What is Self Esteem - Define Self Esteem

How to define self esteem, when so many definitions exist? Self esteem is central to our survival. It is the basis of our well being. Entire books have been written on the subject of self esteem and yet, there is no single one unifying definition of self esteem. Because of the complexity of definition of self esteem, on this page you will find definitions from a variety of sources. You will learn a definition from: A dictionary 5 definitions from leading psychologists 7 Definitions from lay people

Dictionary
A confidence and satisfaction in oneself. A feeling of pride in yourself.

Expert's definitions
Self esteem is a confidence in our ability to think, to cope with the basic challenges

of life and confidence in our right to be successful and happy. ~Nathaniel Branden Self esteem means having a positive image of self. ~Don Simmermacher Self esteem is an evaluation of the emotional, intellectual, and behavioral aspects of the self-concept. ~Diane Frey & Jesse Carlock Self esteem is a state of mind. It is the way you feel and think about yourself and others, and is measured by the way you act. ~Connie Paladino To trust one's mind and to know that one is worthy of happiness is the essence of self esteem. ~Nathaniel Branden

Lay People
And how do other people define self esteem? Here is what some people said self esteem means to them: Self esteem is when I feel good about myself. I don't know what self esteem is. I just know I have low self esteem. I am very shy. Living by my own values, beliefs, and convictions. Self esteem is the absence of self hate. Being confident that I can achieve anything I set my mind to. A state of total and absolute freedom. Freedom to choose to be myself. When I deeply and completely love and accept myself.

What is the importance of self esteem and what does it mean for you? According to leading psychologists, positive self esteem is vital in development of a healthy personality. Nathaniel Branden calls self esteem: The immune system of consciousness

What is Self Esteem?

Self esteem is how we feel about ourselves. It is our thoughts and feelings

about ourselves. For example: I am good looking. I feel good about myself. I am kind. I am competent. The level of our self esteem determines how we operate in life - how we interact with others, spouse, children, friends, and strangers. It determines our goals and what we strive for, our achievements, and our satisfaction and happiness in life. The importance of self esteem can be seen when we look at the relationship between healthy self esteem and other psychological traits. Self esteem and personality are closely related.

Healthy self esteem is related with:

Creativity Rationality Flexibility Willingness to admit

mistakes Openness Honesty Acceptance Cooperativeness Independence

Creativity

Creativity and innovation begin with the spark of an idea. But for so many, the process ends there with no plan to manifest.Understanding simple ways to turn your ideas into action will give you the edge to turn that spark to a flame and rise as a leader in innovation and creativity. These ten simple tools not only jumpstart your creative spirit, but they help you maintain and sustain the idea flow. Making these steps a part of your life will reinforce a solid creative foundation in your life, facilitate innovation, and ease your problem-solving process. 1. Understand What Youre Passionate About. 2. Catch Your Ideas. 3. De-Clutter Your Mind. 4. Enjoy Creative Rituals. 5. Make Time for Reflection and Introspection. 6. Practice Gratitude. 7. Practice Appreciation. 8. Create Community. 9. Stop the Trickster. 10. Celebrate Small Victories.

Rationality
In philosophy, rationality is the exercise of reason.[citation needed] It is the manner in which people derive conclusions when considering things deliberately. It refers to the conformity of one's beliefs with one's reasons to believe, or with one's actions with one's reasons for action. However, the term "rationality" tends to be used differently in different disciplines, including specialized discussions of economics, sociology, psychology and political science. A rational decision is one that is not just reasoned, but is also optimal for achieving a goal or solving a problem.

Flexibility
Flexibility is a personality trait the extent to which a person can cope with changes in circumstances and think about problems and tasks in novel, creative ways.

Willingness to admit mistakes

Perhaps it could be said that a mistake

a day makes us human. And, there have been some days when I would been happy with just one mistake. No matter the frequency, we all make mistakes in both our personal and professional lives. We are all human beings, imperfect and prone to making mistakes. We grow and improve by learning from our mistakes. Admitting mistakes is not easy, but as those of us who have done it in the past can attest, there is a cleansing feeling after admitting wrong, almost as if the weight of the world has been lifted off our shoulders.

