The Value of Self-Respect

There are several terms to describe the way you feel about yourself, including self-respect, self-esteem, self-belief, and confidence. These are all facets that play a major part in your enjoyment and the fulfillment you feel. If you lack self-respect, it will impact on every aspect of your life, but it’s not something that has to rule your existence. You can take control of your future by identifying and tackling your lack of self-respect.

Does having self-respect matter?

Yes, because unless you believe that you are a valuable person with just as much right to have a good life as anyone else, you will accept less than you deserve and never reach your potential or fulfill your dreams. It’s important in a very practical sense too. For example, say you were involved in a car wreck that wasn’t your fault. If you lack self-respect, you may well accept this was your fate and carry on without seeking redress, because it’s not worth bothering about. What’s really happening is that you don’t feel you are worth bothering about, and thus you don’t consider compensation because you don’t feel you’re worth it. If you have self-respect, you will be on the phone to a personal injury lawyer like Gray Law Group, LLC because you know you have the right to compensation and you have the confidence to ask for it.

Knowing how much you value yourself

To address the causes of your problem, you need to be honest about how you feel about yourself. Do you ever call yourself names, comment about how stupid you are or put yourself down in front of people? You might think you do this as a kind of charming way of being modest and self-deprecating in company, but if you do it when you’re alone, that’s clearly not the whole story. Do you take pride in the way you look, or feel ashamed about what you imagine other people think of your appearance? Do you feel confident in your job, happy to take on new responsibilities and challenges and eager to put forward your ideas? Or do you worry that what you do isn’t good enough, and feel that no-one would be interested in what you have to say?

Taking action

Sit down with your laptop or a pen and paper and make two columns with one listing all the things you like about yourself, and the other listing all the things you don’t like. Put down everything you can think of, no matter how trivial it sounds. Once you’ve completed your lists, see if there are any links between the items, for example, does your dislikes list consist mostly of things you don’t like about the way you look? See if you can find some common themes running through your lists, then use what you discover to make a plan for improving the way you feel. There are numerous self-help books and websites that can give you advice on dealing with your issues, so find a resource that resonates with you and follow the recommendations.

Taking these first steps will help you build up your self-respect, but remember that if you are finding it too difficult to cope with, or you are suffering with depression or emotional difficulties, it’s best to seek professional help.