Self Esteem

"What lies behind you and what lies in front of you, pales in comparison to what lies inside of you." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

It's funny how we've spent our whole life with ourselves, but sometimes the person in the mirror can be the hardest one to get to know. And it goes without saying that it's difficult to truly appreciate something or someone you don't understand. When building confidence and self-esteem, the single most important thing you can do is to rebuild the internal relationship that you have with yourself. Numbers speak volume and it's difficult for negativity to go up against the positive power of Me, Myself and I.

Before diving into how to get to know yourself better and reconstructing self-trust, it's important to begin by making a commitment to stand by the single person who has a hand in all of your decisions, you. Here is an Affirmation of Inner Beauty taken from The Seeds of Beauty, to remind you of the relationship you must continually build with yourself no matter what your stage in life.

[Speak Your Name],

To you, I will never be a fair weather friend.

When you are afraid, I will give you the courage to step forward,

If ever you make a mistake, I will never lose faith in you.

And when you begin to doubt how beautiful you are, I will remind you.

Today and every day I promise to always stand by you.

You are me. I am you.

I Love You.

Print this affirmation and post it in a visible place within your office or home.

It comes as no surprise that building a positive self-esteem starts with getting to know yourself again and this will require that you regularly devote some down-time to spend with yourself. What's your favorite movie, place to visit or song to listen to? Set aside time in your schedule to do these things. Fall in love with who you are by supporting yourself and bringing out the best in you through your interests.

What can action steps can I take to build a better relationship with myself?

When we're on a date and getting to know someone, the first thing we do is ask questions. So why not do the same for yourself? Start by asking yourself the following:

What values are important to me?What are my dreams for the future?What makes me afraid?What do I dislike?How do I envision myself to be?The thing that would mean the most to me right now is...

The key is to be honest in your answers. Pay attention to your likes/dislikes. What things are hardest for you to admit to yourself?

After letting myself down so many times in the past, I struggle with trusting myself. What can I do to reconnect?

Reconnecting to who you are and building a better relationship with yourself begins with forgiveness. We all make mistakes and if you hold your mistakes over your head like a guillotine ready to punish you the each time you make a mistake, you do yourself more harm than good. Take a blank sheet of paper and fill in the following sentence:

I forgive myself for...
List out every misstep that has made you angry, every mistake that has made you ashamed, and every mistake that has made you feel less than yourself. With the same kindness that you would show a friend, read each sentence aloud. As you read each sentence, allow yourself to gently let it go and ultimately heal.

A fashion stylist and former women's fit technologist, author Lakeysha-Marie Green utilizes her experience in the fashion industry combined with her personal journey to self-discovery to help women transform their appearance from the inside out. Her first book, The Seeds of Beauty, tells an inspiring story of restoring unconditional self-love and genuinely radiating your beauty from within. Visit http://www.theseedsofbeauty.com/ and download your Free Inner Beauty Affirmation to begin your own beautiful makeover today.

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Many people believe that self confidence is something you either have or don't. This is a self limiting belief and like most self limiting beliefs it simply isn't true. Possessing assured self confidence is a skill that can be developed by anyone and once you do acquire it, you will feel much calmer, less stressed and the quality of your life will significantly improve.

So, if you want to become a person who oozes confidence, then the following 3 ways to build self confidence will help you achieve it.

1. Respect Yourself - The cornerstone of self-confidence is self respect. Many people who lack self confidence are terribly hard on themselves. They put themselves down at every opportunity and beat themselves up over and over again with all of the mistakes they have made. Additionally, they will criticize the way they look, their personalities and negatively brood over difficult times from the past that have been and gone.

It is difficult to be self confident when you disrespect yourself like this. And how on earth can you expect others to respect you if you don't respect yourself?

It is vitally important that you talk to yourself in a positive manner. Be kind to yourself, treat yourself with the same respect you show to others. What you focus on is what you become so focus on the positive. If you make a mistake - and you will, we all do - then learn from it, find the positive and move on.

You'll never rise up if you continually pull yourself down.

2. Look Good, Feel Good - Look after your appearance. When you know you look good, you feel more confident. Wear styles and colors that suit you. You can get help with this from image consultants or use the Internet to find tips and ideas.

