Self-esteem

Self-esteem refers to an individual's overall evaluation and perception of their own worth, competence, and value as a person. It plays a fundamental role in shaping our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors, influencing our interactions with the world and the choices we make. Self-esteem is often categorized into two dimensions: high self-esteem, associated with positive self-regard and a healthy self-image, and low self-esteem, linked to negative self-perceptions and self-criticism. Understanding self-esteem is essential, as it underpins many aspects of our lives, from our confidence in pursuing goals to our resilience in the face of adversity 

1. Rolling in Admiration 

This is essentially a dice-based variant of catching the compliment. Odds are high that you have one or two dice sitting in the home somewhere. You can use it for a game that’s similar to Catch the Compliment. You roll the dice and whatever the number, that’s how many positive things you say about the person next to you. These could be things you admire about their character or personality, or reflections on their past positive actions and activities.

You can alternate going around the circle in different directions. Or, if you have two dice, roll one dice to count off the number of people and the second number to define how many things you have to say. 

So, if you rolled a 2 and a 4, you would direct your comments to the person sitting two spots away from you and state 4 things you like, love, and admire about them or 4 things you think they do well.

 2. Write a letter to younger self

Find a picture of yourself from childhood. Choose the one you like. And look at younger self with tenderness. How was it then? To be so carefree? Free of rules or social pressure? Free of responsibility or doubts? How was the younger-self feeling about the future?

Imagine that the child is worried about how his life will be. He/she is uncertain about own abilities. The future seems big and overwhelming. How will the child manage this all?

You have an opportunity to write a letter to this child. To calm him down. To make him worry less about the future.

You are here! See? Everything is just fine. There is no need to worry. Yes, there were difficult moments. There were tough times too. But so many good things happened on the way too! And you managed to be here so long. You did so many things you can be proud of. You experienced so many moments that are worth living.

What else can you write to this child tin order to give some support?

3. Wheel of Life

Take a piece of paper. Draw a circle and divide it into 8 pieces just as you usually slice a pizza. Call every piece of a circle with the part of your life that matters for you, (e.g. family, romantic relationships, career, financial situation, environment, health, studies, personal growth, entertainment, friends, recreation). Choose the ones you want. Create a scale from 1 to 10 with dotted line inside of a circle, make it in a form of circles of different sizes, one inside of another. And now take your time. Think about these areas of life and how you feel about them. How satisfied you are? It is not about how much you have but how you feel about having this much. Your task will be to rate each area with the level of your satisfaction. If you are single and you are happy about it, choose high number. But it being single makes you feel bad, choose a lower number. Create pieces of pizza with a colorful marker depending on the number you chose on the scale - some of them will be bigger, other smaller. How does the wheel of your current life look like? Is it round? How would the bicycle ride feel if the wheel would have this form? Think about what could be your first steps to make your wheel more round.