can be used throughout your day to help keep your confidence lifted.
Show Your Smile
Smiling stimulates your brain to release endorphins, which are the body’s feel-good hormones. This release sends a message to your body that you feel happy and confident, which helps you to actually feel those things.
Even if a smile isn’t genuine, the simple act of smiling causes the same neurological reaction. It’s a mysterious physiological response that scientists haven’t quite deciphered yet, but there’s no denying its power. And because smiling can be done anywhere, it’s the easiest way to give yourself a quick boost when you’re feeling low.
Calm the Chaos
A cluttered, messy environment has been proven to be an under-recognized but significant stressor for many people. Any disorganized area—whether at home, at work, or in the car—can create negative energy and leave you feeling as if you are also messy, disorganized, and helpless.
Fortunately, this problem has a quick and easy solution: set aside half an hour to make sense of the physical chaos surrounding you. By performing a basic cleanup of your immediate environment, you will inspire within yourself a feeling of control, which is an automatic confidence booster.
Move Your Body
Exercise has been proven time and time again to do wonders for your self-esteem and general sense of well-being. Regular workouts help control your weight, keep your heart and bones strong, lower blood pressure and risk for chronic illnesses, and fight anxiety and depression.
Over time, exercise will also drastically improve your fitness level, muscle tone, and body image. All of these things are directly linked to how a person sees and feels about themselves. Taking ten minutes out of your day to go for a quick walk, do some jumping jacks, or practice yoga could be just the thing you need to feel more confident in yourself.
Listen to Music with Heavy Bass
There was a study detailing the influence music had on participants. Test subjects were split into two groups—both groups were administered tests involving rolling dice and filling in the blanks. One group listened to music with high bass while the other listened to music with low bass.
Researchers found that the group listening to high bass was more likely to fill in the blanks with power-related words and were more likely to roll the dice themselves. Even after the conclusion of the experiment, the high bass group continued to act in a more confident, assertive manner than the low bass subjects.
However bizarre it may seem, the results showed that high levels of bass in music produces long-lasting feelings of confidence and power in the listener. This can easily apply to your life: listen to some music (preferably with heavy bass) that you like to get you pumped up. You’ll feel more confident in that job interview, presentation, or any other activity where you may just be feeling down.
Practice Good Posture
Using proper, upright posture is an easy and natural way to relieve symptoms associated with depression, such as low self-esteem. Researchers have found that stress influences posture and posture influences stress—a vicious circle.
However, by being mindful of your posture and taking care to sit or stand upright, one can break that cycle and experience a shift from feeling anxious and worried to feeling relaxed and confident. Practicing good posture is a fantastic habit to adopt for lifelong physical and emotional health and can be practiced anywhere for an immediate self-esteem boost.
Take Note of the Good
One simple, yet very rewarding way for someone to improve their self-esteem and confidence within moments is to make a list of twenty things that make them feel good, with an emphasis on gratitude. Creating a list only takes a few minutes, but the action of taking that time to focus on the good in one’s life has a powerful effect.
Improve Your Appearance
How we look on the outside generally reflects and influences how we feel on the inside. When someone is in a slump, a good place to start is self-care.
It’s difficult to feel good about yourself if your clothes are sloppy or you haven’t taken time for personal hygiene. Taking a shower, brushing your teeth, dressing in fresh clothes, brushing your hair, or even getting a new hairstyle are all ways to get an incredible lift in self-confidence with minimal effort.
Set a Small Goal and Achieve It
Nothing makes a person feel accomplished and confident quite like achieving a goal. Of course, long-term goals are wonderful to work toward over time, but for a quick boost of confidence, a small goal will also do the trick.
Easily achievable goals, like donating to a charity online, making a meal plan, or paying five people a heartfelt compliment can be accomplished within minutes and leave you feeling successful and confident.
Don’t Spend Your Days in Despair
Poor self-esteem can wreak havoc on a person physically, emotionally, and psychologically. To truly overcome it, steps must be taken to discover and treat the root of the problem; however, there’s no need to sit and wait for long-term results.
You deserve to feel strong, competent, and confident in yourself right now. Take control of your current situation and improve your self-confidence now by utilizing these tricks and techniques daily.
