Monday 2 September 2013

Building A Self Esteem Lesson Plan



Self-esteem by definition is the way a person perceives the self. Those who have a strong belief in one's capabilities are able to succeed in just about anything while those who don't will experience a lot of difficulty in life.

Self-esteem is not something people are born with. This has to be developed and if parents are not able to do a good job, perhaps a child psychologist can help where this is lacking.

Building a self-esteem lesson plan takes time. The way to approach the problem will be through a test. The system itself as many doctors admit is not perfect but this is better than nothing for those who need help.

The exams given by a psychologist is divided into sections.  The patient will respond by ranking each question from highest to lowest, selecting an answer from four possible choices, filling in the blanks or completing the sentence.  

Here are the seven categories being used by psychologists to come up with lesson plan.

First, there is procrastination. People have different work habits. There is the go-getter and the one who will start something but will not be able to finish it. The results of this category can help a specialist figure out a way for someone to be enthusiastic about studying or doing a task.

There are many what if's in life. Those who know what to do will just go for it while others will hesitate first and then just go with the majority. A lesson plan can be developed to empower the individual to take risks. A certain outcome that happened before many change this time around and no one will know unless the person tries.

Everyone makes mistakes. This is all part of being human. But those who have regrets are frozen in time without the ability to move on. The psychologist may make a lesson plan that will enable the patient to let go and be ready for life's challenges.

One mistake some people have is generalizing. It is bad to do that because it denies the person the chance to know about someone's character. This is usually caused by trauma so the specialist can also make a lesson plan to exorcise the ghost and forget about the past.

Anger is one issue that some people have. This is the reason some are sent to anger management class. By knowing what makes the person agree, the psychologist will be able to understand and change that.

There are people who are outgoing when it comes to meeting new people while there are those who are shy. This will mean someone will have more friends than the other person. Psychologists can make a lesson plan so that the individual will be able to have lasting relationships with members of the same or opposite sex later on in life.

The last portion simply asks the question if the person is happy with everything that life has offered. Some people will say satisfactorily given that the individual may not have that dream car or job. However, there are those who feel bitter so the specialist can make a lesson plan pointing out the nice things that have happened which makes it not that bad after all.

Those who answer the questions will probably do well in some of the sections and perform poorly in others. There is always room for improvement and growth and this should be what the lesson plan is all about.



Friday 30 August 2013

Help Build Your Partners Self Esteem



As partners in life, couples have a responsibility to help each other out. The same is also true when it comes to psychological matters. This is why it is important that a person strives to help his or her partner improve his or her self-esteem.

Helping your partner improve his or her self-esteem is one of the best ways for you to express your love for him or her. Your are not only doing him a favor when you boost his or her self-esteem, you are also contributing to the longevity of your relationship. For a relationship to work out, both partners must be emotionally and psychologically mature. A healthy self-image or self-esteem is one of the indications of maturity.

Below are some ways that you can do to help your mate improve his or her self-esteem.

Acknowledge that nobody is perfect.

Keep in mind that nobody is perfect. So do not expect yourself or your partner to be one. Instead, believe that any body has the capacity to change. So whatever is the current state of your partner right now, know that he or she can still improve on his or her situation.

It is also important that you accept your partner for what he or she is. Never, ever tell your partner that you wish he or she is someone different. This could have a very damaging effect on his or her self-esteem. An effect that would take a lot of time and effort to fix. If you really love your partner you will accept him or her for what he or she is. This includes her flaws and shortcomings.

Do not be stingy on praises and compliments

If your partner has done or accomplished something that is praiseworthy then go ahead and praise or compliment him or her for it. To be most effective, you must give your partner a compliment at least once everyday. Even small compliments would mean a lot. For example, you can tell your partner how good he or she looks in her office attire before he or she goes to work or how you love the smell of his or her new cologne.

Giving compliments would not just do wonders for your partner's self-esteem; it could also bring magic to your relationship.
Avoid harsh criticisms

Paying compliments does not mean that you have to lie. It does not help for your mate's self-esteem, to be brutally frankly either. If you do not really like what he or she is wearing, then tell him or her that you like the one he or she wore last week better instead of telling him or her that that what he or she is wearing sucks.