Openness
Openness is a general appreciation for art, emotion, adventure, unusual ideas, imagination, curiosity, and variety of experience. People who are open to experience are intellectually curious, appreciative of art, and sensitive to beauty. They tend to be, when compared to closed people, more creative and more aware of their feelings. They are more likely to hold unconventional beliefs. Another characteristic of the open cognitive style is a facility for thinking in symbols and abstractions far removed from concrete experience. People with low scores on openness tend to have more conventional, traditional interests. They prefer the plain, straightforward, and obvious over the complex, ambiguous, and subtle. They may regard the arts and sciences with suspicion or even view these endeavors as uninteresting. Closed people prefer familiarity over novelty; they are conservative and resistant to change.

Honesty

Honesty could be defined as truthfulness in speech and action. While this sounds simple, it's surprisingly difficult to practise. Being truthful implies the presence of an active conscience and a working knowledge of ethics at the minimum. In everyday life, being truthful means listening to, and obeying, the voice of our conscience. Honesty reflects good character because when people know that someone is honest they feel that they can overall trust that person. Its always comforting and reassuring when you can count on that person no matter the circumstances.

Acceptance
It is so important because if you do not accept yourself for who you really are you will create a number of problems in your life. Some of these

problems are internal affecting you personally and some will affect how others treat you. Self-acceptance means that you understand who you are and where your strengths and weaknesses lie. You know what you want. This will allow you to be comfortable with your place in the world. If you can build your self confidence you will live a life free of self criticism and you can begin to face the challenges in your life and succeed. Imagine being at ease with people, being able to speak in public and feel good about yourself, no more shyness or fear.

Cooperativeness

Cooperation or co-operation is the process of working or acting together. In its simplest form it involves things working in harmony, side by side, while in its more complicated forms, it can involve something as complex as the inner workings of a human being or even the social patterns of a nation. It is the alternative to working separately in competition. Cooperation can also be accomplished by computers, which can handle shared resources simultaneously, while sharing processor time.

Independence
Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state in which its residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is dependence. Attainment of independence should not be confused with revolution, which typically refers to the violent overthrow of a ruling authority. While some revolutions seek and achieve national independence, others aim only to redistribute power with or without an element of emancipation, such as in democratization within a state, which as such may remain unaltered. Furthermore, some countries were granted independence without any revolutionary acts.

People with high self esteem tend to be more ambitious in what they want to experience in life. High self esteem people have a drive to express themselves and to communicate openly and honestly about their needs and desires. People with healthy self esteem choose healthy relationships and they recognize the value of relationships. They treat others with respect, non judgmental attitude, and fairness. Much of your stress comes from internal sources. Having a high self esteem is vital for stress relief. Can you see the importance of self esteem? It is no wonder that Nathaniel Branden says that self esteem is our basic need.

Self Esteem and Identity

The need for positive self esteem and identity is common to all of us. We need to feel accepted, confident, worthy, and self-reliant. What is identity and what does it have to do with self esteem? Who are you? How do you relate to other people? What roles do you play in your life? Those questions are all about your identity. When we speak about our identity, we usually mean one of two things. We either mean our social identity or our personal identity.

Social identity
When we say: "I am a mother", "I am a Canadian", "I am a student", we speak about roles that we fulfill in our lives, or about belonging to a certain cultural group. We identify with the roles that we play and the groups that we belong to. They become us. They are the "I am". They become our social identity.

Personal identity
Personal identity encompasses everything that belongs to us, to our "Self". It includes our intellect, our emotions, and our behavior. Personal identity includes our values, goals, likes-dislikes, passions, how we relate to others, our achievements, abilities, and mistakes. It contains our hopes and dreams, our style of clothing, and the choices we make in everyday life. Personal identity also includes our body image. How do we see our own bodies. This is a difficult area for most women.

How are self esteem and identity tied together?

First, let's look at one of the definitions of self esteem. Self esteem experts, Dianne Fray and Jesse Carlock, say:"Self esteem is an evaluative term. It refers to negative, positive, neutral, and/or ambiguous judgments that one places on the self concept. Self esteem is an evaluation of the emotional, intellectual, and behavioral aspects of self-concept". And what is self-concept if not identity? I said previously that a statement "I am a mother" declares social identity. If you say (and believe it too): "I am a great mother", then you are making a judgment (an evaluation) of your social identity.

This evaluation determines how you will feel about yourself. How you feel about yourself determines the level of your self esteem. Identity statement > Value judgment > Feeling > Self esteem Now the link between self esteem and identity becomes pretty clear. When you put a positive value judgment on your identity, you feel better, and you have higher or more positive self esteem. When you put a negative judgment on your identity, your self esteem plummets. Negative identity value judgment > Low self esteem Positive identity value judgment > High self esteem

Thank you!