Reach Your Goals

People with low self-esteem tend to have more emotional problems than others, set low goals for themselves, become socially invincible, conform against their better judgment and court rejection by putting others down. To determine your level of self-esteem, answer “yes” or “no” to the following questions: 1. Do you tend to be critical of other people to make yourself feel better? 2. Do you have very little confidence in your abilities? 3. Are you very sensitive to criticism? 4. Do you have a hard time accepting praise or flattery? 5. Do you feel awkward in social situations and just don’t know how to take charge? If you answer “yes” to most of the foregoing questions, you may be suffering from low self-esteem. Research shows that people with low self-esteem have a self-protective orientation so they avoid situations in which they might fail and focus on improving their shortcomings.  On the contrary, those with a high self-esteem have a self-enhancing orientation: they capi...

Self-esteem is the overall evaluation of your worth as a person. If you feel basically good about yourself, you probably have high self esteem. The problem is the ups and downs of daily life can produce short-term fluctuations in self-esteem. For example, when a good-looking person at work asked you out you probably felt good about yourself, but do you recall the distress you experience when you saw that C grade starring back at you on your last calculus exam? The truth is sometimes we can have a stable self-esteem; that means if your self-esteem is high today you are likely to have high self-esteem in six months or two years from now. The problem is that many people are extremely responsive to feedback from others— they are more moved by praise and more sensitive to criticism. As a result, their self-esteem fluctuates in response to daily experiences. Furthermore, you have to carry your own self-image, not someone else's. Your worth is determined by you and does not require you ...