Listen! Listen! Listen!

Good constant communication is one of the secrets of a lasting relationship. And in communication it is as equally important to listen as it is to talk. Be your mate's most attentive audience. Whenever he or she is saying something, give him or her your full attention. Knowing that you are listening attentively to him would boost his or her confidence and would increase his or her self-esteem.

By doing the things above, you can help your mate increase his or her self-esteem. After helping your partner build a strong self-esteem, you will also notice that your relationship will also improve. So take time out to these things right now.




Tuesday 27 August 2013

Building your Self Esteem



A lot of people are hard on themselves. It is always good to hear people say that they do not compete with other people because they only have to outdo their selves. This is a good attitude because when you focus on yourself, you develop at your own pace and you don not see yourself at a loser.

There are times though when this becomes negative because a person becomes too criticizing of himself or herself. There is no worst critic than yourself because once you believe in the negative self worth you put in your mind, you could easily crumble with whatever negative the world will throw at you. A low self esteem is one of the greatest enemies of a person because losing it is like losing oneself.

Before it is too late, let us focus on building self esteem. It is important always be optimistic. Most people you meet are cynical these days but there is no reason for you to join the crowd. Being optimistic means capitalizing on the good and positive. No matter how bad the situation or how things maybe so difficult for you, there are always good and positive things to turn to.

You do not have to lose touch of reality to be optimistic. You just have to learn how to deal with a sad situation with a happy disposition or a really bad scenario with a hopeful disposition. It should also not stop within yourself because you have to practice optimism to other people and ideally wherever you find yourself at.

Helping other people is also another way to build self esteem. You do not have to be rich to help other people so do not wait until you are a millionaire before you start being charitable. There are other things you can share with other people to help uplift their lives.

If you have a special talent like teaching then do volunteer work at your community school for the under privileged or be part of your church choir. Besides we all know how blessed are those people who give more that what they have. Sincerely helping other people will make you feel good of yourself after all you do not give away kindness because kindness always comes back to you and usually at a time you need it the most.

Do not be so hard on yourself. It is okay to dream big dreams. We are always told to reach for the top but set realistic expectations and goals for your self so that if you fail or if you lag behind your timetable you do not immediately feel so bad instead you look at ways on how to get back on track.

Try and try until you succeed should be your mantra and believe that you can do it. There may be people to help you but it is really up to you. The fact that you dreamed it, you are capable of achieving it because that dream cam from the inner whispers of your soul and you cannot deny yourself that.

Having self esteem is like having a self that is ready for whatever is ahead whether it is good or bad. Always in the end, you will be a success because you’ve got the best version of you.

Saturday 24 August 2013

Builing Self Esteem



Self-esteem is defined as the way a person feels and thinks about him or herself. It is believed that self-esteem is developed during the childhood years. It is largely affected by how one has been treated by the people surrounding him or her particularly his or her parents.

Many individuals suffer from low-esteem. When someone has low self-esteem it affects all facets of his or her life. Low self-esteem can have adverse effects in ones confidence, ability to build and maintain friendships and romantic relationships, career development or work performance. It could also lead to unhappiness and a generally unsatisfactory life. Self-esteem is rooted in ones belief in ones self. When ones doubts or has u uncertainties when it comes to his or her capacities then he or she is likely to be suffering from low self-esteem.

Statistics are unavailable but it is estimated that millions of people around the world are suffering from low self-esteem. It affects even those in developed and industrialized countries such as the United States and United Kingdom.

Fortunately for these individuals, there are many ways to build self-esteem. One of the most effective of these ways is to have a positive self image. A positive self image simply means an agreeable or favorable view of ones self including ones talents and abilities and physical attributes. In other words, to have a healthy self-esteem one must be able to like or love him or herself. If you do not like yourself you simply cannot have high self esteem.

