Self Esteem - Personal Growth Roll
Healthy self esteem develops naturally with the practice of accurate self appraisal. How you arrive at the appraisal of yourself, determines whether or not you are really assessing healthy self esteem, or self delusion.
Our feelings about ourselves can fluctuate daily, based on our experiences. The key to remember is -- make room for our limitations -- without condemning ourselves for having limitations. Healthy self-esteem requires an ability to accept and honor ourselves, regardless of the quality of feedback, internal or external.
The trick is to balance how we evaluate our limitations. Acknowledging our limitations with a neutral tone rather than a harsh critical tone, is just one example. These issues are something that every human being can use as a personal growth nutrient. In fact, the limitations that are present in our lives are messengers guiding us to heal and improve.
Where Does Self Esteem Originate?
Much of what comprises self esteem can be distilled down to messages we give to ourselves. These messages originate in our past. If we were ridiculed, teased, emotionally or physically abused, criticized, and failed in school this would lead to a feeling of being defective, creating low self-esteem.
If we were fortunate enough and our parents and teachers listened to us, gave appropriate physical attention, praised our accomplishments, and treated us with respect, we would have developed healthy self-esteem.
These past circumstances and conditioning reinforced either a positive inner voice or a critical demeaning voice. These messages are too often playing in the background without us even being conscious that they are affecting our lives in profoundly dramatic ways.