Low self-esteem is a condition where one thinks less about themselves, which leads to different things such as self-doubt, worthlessness, lack of confidence, mental health issues, and the overall well-being of an individual. On many occasions, most of those who have low self-esteem develop it from childhood trauma and bullying; others are due to societal pressure. Being someone who has been in this situation before, I'd like to share strategies on how one can overcome low self-esteem.
One thing I've come to notice during the period when I've had low self-esteem is the fact that people with such conditions tend to be overly critical about themselves, like you see us analyzing everything about ourselves and criticizing them. We struggle with self-confidence because we continuously doubt our capabilities, and these can go on to lead to isolating oneself, refusal to try out new things, anxiety, and several other issues, to name but a few. Luckily, I overcame these mental health issues, and that's why I'll be sharing my strategies for overcoming them below.
Identify negative thoughts and challenge them: you see, one of the main reasons people have low self-esteem is because they think less about themselves in one way or another; those are negative thoughts, and to sail through, you need to recognize them within you, challenge their validity, and replace that negative inner dialogue with positive affirmation, which will go on to make you graduate and believe in yourself once again.
Be compassionate to yourself: you see, one thing I noticed back then is that while I tried to understand some of the lapses of my friends and treated them with kindness, the same isn't the case when it comes to treating myself. I think to criticize myself at every given opportunity, and this goes on to brood the low self-esteem, and to overcome this phase, you need to be kind and compassionate to yourself, understand that you're not perfect, and be patient with your growth in every aspect.
Prioritize your strength: When I wanted to overcome my low self-esteem, one of the valuable pieces of guidance and advice I got was the need to put more effort into recognizing my strength, such as my accomplishments, skills, and positive qualities. Recognizing this gradually helps me think highly of myself and recognize that I'm not entirely all shades of bad like I used to think of myself.
Surround yourself with good and positive people: You see, people with low self-esteem can easily be influenced by people around them; their words play a huge role in your life, and that's why you should make sure good and positive people are who you surround yourself with. If you were to be around bad people, they could act on your low self-esteem to make you do bad things, and you'd find yourself doing it because you often seek people's validation. Also, negative people will make you feel less about yourself, but with good and positive people around you, they'll guide you on the right path and help you in your journey to overcoming low self-esteem.
Set realistic goals: You see, one of the places I was affected by low self-esteem was public speaking and airing my opinion to a large audience, and when I was trying to break free from the chain of low self-esteem, I set some goals that helped me overcome it gradually; From speaking in a small group discussion to making videos of me airing my opinion about different things and publishing them online on a weekly basis, this goes on to help me break free, and some positive feedback, guidance, and encouragement I got from those became my strengths and drive that kept me going.
Avoid comparison: many of us who have low self-esteem are usually as a result of how we compare ourselves with others, and when we see how far they've gone ahead of us, it becomes a plague that makes us feel bad about ourselves and think less about our own effort. To break free from low self-esteem, you need to stop comparing yourself with others. Our journeys are different, and so we shouldn't judge ourselves by how well someone else is doing. You have your own life to live, and your time to shine differs from that of others you're comparing yourself with.
There are several other ways and things we can do to overcome low self-esteem, such as practicing mindfulness, prioritizing self-care, facing one's fear, and seeking professional help, and all put together can help us in our journey towards the bigger picture, but then we must understand that it takes time to overcome low self-esteem; we should learn to be patient with ourselves while practicing these strategies, and with time everything will work out well.
All photos are mine.