Another way to avoid having low self esteem is to get rid of negative thoughts. How do you this? The most important thing is to be able to recognize a negative thought as it enters your mind. One cannot simply will a negative thought away. The most effective way to dispel negative thoughts is to replace them with positive ones. If, for example, you are beginning to have doubts. Then simply replace these doubtful thoughts with thoughts of confidence and belief.

It is important that you change the negative thought immediately and not let it linger in your mind. If a negative though stays in the mind for a long time then there is the possibility that it could turn into a habit. In which case, it would be very difficult to dispel or get rid of it.

Another powerful way to deal with negative thoughts and thus build self-esteem is through positive affirmations. These are words that suggest positive beliefs and ideas and are meant to be read or recited repeatedly. One of the most popular affirmation goes like this: In every day, in every way I am getting better and better. If you are having negative thoughts and are suffering from low self-esteem then try to say this affirmation to yourself several times throughout the day.

Finally, you can also improve your self-esteem by hanging out with positive and supportive friends and relatives. This is probably the most effective way of improving ones self-esteem. The words of encouragement and even praises of these individuals can do wonders to your self-esteem. Their love and understanding is definitely more powerful than any affirmation or positive thought. Sometimes just knowing that somebody believes in you makes you believe in yourself also.

Just follow the guidelines above and soon, your self-esteem will skyrocket.

Wednesday 21 August 2013

Increasing Self Esteem



Every person wants to improve his or her self-esteem. The efforts to improve self-esteem could be conscious or unconscious. This simply means that some people actively pursue the goal of elevating their self wroth while other tends to increase their self-esteem without knowing it. It is important though to know what areas in your life you want to improve on exactly. In this way, you are not merely working on external indicators to reach your goal.

The problem is not all people know how to improve their self-esteem. In fact, it is easier for most people to damage their self-esteem than to build it. Unconsciously, we tend to decrease the image of ourselves through negative thinking. There is nothing like a negative thought to make diminish or even destroy our self-image.

Below are some pointers on how one can improve his or her self-esteem.

Make a list of all your accomplishments

One of the best ways to improve your self-esteem is to take inventory of all your accomplishments. Be honest when you are writing the list. In this way you will have an objective view of your abilities and capacities. Also in this way, you will gain insights on what areas of your life need improvements.

Make an effort to improve on the weak areas

After making a list of all your accomplishments and after discovering your weaknesses, the next thing you must do is to strive to improve on your weak areas. Resolutions are not only applicable during the start of the year. You can make a resolution any time of the year.

One of the greatest concerns of individuals who have made resolutions is how to stick to the resolutions. As everyone probably knows, most New Year resolutions are broken come March, sometimes even earlier.
To stick to resolutions, you must strive to change just one or a few things at a time. Promising to change many things at once is like setting yourself up for failure. Start and small and few and you'd be amaze to discover that your life is changing already.

Set clear goals

For you to reach a certain goal, you must first be able to formulate it clearly. If you want to lose weigh for example, do not just say that you want to have a flat stomach or a small waist. Say instead, that you want to achieve a 28 inch waist or I want to lose 10 pounds.

The advantage of having clear and defined goals is that it would be easier for you to track your progress. It would also be easier for you to create the best strategies to reach the goal faster. If you have clears goals, you will be amazed at how things seem to fall in the right place. Every circumstance, every person that you will meet will help you in achieving your goal.

Play a game

Some games have the ability to increase self-esteem. This is especially effective with children. Games are effective in building self-esteem since through them children can gauge their abilities and skills. Games can also improve the skills that the children already have.

Remember that life is a journey

There is a saying that the journey is more important than the destination. The same is true with life. So enjoy wherever you are right now and believe that life only gets better.


Sunday 18 August 2013

Some Self Esteem Building Exercises



There are simply times when we feel so bad about ourselves. It can be caused by a lot of things. Heartbreak is one of the most common reasons for low self esteem and is often the case for people who lost their self to their relationship. For the people who are in love with their career, a demotion can kill their self esteem. Workaholics who get fired are the number one candidates of low self esteem.

