Teenage Self Esteem
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Teenage self esteem can seem a very challenging prospect for adolescents, but help is at hand to learn how it is possible to build a high self esteem with teens by following some simple advice here.
What is teen self esteem?
Self esteem is defined as how you see or view yourself. Some examples of teen self esteem might be:
- Do you think you are too fat or too skinny?
- Do you put yourself down?
- Do you feel left out?
- Do you feel you have no friends?
- Do you feel you aren’t good enough?
- Do you think you aren’t popular?
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It’s these types of examples that lead to low self esteem and can generally cause you to feel very low about yourself, and therefore lacking confidence as well.
Many of the above examples have possibly manifested themselves in early childhood, either from your parents, teachers or even close friends. It can come from being bullied or teased, or maybe from the feeling of not reaching the “perceived” expectations of your parents. Teachers can often only praise those that do well, and put down those who aren’t quite so academic.
Teenage self esteem advice
How can I improve my self esteem?
No one is born with lots of self confidence, it comes from being aware of how you react to situations, events and so on. Each tip follows the other, so read them in order and keep notes on your thoughts as you go along, as this will help.
Teenage self esteem Tip No 1#
Taking the above statement, you now need to take some time to work out why you think you have a low self esteem, and what makes it appear real to you. What situation sparks off the feeling of low self esteem. But do take some time to do this.
Once you’ve worked out what it is that gives you this feeling of thinking badly of yourself, you can then move on to working on improving self esteem.
Teenage self esteem Tip No 2#
Next you need to think back to lots of positives in your life. How did you feel when you won an award, or scored a goal, or participated in a play? Did you feel good about yourself? Pick some moments when you felt really good about accomplishing something and really try to get back into that whole excited feeling you had.
Teenage self esteem Tip No 3#
What are your strengths? Everyone has strengths, however big or small. What are you good at? And don't say "nothing"! There simply must be something you are good at, however small you may think it is. Here are some examples to get you thinking:
- Looking after your pets
- Riding a bike
- Drawing
- Helping Mum in the kitchen
- Helping Dad with DIY
- Gardening
- Being funny
- Reading
Teenage self esteem Tip No 4#
In order to build up your teen self esteem and get over Tip No 1, you now need to concentrate on your strengths and feelings (as in Tips No 2 and 3). You also need to look at how you can build your confidence, and remind yourself about your strengths that are unique to you.
Remember that you are unique, there is no one else like you, so you mustn’t get into the habit of comparing yourself to others. Some teenagers really can’t do the things you can do, some really can’t cook, or play the piano, or paint (or whatever it might be). This is why I asked you to note down your strengths and your why you feel the way you do. It will give you something to refer back to when the situations arise.
Don't let others put you down. WHATEVER YOU ARE GOOD AT, MAKE THE MOST OF IT AND BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. Don't worry what others think. It's not important. YOU ARE IMPORTANT, not what others think.
Your teenage self esteem can be improved and built on. Use these tips wisely and see the difference.
Parent/teen self esteem advice
Being a parent of a young adolescent is hard work as I’m sure many of you know. But there are many things you can do to help the self esteem of your teenager.
No 1# tip for the parents
Avoid negativity. This is probably one of the easiest traps to fall into. We all do it and it’s time to stop. There is so much negativity surrounding our everyday lives that it almost becomes second nature. The effect of negativity wears off onto our children and before we realise it they are pulled down by the vibes surrounding you. Time to get positive. If you have difficulty with this, I’d recommend reading this article – – maintaining positive attitude – it may help a bit.
No 2# tip for parents
Listen to your children. You all have busy lives, but it’s important to stop and listen to what they are saying. Many times they’ll be trying to tell you something in a roundabout way, and you’ll just shrug it off as unimportant. To them it may be really important. If they feel they can’t talk to their parents then who else will they talk to? Building their self esteem means you need to value what they are saying, and in turn that will help to build their confidence.
No 3# tip for parents
Realise that your children will want different things to you. How often do you try and put your thoughts into your children’s minds? I’m guessing it’s quite often, until you realise what you are doing! They are only young, even though they would like to believe they are adults. Young pubescent teenagers can be difficult, but you need to realise that they will want different things to you. It’s obviously up to you to work out what is right and what is not right for them.
No 4# tip for parents
Focus on their achievements. This is probably one of the most important things. Hopefully many of you have done this from when they were a young age, but praising their accomplishments means so much to them. Think back to when you are praised for doing something, how good do you feel about that? The same is for your teenagers, or for that matter, all children of all ages. We do tend to live in a negative society as I mentioned before, so it’s imperative that you say well done to them when it’s due. Credit given when credit is due. Don’t do it all the time, it needs to be for something special.
Hope that helps!
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