Self-Esteem - What Are You Really Worth?

Can you look at yourself in the mirror, eye to eye, and say aloud "Thank God I came to this world. This world is much better off now that I'm here." Do it with passion, honesty, and without averting your own eyes as you look at the image (your image) in the mirror - eye to eye. If you are unable to do this or it causes you any embarrassment or negative emotion, you may be suffering from low self-esteem.
Self-esteem is something you can not touch, but it affects how you feel. Self-esteem is something that can not be seen, but it is there every time you look in the mirror. Self-esteem is something you can not hear, but is there every time you talk about yourself... to yourself or to others! Self-esteem is the measure you use to answer the question: What Are You Really Worth? True self-esteem is knowing that your value has no limits, it is knowing that you are worthy of being loved and accepted.

Self-esteem is the image of ourselves that we have developed throughout our lives. When we are babies the things that affect our self-esteem are things outside our control, like the way our parents speak to us. It is important to remember that even as babies, we humans have the ability to respond with positive or negative emotions to what makes us feel good or bad. When we grow up, self-esteem, or the image that we have of ourselves, becomes something automatic, an image that lives in our subconscious minds. In other articles I have talked about the difference between the conscious mind and the subconscious mind: the conscious 'reasons', the subconscious 'acts'. That's why during our childhood, the actions and words of those with great influence on our lives (parents, grandparents, etc.) cause us to decide whether or not we are valuable beings. Those decisions are etched in our subconscious, and that is where our self-esteem operates automatically to influence how we see the world, and how we see our lives.
It is important to distinguish between self-esteem and changes in the feelings and thoughts about ourselves based on our everyday experiences. For example, the way we are treated by our friends or our boss, high and low points in our romantic relationships on any given day - all this may have a temporary impact on our well being.
True self-esteem, however, is something more fundamental than these "ups and downs" associated with the changing situations of everyday life. For people with good self-esteem, "ups and downs" may lead to temporary fluctuations in how they feel about themselves, but only to a certain extent. On the other hand, for people with poor self-esteem, these "high and low" points can make all the difference in the world.
That's why I want to stress the importance of our mental programming, or to be more specific, the programming of our subconscious. As I have mentioned before, the subconscious mind is the keeper of your mental habits. The subconscious mind is 'responsible' for turning your thoughts or conscious decisions into what you perceive as the reality of your life.
If you want to improve your self-esteem, I suggest you focus your mind on anything good that you achieve every hour of every day. Giving thanks for everything good that you have right now increases your pride and appreciation for all the good things you do. Gradually, you will realize that you are a valuable being, worthy of being loved and accepted because, through your existence, you provide value to the lives of others and to the world at large.
Another way to increase our self-esteem is directly changing, or replacing, the self-image that lives in our subconscious.
So you ask: Why does this matter? So what?
Very well. It is important because low self-esteem can have devastating consequences on your life:
a) It can create anxiety, stress, loneliness and increased risk for depression. b) It can cause problems with friendships and family relationships. c) It can seriously impair your academic and job performance, in other words, how you function in school or at work. d) It can increase your vulnerability to drug and alcohol abuse.
Worst of all, the negative consequences of low self-esteem reinforce the negative image you have of yourself and this can take you in a downward spiral of lower and lower self-esteem, with each step down taking you closer to a self-destructive behavior such as toxic addictions.
On the other hand, high self-esteem has many positive effects on a person's life. This is shown in scientific studies. Among the benefits of high self-esteem are:
• Positive attitude - which is an antidote to those situations where it seems that life is 'beating you up'. • Seeing yourself as someone who brings something good to the world; something valuable to the lives of others. • You are confident in your own abilities, and so you use those skills to improve your life. • You see yourself as being in control of your own life, and that leads you to concentrate on what you want to do instead of avoiding and worrying about what you do not want to do.
You don't have to be a rocket scientist to realize that most of our self-esteem was developed during childhood. That means that those people with influence on our lives when we were children directly affected our future. However, this does not mean that as adults we have the right (or that it is to our benefit) to continue blaming these people for the current condition of our lives. If there is anything I want you to take away from reading this, it is that happiness is your right! You have the option to continue thinking what and how you have been thinking, and continue living what and how you have been living. That's very good if your life is turning out the way you want. However, if your life is not exactly going the way you want, you have the option to change the way you think and especially how you see yourself when you look in the mirror.
Want another reason to develop good, high self-esteem? Very well! If you have any children, and you are involved in their lives, what are you teaching them? What image of their value as human beings are you showing your children? If the answer to that question keeps you awake at night, let me suggest that it is time to consider how you look at yourself in that mirror.
Still not convinced about the importance of good self-esteem? Another reason to improve your self-esteem is loneliness. What kind of person would want to spend much time with another human being who does not love himself or herself? In other words, if you do not love yourself, why would you expect another human being to love you and share happiness with you? It is my view that low self-esteem is a very important factor in the lack of harmony that exists in so many couples today. After all, the point of having a partner is to share happiness, not misery!
So then, how can you improve your self-esteem? One suggestion I can give you is gratitude. Does that seem a little strange? Gratitude? Absolutely! Thanking our creator for all the good things we have in our lives, no matter how seemingly unimportant those things are, focuses our minds on the good things about our lives right now. For example, if you are ironing your pants, and the crease (if you like creased pants which I do!) comes out nice and straight, say "Thank you God for this beautiful crease" Now for you 'intellectuals' and skeptics who think that this is just downright silly, ask yourselves honestly: "What am I willing to do to improve my life?
The Universal Self Help Center offers a system of meditation that was specifically designed for the reprogramming of the subconscious. The creator has given us everything we need to live a full, happy life - the life we all deserve. Now we must simply choose to live in a different way, and that begins when we choose to think differently. No matter what your religion, no matter which part of the world you come from, no matter your age, level of education, not even how badly your life has gone so far! Make the decision today, with honesty and enthusiasm, and with faith, that you do deserve to live a great life and that your value has no limits.