Dear Diary, Sorry To Bother You Again: Low Self Esteem

People with low self-esteem don’t immediately see themselves as worthless or bad, but they say very little positively about themselves. This, of course, costs them dearly, for it is accompanied by unhappiness and despair.

In people with low self-esteem, we find unhappiness, frustration and despair as the biggest problems in life. This is based on problems with self-acceptance and self-confidence.

For this reason  , it is very important to consider how we feel about ourselves,  because the relationship between low self-esteem and personal problems is strong and manifests itself in multiple ways. Let’s take a look at this…

I can’t love myself. Do I have little self-confidence?

Low self-esteem is synonymous with poor self-esteem. A person with low self-esteem disapproves or undervalues ​​themselves and is often dissatisfied with themselves and the things they do.

Often, a lack of self-confidence comes from early social rejection, fear from not becoming what he or she would like to be, and a lot of grief from not living up to expectations.

Researchers are not yet in agreement on how to mirror the different ways in which this construct arises. And most of the resources available to us today look at self-confidence in a direct and self-reported way. One of the most commonly used scales to measure self-confidence is the Rosenberg self-confidence scale.

So,  if you want to get a quick overview of your confidence, you can do it quickly by answering these next ten sentences to honesty.

The first five sentences must be answered through the following answers: 

strongly agree = 3 points
agree = 2 points
disagree = 1 point
strongly disagree = 0 points

1. In general, I’m happy with myself and I think I’m a person who deserves appreciation.
2. I think I have some good qualities.
3. I am able to do things as well as others.
4. I have a positive attitude towards myself.
5. In general I am satisfied with myself.

The following five sentences must be answered by means of the following answers:

strongly disagree = 3 points
disagree = 2 points
agree = 1 point
strongly agree = 0 points

1. Sometimes I feel completely worthless.
2. I have little to be proud of.
3. I wish I respected myself more.
4. In general I feel like a failure.
5. Sometimes I think I’m not a good person.

Add the points together and see the result in the following overview:

Over 30: high self-confidence
This is considered normal and healthy.

15 to 25: average, normal self-confidence
There are no major self-confidence problems, but it can’t hurt to improve it.

Below 15: Low Self-Confidence
There are clearly self-confidence problems.

The psychological profile of someone with low self-esteem

Looking at the psychological profile of a person with low self-esteem, we have to ask whether that person is experiencing extreme self-rejection or is it a distortion of their qualities and abilities that causes them to focus only on the negative.

There is evidence that to improve, people with low self-esteem need to see themselves in a more positive light. The problem is that  if something affects their sense of worth, they find few reasons to show their positive qualities.

People with low self-confidence often describe themselves in a less enthusiastic way. It often happens in terms like  I consider myself quite friendly  or  average intelligence. They tend to feel much more responsible for events than they actually are. Even when something positive happens, they do not believe that there is a connection between the event and their personal characteristics and behavior.

People with low self-esteem tend to believe in ill-defined or exaggerated goals so that they think they should get absolutely everything they imagine. They have less skills to handle things and sometimes boycott themselves in achieving their goals. This perpetuates their negative image of themselves.

As we see, low self-esteem is a lack of affection for yourself. To improve self-esteem, we must avoid comparing ourselves to others, work to turn the negative into positive, and develop a personal strategy that allows us to see ourselves in a positive way. If that proves to be very painful, we should consult a psychologist as soon as possible.