Low Self Esteem- Symptoms and Preventive Measures
In today’s competitive world, the never ending pressure to reach the top spot and retain the same can have adverse side effects on an individual’s mentality, as a result of which the person in question suffers from several physical and psychological changes. And low self esteem is one of them.
A person with low self esteem is easily lost in a crowd and can face several issues both on the personal and professional fronts. An individual with low self esteem tries to hide himself/herself from the spotlight and more often than not, give someone else the credit for his/her work.
While this would not have been considered as that much of an issue in the olden days, the recent economical standards speak otherwise. According to the new economy, each and every individual must learn to carve a niche for himself/herself in order to get noticed by others and rise up in life in the process.
However a person with low self esteem would not want that to happen and would shy away from public acclamation, thus undermining his/her success in a major way.
Individuals who exhibith low self esteem can sometimes get most of their more positive traits masked or ignored by others. Accordingly, an individual with low self esteem can have several talents, all of which will be masked by his/her timid behavior in public.
So if you are desperately trying to find out if you have low self esteem, here are a few signs that can help you in figuring out your stand.
Individuals with low self esteem shy away from crowds and find it very difficult to speak in front of crowds or meetings. They fear being not able to finish a given task and hence avoid taking on tasks they find mentally challenging.
Individuals with low self esteem also make it a point to ask for permission for even the most trivial of tasks which can be handled without supervision or intervention.
Some individuals speak too quiet for others to even make out a word of what they are saying. Some on the other hand tend to over explain, thus missing out on the important points.
A person with low self esteem also sticks to a rigid pose while talking and makes as few gestures as possible. They also seem to lack energy when speaking and sometimes phrase each sentence like a question. This denotes that the person is either afraid or not confident of his/her words.
One of the most important and dangerous side effects of low self esteem in individuals is the development of pessimism. An individual with low self esteem will never be able to phrase his/her sentences positively and will stick to the negative facts when trying to highlight a specific point.
It is a proven fact that individuals with higher self esteem fare better in their professional and presonal lives than those who are less confident. And it has been found out that while men are more adept at masking their low self esteem, women find it hard to do so.
One of the best ways to handle low self esteem, especially if you find yourself blurting out too much information rather than just sticking to the basics is to try reducing the number of words you speak and use in emails by 25%. This way, you know you are making your point clear while not beating around the bush about the same.
One way to channel low self esteem towards the positive end would be to use it as a tool to work beyond expectations. Some individuals with low self esteem are found to be workaholics and use their work as a tool to mask their low confidence levels.
If possible, try to fake being confident in order to give off the impression that you do not suffer from low self esteem. The action will enable you to prove yourself to others while inducing courage in your mind with time.
Don’t sit back or hide behind others during meetings and other events. Try to make it a point to speak out at the initial stages of the gathering for those who refrain to do so will look like timid and ineffective individuals.
Try banishing all kinds of negative thoughts from your head. Fill them with positive ones instead. Rather than focusing on the negative aspects, try thinking about the more positive factors that can influence and propel you to move forward.
Remember this! Banishing low self esteem for good cannot be done overnight and you need to work really hard to build up your confidence levels. Stay focused, practical and positive in each one of your approaches and pretty soon, you will see a changed person!
