According to John David McCarthy, an American sociologist who now teaches sociology at Pennsylvania State University, around 80% of people in the world have low self-esteem at any given time.
This means that most of us could learn a lot from the 20% of people who seem to like themselves, despite the negativity and turmoil in the world. Having a healthy image of ourselves can seem challenging, especially since advertisements constantly try to sell us something to better our image, and social media sites make it easy to compare ourselves to others. However, we can’t do much in life if we don’t have confidence in ourselves and our abilities. If we can’t even like ourselves, if we’d rather hide away from the world because we fear what it will think or say, then we can’t contribute to the planet in a positive way.
While having high self-esteem might seem impossible to some, we need to have the self-worth to function at our best.
Here are five things people who like themselves do differently:
1. They believe in themselves.
People with a positive self-image might have doubts, but they don’t let those voices dictate their lives. They have a go-getter attitude, and even if they fail, they don’t let it stop them from achieving their goals and moving forward. Believing in yourself doesn’t mean you have unrealistic expectations that everything will always go as planned, but you have faith that you can get through both the good and bad times.
People with a positive self-image don’t allow themselves to fall into a slump of insecurity; they approach life confidently and keep an optimistic outlook in their back pocket.
2. They don’t beat themselves up whenever they make a mistake.
They don’t expect perfection from themselves; they know that they will inevitably make many mistakes in life. But they know that mistakes will help them learn and grow, so they don’t take it too seriously when they slip up. They simply take it in stride and take it as a positive experience in their journey. People with a positive self-image usually have a carefree, light-hearted attitude. Maybe they were born with it, or maybe they learned over time not to take life so seriously because it will always unfold a little differently than they’d planned.
3. People with a positive self-image don’t compare themselves to others.
They don’t use other people as a point of comparison. Instead, they simply follow their hearts and focus on their own journey. They know comparing themselves to others will only fill them with doubts and disappointment. As a result, they allow other people to live their lives and go confidently and boldly in their own way. They know they can learn from other people’s lifestyles and choices, but they don’t let other people’s journeys make them jealous or insecure. They feel happy and fulfilled enough, contributing to their positive self-image.
4. They value themselves.
People with a positive self-image have learned to become their own best friend. They may not have gotten to this place of acceptance overnight, but they worked at it enough to feel worthy in their own eyes. It doesn’t matter how other people view them, because they realize their importance on this planet, and don’t let anyone tell them otherwise. They know that their own unique strengths and talents can bring a world of difference and much-needed change to the Earth, and they hold that vibration of themselves so that nothing can drag them down.
People with a positive self-image know their worth and don’t let anyone devalue them.
5. They don’t allow others to define them.
Most importantly, people with a positive self-image define themselves; they don’t listen to the opinions of others. No one can know them as they can, so they have realized that only their definition of themselves matters. How can a person define something they don’t know? They can’t. Most people who try to define you or throw you into a box have no clue who you are; they just want to pigeonhole you to boost their own self-esteem, most likely. People will always have an opinion of you, but that doesn’t mean you have to let it affect you.
People with a positive self-image do not mind what others think or say about them; they just focus on their own path and don’t concern themselves with trivial matters.
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