111 Self-esteem Quotes to Live by: Unleashing Inner Strength

Discover the power of positive thinking with our inspiring collection of self-esteem quotes. Find the motivation you need to boost your self-confidence!

Aastha Pahadia
Written by Aastha Pahadia , Certified Relationship Coach
Updated on Oct 07, 2023 | 04:39 PM IST | 193.6K
self esteem quote
self esteem quote

Self-esteem is a vital treasure in life, empowering us to believe in ourselves, love ourselves unconditionally, and embrace our flaws. In a world where external validation often defines our worth, nurturing self-esteem is crucial. Self-esteem quotes serve as powerful reminders that we are capable, deserving, and worthy of love and success. They encourage us to embrace our imperfections, celebrate achievements, and step outside our comfort zones. They remind us that we are not alone in our struggles and that even accomplished individuals have faced moments of doubt and insecurity.

We may explore the depths of our souls, mend scars, and become stronger and more resilient by setting out on a voyage of self-discovery inspired by these quotes. We can enrich our lives and the lives of others around us by valuing individuality and encouraging self-esteem. 

Building Blocks: Exploring the Origins and Development of Self-esteem

self esteem quote

Our identity and mental health are greatly influenced by our sense of self-esteem, which includes self-acceptance and self-love. It is influenced by early experiences, positive environments, and interactions with peers, teachers, and society. While domain-specific self-esteem focuses on proficiency in certain fields, global self-esteem assesses one's entire value. People with high self-esteem can create objectives, take calculated risks, and recover resolutely from failures. Developing self-awareness, combating critical self-talk, engaging in self-compassion exercises, and surrounding oneself with encouraging connections are all parts of this ongoing process. We may create a solid foundation of self-worth by coming to understand and value ourselves with the help of self-esteem quotes. This will allow us to accept our individuality, follow our aspirations, and lead satisfying lives.

Advertisement

Building a Positive Mindset: 111 Motivational Self-esteem Quotes

self esteem quote

Empowering Self-worth Quotes to Boost Your Confidence

self esteem quote

1. “When you stop living your life based on what others think of you, your real life begins. At that moment, you will finally see the door of self-acceptance opened.”  — Shannon L. Alder

2. “Being worthy is not something you earn. It is something you recognize and believe in.”  —  Invajy

3. “It’s hard to give up the self-esteem connected to being codependent and appearing ‘right,’ which is probably a survival behavior learned from growing up in a crazy family. It feels like you will actually disappear.”  —  Melody Beattie

4. “No one else can take risks for us, or face our losses on our behalf, or give us self-esteem. No one can spare us from life’s slings and arrows, and when death comes, we meet it alone.” — Martha Beck

5. “Until you value yourself, you won’t value your time. Until you value your time, you will not do anything with it.”  —  M. Scott Peck

Advertisement

6. “Your worth is not a product of your appearance, your intelligence, your talent or how successful are you.”  —  Invajy

7. “Nothing profits more than self-esteem, grounded on what is just and right.”  —  John Milton

Building Resilience: Quotes About Self-worth

self esteem quotes

8. “Self-esteem and self-contempt have specific odors; they can be smelled.”  —  Eric Hoffer

9. “Start loving yourself and everything else will come.”  —  Lisa Lieberman-Wang

10.“Self-esteem is a powerful force within each of us… Self-esteem is the experience that we are appropriate to life and to the requirements of life.”  —  Nathaniel Branden

11. “Self-esteem is made up primarily of two things: feeling lovable and feeling capable.”  —  Jack Canfield

12. “Greater self-esteem produces greater success, and greater success produces more high self-esteem, so it keeps on spiraling up.”  —  Jack Canfield

13. “Self-esteem comes from who you have in your life. How you were raised. What you struggled with as a child.”  —  Halle Berry

14 “I don’t think it’s a good attitude in your life to feel that you have to be rich to have self-esteem.”  —  Tom Petty

Advertisement

15. “People who repeatedly attack your confidence and self-esteem are quite aware of your potential, even if you are not.”  —  Wayne Gerard Trotman

16. “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”  —  Ralph Waldo Emerson

Discover Your True Value with Self-appreciation Quotes

self esteem quotes

17. “We are what our thoughts have made us; so take care about what you think. Words are secondary. Thoughts live; they travel far.”  —  Swami Vivekananda

18. “One of the most courageous things you can do is identify yourself, know who you are, what you believe in, and where you want to go.”  —  Shiela Murray Bethel

19. “Negative thinking patterns can be immensely deceptive and persuasive, and change is rarely easy. But with patience and persistence, I believe that nearly all individuals suffering from depression can improve and experience a sense of joy and self-esteem once again.”  —  David D. Burns

