Healthy self-esteem gives you the freedom to be YOU and to enjoy your life. But here’s the thing. You and only you can change your self-esteem and confidence. Because that power only lies with you, and no one can do it for you. So, if you’re looking to own your power and do for you what only you can do, then keep reading on.
How to begin a journaling routine.
Journaling provides an outlet and helps you visualize where you want to go. One of the many benefits of journaling is it gives you an outlet for your thoughts and emotions. In addition, journaling provides you with a safe space where you can express yourself honestly.
Because everyone struggles with confidence and low self-esteem from time to time, and journaling can help provide a different perspective and the ability to take a step back and see what is going on. Especially when you’re feeling down.
Thankfully, journaling is one of the simplest ways to help you gain more self-confidence as you learn about yourself.
There’s no special secret to journaling. You can journal anytime and anywhere that works for you. And can be as simple as grabbing a notebook, a pencil, or a few colorful pens.
The most important part, though, is to begin and to keep going with it.
Why you should journal for self-esteem.
Turning negative thoughts into positive thoughts helps you live a life worth living.
Because low self-esteem isn’t just painful and isolating, it will affect your overall mental health and lead to higher rates of depression and anxiety.
So is it really possible to gain self-confidence through journaling?
And obviously, that answer will vary from person to person because there is more to the entire process than simply just writing. It also requires taking ACTION to change YOUR THOUGHTS and the things YOU DO AND SAY.
Journaling gives you the chance to take a closer look at your life and see all of the possibilities there.
When you take the time to consider the great things that you are doing and the positive qualities that you do have – you begin to feel more confident in yourself.
This is what happens when you take the time to reflect and put into words what you have discovered – an increase in self-awareness and healthy self-esteem.
Focus on your strengths. A lack of self-confidence or self-esteem happens when the perception of yourself becomes unbalanced. You begin to focus or believe judgment, criticism, and negative perceptions about yourself – and you become what you believe. And all of this becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you walk around telling yourself, “you’re going to fail; you should just give up now,” and you don’t even try, then you have already failed.
Be kind to yourself.
As a mental health therapist, I see this all the time.
People ripping into themselves with lots of negative self-talk and wonder why their confidence levels and self-esteem are in the pooper.
And many of us do it.
And it can quickly turn into a destructive habit that needs to be broken.
And it can be broken.
It starts by affirming yourself and speaking to yourself like you would a close friend or family member that you care about. And it’s okay if it feels different at first to speak to yourself with kindness. After that, you’re moving out of your comfort zone while dismissing your inner critic.
Essentially, if you would never say those cruel words to your best friend, then don’t say them to yourself. It truly is as simple as that.
But if it doesn’t feel that simple or you feel that you would benefit more from the support of a licensed mental health professional, then take a look at Therapy-Online.com and you can use my link to receive a 20% discount [affiliate link]. It’s my belief that everyone should be able to have access to mental health resources and if you feel that you would benefit from therapy then I encourage you to give it a try.
35 Self-esteem journal prompts.
- Picture yourself as a confident person. What would you be saying to yourself, saying to others, and doing for yourself?
- Write 7 positive affirmations that speak to you and why.
- Are you in the habit of putting other people’s needs ahead of your own, and if so, why?
- What are some ways that you can balance other people’s needs and your own needs?
- Who are your role models? What qualities do they have that you would like to possess more of?
- How can you practice more kindness to yourself in your life right now?
- What negative belief or beliefs do you have about yourself that continue to hold you back?
- What might your life look like if those negative beliefs no longer stopped you?
- Name 3 feel-good activities that you enjoy and how they make you feel good about yourself.
- Take a moment and really think about how you think and talk to yourself in this present moment and its impact on your future self.
- What would you stop doing if you felt more confident? And the million-dollar question – what are you continuing to do that keeps you feeling insecure?
- How does second-guessing yourself make you feel, and how has it held you back in life?
- What new opportunities might you get to experience if you were willing to put yourself out there?
- Investing in yourself builds self-confidence and worth. So what is something that you want to invest in for yourself and why?
- What is the best compliment you can give yourself, and how does it feel to give it?
- We all possess strengths – what are your greatest strengths.
- How does the way you see and feel about yourself influence your self-love?
- Think about the last time you faced a challenge – how did you get through it?
- For every negative adjective (awful, lazy, lousy) you use to describe yourself – replace it with a positive adjective (awesome, nice, caring)
- How would your life be different if you saw it as a learning experience the next time you failed?
- What good things would you get to experience if you had more confidence?
- What is your best physical quality?
- Every day is a new opportunity, and today I’m going to try…
- Create a list of 10-15 compliments you can give yourself to boost confidence.
- Write about your ideal self with as much detail as possible. How you can start showing up as that person in your everyday life?
- Research the concept of self-esteem. What did you learn?
- Name your biggest achievement to date. What did was it like to achieve it?
- Without listening to your inner bully, what wonderful qualities do you bring to your relationships?
- Who do you know that has high self-esteem? How do you know that it is high, what do you notice about them, and how might you emulate those qualities?
- What is one new thing that you wish you could try? What’s holding you back?
- Find 5-10 self-love affirmations that speak to you and why.
- What are some things that you need to make a good week for you?
- Write down all of the little things that you are grateful for.
- What do you want to think and feel tomorrow?
- Write about your good qualities and how they make you unique and worthy of your love.
A message to take-home.
Ultimately, fostering self-acceptance and positive self-esteem will lead to more confidence. And when you’re more confident, it improves everything in your daily life.
Not only is self-esteem and confidence crucial for the quality of life, but it’s also a predictor of performance, confidence in goal setting, and success.
Those with high self-esteem are more likely to set goals, focus on personal development, and understand that failure is just a part of the process.
Whereas those with low self-esteem primarily focus on what they view as deficiencies and do just enough to get by or give up the moment the task feels too hard.
So, where do you want your self-esteem and confidence to be?
Thank you for your feedback. I have considered adding videos to my posts as well to help supplement what I write. And I hope to do precisely this in the near future. Again, I’m glad that you have enjoyed my content, and I hope you will visit again. I do my best to add new content every week, and thank you again for your kind words!