Teenagers who devote their time and energy to finally getting that slot in the varsity will have a lot to work on their self esteem should they be cut from the team. Self esteem is anchored in a lot of things like the factors mentioned above but solely depending on one single factor is not good. A high self esteem should be gained by being able positive toward all aspects of life and not just one.

In case you are one of those people who are suffering from low self esteem or happen to know someone who is suffering from low self esteem then read on and maybe these exercises can help you in finding your way back to gaining that high self esteem. Let us start off with your self. The mirror can do so many things. How many times have we seen depressed people throw mirrors or throw something at mirrors to break them because they do not like what they see?

Many, many times I would bet. So let us begin with making sure that we like what we see in the mirrors. In this phase, physically looking good is very important so take the time to fix yourself. Take a trip to the parlour or to the gym. It is a must that you like and love what you see in the mirror because such fondness is a good way to start making yourself better. And when that is settled, look at the mirror every morning and say “I love myself” not because your narcissistic but because you love the unique you who have so much to offer to the world.

Have one day of fun with friends every week. Sometimes surrounding yourself with people is not enough. You have to have a day spent with really close friends wherein you do nothing but celebrate the “highs” of the week. Think up of something like the “snap cup” in the movie Legally Blonde and have a session every week.

Why every week? It is nice to always have something to look forward to every week. This exercise, aside from helping you keep your self esteem, will enable you to share a unique bond with your friends and together you will all grow up beautifully. Be careful not to over praise each other so make sure that you only give sincere and timely praises to each other.

Those are just two exercises you can practice to build your self esteem or to finally build a high self esteem. There are other ways but one individual practice and another group exercise should encourage you to get at least get started and then just keep on doing it until it becomes habit. You never know, when you are so good at it then you can begin to walk the talk and inspire others to do the same.

Thursday 15 August 2013

Dynamics of building self-esteem in children



One of the main things that a person should have in order to become successful and to lead a long and happy life is to have a full trust in himself and his capabilities. Loving yourself enough to know your limitations and your strengths is one of the ingredients in leading a life of contentment.

There is really no sure answer as to how and where self-esteem springs from. Some psychologists say that it is the function of the personality that has been acquired from both parents. Parents who have high self-esteem will most likely produce children who are also confident.

Some sectors however say that genetics does not play a role. Rather, it is the function of chance. Some people are just born to have high self-esteem while others are born with low ranges much like what happens with intelligence quotients.

Some psychologists however argue that most of the development of the self-esteem happens in the environment. Personal experience, parental practices, choice of friends and discovery of talents play a major role in determining just how much self-esteem a person will develop.

Personal experiences come in the form of bullying in school and social group interactions. Children who have experience much bullying in school will develop low self-esteem. The same goes with children who remain on the outside of the social group.

Parental practice and the example that they give can also play a large role in determining the development of the self-esteem. A person for instance who has parents who trusts him to make his own decisions, is not over-protective and treats him like an adult will most likely have high self-esteem compared to children who have parents who coddle him, those who are strict and those who see him so helpless like a child, incapable of making his own decision. It is important then for parents to think about their parental behavior for they will greatly affect how their child will grow up.

The choice of friends and the social group that one belongs to can also cushion and develop the self-esteem. Becoming part of a group that embraces a person’s individual traits and respects their own opinions will help develop the self-esteem. This is rapid contrast to a social group that seeks to put down the person. Social groups can also cushion the person against the threats of outside forces that can destroy or lower the self-esteem.

Cliques can also play a role. Being part of the high school populars, for instance, can strengthens one’s ego compared to being part of the group that is ostracized.

Having a talent or an ability that can stand out from the crowd is also another thing that can boost a person’s self-esteem. If he can offer something that people will admire, his trust and confidence in himself will strengthen. Affirmations, accolades and admirations are great ego boosts to people. This is perhaps why people who have achievements because of their own talents have higher self-esteem than others.

Still, having high self-esteem in one aspect of one’s life does not mean that the high self-esteem will also apply in other sectors. For instance, a person can be ultra confident in one’s school work but become a bumbling idiot when it comes to social interactions and emotional entanglements. There are only a few people who can achieve the right balance of self-esteem in all aspects of life.