Your habits, the things you do without a second thought, affect your personal development and quality of life. As you go about your challenges in life, your habits either build your confidence or tear it down. Good habits require practice, but they can help build your self-esteem, confidence, and wellbeing.
Good habits help you grow into a more positive person and success can be a reachable goal if you have the right ones. Developing habits like these will increase your self-esteem and may lead to a more promising future.
Mindfulness
Mindfulness means being present in the here and now, not worrying about the past or future. Mindfulness is a skill that is made easier with practice. Our brains are designed to remember past experiences and plan for the future which can create an unhelpful level of anxiety. However, by practicing mindful breathing we can train our minds to be present in the moment.
Mindfulness is a state of active, open attention to the present. It is being awake to what is happening at this moment without judging it. So often we are living from our future regret or past regret and not taking full advantage of the present. Mindfulness can be applied to anything, like your work, parenting, relationships, etc.
To develop the habit of mindfulness, ask yourself these questions:
- How does this situation affect me at this moment?
- How does this situation make me feel?
- What can I do right now to change this situation?
Staying in the moment helps your self-esteem by enabling you to reflect on what you feel. Mindfulness also enables you to focus on what you can control. In any situation, you have control over yourself and your reactions.
Mindfulness allows you to take a step back from the situation and explore other options. It also helps you to develop an awareness of what you’re feeling and how it’s impacting your life.
Many people practice meditation to help develop the habit of mindfulness. Meditation requires setting aside time to develop this habit consciously. The more you practice, the easier it will be and the stronger your habit of mindfulness will become.
Setting Goals
Your self-esteem is tied to your ability to create and achieve goals. Goals help give your life structure and meaning. When you accomplish a goal, you increase your self-confidence and self-esteem.
Achieving goals is important for personal growth. They give our lives structure and meaning, and when you accomplish a goal you increase your self-confidence and self-esteem.
To improve your self-esteem, your goals must be realistic and achievable. Otherwise, not being able to reach your goals will negatively affect your self-esteem.
The more realistic and achievable your goals are, the less likely you are to experience low self-esteem. If you set goals that are either too low or too high for your abilities, you can feel disappointed when you don’t reach them.
Achieving your goals requires having a plan and breaking your goal into manageable steps. Each time you complete a step, your self-esteem increases.
You can build the habit of setting goals by writing your goals down. By writing your goals, you help commit yourself to achieving them. Start by writing your goals for the day. If you’re a busy person, the goal of spending 15 minutes by yourself to meditate or relax is realistic and achievable.
Setting goals is important for your mental health. Writing down your goals helps you focus on what you want to achieve and it makes it much easier to prioritize. Writing down your goals also helps you identify what’s most important in the long term, rather than being consumed by the many tasks that need to be done in the short term.
Increase your goals as you develop your habit. You may want to increase the time you spend on self-care or add a new goal, like spending more time with your family. As reaching your daily goals becomes a habit, you build your self-esteem.
Positive Surroundings
Scientists have determined that your surroundings affect your self-esteem. If you spend your time with negative people or always hear negative messages about yourself, your self-esteem will suffer. Over time, negative input can cause you to have a negative personality and outlook on life.
It’s important to surround yourself with positive people who encourage you and listen to your goals. Make time for yourself, whether it’s in the morning or at night. It’s not selfish to take time for yourself, in fact, it will provide you with the mental energy necessary to be happier and more productive throughout the day.
Surround yourself with motivational objects like posters or pictures of your goals. Read books or listen to podcasts about how to achieve more in life. Displaying mementos of your previous successes can also help increase your self-esteem.
Many people find that having an orderly work or living area is more positive for them than working or living in a mess. Developing the habit of keeping your area clean and neat not only provides positive surroundings for you, but it also builds your self-esteem knowing you have control over your environment.
Gratitude
Gratitude is a habit that helps us maintain positive feelings about ourselves by making us feel like our contributions are important and that we’re not alone. Aided by gratitude, negative thoughts about ourselves – often fueled by high self-esteem and insecurity – bring smaller returns. When a person is grateful, they feel worthy of what they’ve received and are willing to show kindness to others, taking positive actions to increase their self-esteem.
A sense of gratitude can help you let go of negative self-esteem. You start to see that many of the things you are apologizing for are not a big deal and instead choose to show your appreciation for anything positive. Imagine you dropped something on the floor, and a stranger picked it up for you. Do you apologize for dropping it and disturbing them or do you thank them for helping you?
Your reaction is based on your self-esteem and whether or not you feel like you bothered them. The habit of gratitude helps improve your self-esteem so you can accept help from others.
If you feel like you need help with a task, and you are not sure if the other person will be bothered by it, then it is likely that your self-esteem is low and you have a hard time accepting help. Gratitude improves self-esteem so one can accept help more easily.
The habits of mindfulness, setting goals, being in positive surroundings, and gratitude strongly affect your self-esteem. Good habits build your self-esteem every time you complete a positive step toward achieving that goal. These habits can be practiced anywhere, anytime.