Two easy ways to look good: Improve your posture, walk tall with shoulders back. There's plenty of videos on You Tube showing you how to do this. Not only does this communicate confidence to others, it makes you feel more confident too. Combine this with exercising for thirty minutes three times a week and you will easily boost your confidence levels and improve your health at the same time.

One more simple little action to take to help you feel good and build confidence. Cut down on the amount of junk foods and processed foods. As well as being nutritionally poor, they can leave you feeling sluggish and tired. Eat the best fresh food you can, it's another way of respecting yourself and remember: Garbage in, garbage out.

You deserve to eat much better than garbage.

3. Unleash Your Power - You have the power of choice and the quality of your life will be determined by the choices you make. So unleash your power and choose to be self confident. Create a positive environment around yourself by reading positive affirmations on waking. Watch motivating videos on You Tube and search for positive blogs and websites to gain even more inspiration.

As part of this positive environment, you will need to...

4. Good Company - ... associate with positive, like-minded people as often as you can. Negative people will drain you of energy, fill you with limiting beliefs and lower your confidence levels.

Conversely, positive people will inspire you, energize you and their assured self confidence will raise your confidence levels. They are a pleasure to be around too.

5. Be Decisive - Take a decision then resolve to follow through with it. Don't look for the approval or permission of others. Make the decision to do something that you want to do and then take action to get it done. Being decisive is part of being a confident, assured person who knows what they want to do and takes action to get it.

Start small at first, for example, set a goal to exercise three times a week, changing to a healthier diet or starting the day in a positive manner and then move to bigger goals as your confidence to make decisions and follow through with them improves.

You now know how to develop self confidence quickly by applying these five easy ways. Put each one into action and you will soon notice the results!

For more advanced techniques to help you build self confidence Click Here

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Did you know that a close relationship with God can help to build your self esteem? You may be skeptical or doubtful about this statement so let me explain how. Once you understand and truly believe you will be on your way to one of the most life changing experiences of your life.

"For everything, absolutely everything, above and below, visible and invisible... everything got started in him and finds its purpose in him." (Colossians 1:16) God knows you better than you will ever know yourself. Of course; that's because he created every inch of your body, inside and out, from your head to your toes. He has placed inside of you specific characteristics and talents that are meant to complement you. Therefore, it makes sense to turn to him for the help you need in building your self esteem.

In addition, the Bible says we were created in God's perfect image. This fact alone should help your self esteem to blossom. If God is a perfect God then how could you be a mistake? Your eyes; your nose; the shade of your skin; the texture of your hair; your body shape; they are uniquely beautiful and perfect because God made them. Learn to appreciate every inch of your body because God made you this way for a reason.

Acknowledging God's love for you can also build your self esteem. "How do I know God loves me?" You may ask. Isaiah 46:3-4 says, "I have carried you since you were born; I have taken care of you from your birth. Even when you are old, I will be the same. Even when your hair has turned gray, I will take care of you. I made you and will take care of you." Why would God go through so much if he didn't have such a genuine love for you? Up until the day you die he will continue to watch and protect you. That is how much he loves you. Your self esteem should grow knowing that our all-powerful God loves you so much.

As a matter of fact, God proved his love by sending his heavenly son, Jesus Christ, to die for our sins. "God loved the world so much that he gave his only begotten son, in order that everyone exercising faith in him might not be destroyed but have everlasting life."(John 3:16) God could have destroyed us because of our sinful tendencies. Instead, he did one of the most difficult things a loving parent could do, allow his only child, his only son to die for our, your sins. God did this not only to give you a fighting chance at everlasting life but also to demonstrate how strong his love is for you. Meditate on this fact especially when your self esteem is at its lowest. It will help you to feel a sense of peace, that you are a worthy individual who deserves to be loved.

By constantly thinking about God's love for you and what he has done to prove his love time and time again; by allowing this fact to touch your heart, you have no choice but to want to have a close relationship with him. A close relationship with God will in turn help your self esteem to grow and grow as long as you continue to focus on his love for you at all times.

Read more inspirational articles and quotes to build your self esteem and improve your overall mood at http://greatinspirationalquotes.blogspot.com/

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