There are many factors that affect self-esteem. When a person is feeling low in self-esteem, it can be caused by a number of different factors and these range from the person’s physical appearance to specific domains of their personality. Knowing what affects self-esteem is important as it influences how you feel about yourself. However, it is also important to know which factors and domains of the personality you consider most important.
Physical appearance is one of the first domains that are looked at when discussing what affects self-esteem. A person’s physical appearance is not only influenced by external factors such as how they look, but it is affected by internal factors as well. When a person has a low self-esteem, they often have a poor physical appearance. Childhood experiences are also a major influence on how an individual’s physical appearance is constructed.
For example, if a person’s childhood experiences were filled with hostile environments, they are likely to develop a low self-esteem and be cynical and negative about the world in general. Childhood experiences are also important in how an individual relates to other people and this again has a significant impact on their overall self-esteem. An individual who lacks confidence in themselves is more likely to have a negative self-image and poor self-esteem and, as a result, lack confidence in others.
Another aspect of self-esteem that is important to understand as you get older is your view of social roles. As we age, our perceptions of social roles change. For example, as children we do not worry too much about being popular, yet as we get older and enter school, we begin to worry about popularity. It is interesting to note that while social pressures on women to be popular are becoming less severe as we get older, the pressure on men to be successful is still quite strong.
Therefore, as you become older, it is important to understand how certain types of behavior affect your general self-esteem. If, for example, you engage in a particular activity, such as sports, you tend to think positively about that activity and this helps to boost your general self-esteem. However, if you rarely participate in these activities, you become worried about this aspect of yourself. It is interesting to note that this problem can be addressed through specific domains of self-improvement. These domains include engaging in a task that you enjoy, joining a group that you can identify with, as well as working with a professional who understands the challenges of working with adolescents. These domains enable you to make positive changes to how you perceive your own life and how others perceive you.
Another facet of self-esteem that is important to understand as you get older is your physical appearance. As we age, the muscles that support our body weaken and this can result in drooping eyelids, wrinkles and sagging skin. Physical appearance self-esteem has a very strong correlation with overall self-esteem. Therefore, it is important to take care of your physical appearance and protect your self-esteem at the same time. For example, it may be beneficial for women to exercise to maintain their muscle strength and health, while maintaining a healthy weight and engaging in a regular physical appearance maintenance program.
In addition to taking care of your appearance, it may also be beneficial to make positive changes to your behavior and your mental attitude. For example, as we get older, we may begin to experience changes in our confidence level. This can result in us having negative attitudes or even being shy around certain situations. If this is the case, you may want to make some changes to your behavior and attitudes to gain more self-confidence. You can do this by making an effort to develop better communication skills, by learning how to manage your stress better and by making a commitment to reach out to others when you need help. In addition to these things, making a commitment to continue to nurture your self-esteem will be helpful as well.
The last topic that will affect self-esteem is the way that you think about yourself affects your self-image. This is true regardless of whether you are trying to improve your physical appearance self-esteem or if you are trying to improve your mental self-image. In both cases, developing a more positive self-image will have lasting impacts on your self-esteem for the rest of your life.