20. “Self-esteem is crucial to how much or how little contentment you feel at the end of your life.”  —  Mark Goulston

21. “You can’t compare an apple to an orange. It will cause a lot of self-esteem issues.”  —  Craig Sheffer

22. “Before you diagnose yourself with depression or low self-esteem, first make sure that you are not, in fact, just surrounded by bad people.”  —  Unknown

Advertisement

23. “Self-esteem comes quietly, like the truth.”  —  Amity Gaige

24. “If you have a good self-esteem, you can be generous, you can give back and you can be productive in the world.”  —  Deborra-Lee Furness

Transform And Uplift Your Self-worth: Find Myself Again Quotes

self esteem quotes

25. “Self-esteem is the reputation we acquire with ourselves.”  —  Nathaniel Branden

26. “Don’t back down just to keep the peace. Standing up for your beliefs builds self-confidence and self-esteem.”  —  Oprah Winfrey

27. “Be faithful to that which exists within yourself.”  —  Andre Gide

28. “How you feel about yourself determines your life choices.”  —  Amanda Ray

29. “Beauty begins the moment you decided to be yourself.”  —  Coco Chanel

30. “You alone are enough. You have nothing to prove to anybody.”  —  Maya Angelou

31. “Let your light shine. Shine within you so that it can shine on someone else. Let your light shine. ”  —  Oprah Winfrey

32. “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.”  —  Eleanor Roosevelt

33. “Most of the shadows of this life are caused by standing in one’s own sunshine.”  —  Ralph Waldo Emerson

34. “Most fears of rejection rest on the desire for approval from other people. Don’t base your self-esteem on their opinions.”  —  Harvey Mackay

Finding Confidence Within: Self-worth Choose Yourself Quotes

self esteem quotes

35. “You can have anything you want if you are willing to give up the belief that you can’t have it.”  —  Dr. Robert Anthony

Advertisement

36. “Growth begins when we start to accept our own weakness.”  —  Jean Vanier

37. “It took me a long time not to judge myself through someone else’s eyes.”  —  Sally Field

38. “Disciplining yourself to do what you know is right and important, although difficult, is the highroad to pride, self-esteem, and personal satisfaction.”  —  Margaret Thatcher

39. “One of the greatest regrets in life is being what others would want you to be, rather than being yourself.”  —  Shannon L. Alder

40. “I used to hate feeling embarrassed, but then I realized nobody’s watching and nobody gives a damn.”  —  Barbara Corcoran

41. “One’s dignity may be assaulted, vandalized, and cruelly mocked, but it can never be taken away unless it is surrendered.”  —  Michael J. Fox

42. “To establish true self-esteem, we must concentrate on our successes and forget about the failures and the negatives in our lives.”  —  Denis Waitley

Harnessing the Power Within: Positive Self-esteem Quotes

self esteem quotes

43. “Life doesn't get easier or more forgiving, we get stronger and more resilient." — Steve Maraboli

44. “To accept ourselves as we are meant to value our imperfections as much as our perfections.”  —  Sandra Bierig

45. “The real difficulty is to overcome how you think about yourself.”  —  Melanie Koulouris

46. “You’re always with yourself, so you might as well enjoy the company.”  —  Diane Von Furstenberg

47. “Who you are inside is what helps you make and do everything in life.”  —  Fred Rogers

48. “I think everybody’s weird. We should all celebrate our individuality and not be embarrassed or ashamed of it.”  —   Johnny Depp

49. “The world will never value you more than you value yourself.”  —  Bill Masur

50. “Love yourself first and everything else falls into line. You really have to love yourself to get anything done in this world.”  —  Lucille Ball

51. “People who want the most approval get the least and the people who need approval the least get the most.” —   Wayne Dyer

Believe in Yourself: Inspirational Boost Self-esteem Quotes 

self esteem quotes

52. "In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer." — Albert Camus

53. “Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes.”  —  Carl Gustav Jung

54. “Remember always that you not only have the right to be an individual, you have an obligation to be one.”  —  Eleanor Roosevelt

55. “To love yourself right now, just as you are, is to give yourself heaven. Don’t wait until you die. If you wait, you die now. If you love, you live now.”  —  Alan Cohen

56. “A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval.”  —  Mark Twain

Advertisement

57. “I never loved another person the way I loved myself.” —  Mae West

58. “Self-esteem isn’t everything; it’s just that there’s nothing without it.”  —  Gloria Steinem

59. “The man who does not value himself, cannot value anything or anyone.” —  Ayn Rand

60. “Trust yourself. You know more than you think you do.”  —  Benjamin Spock

61. “Don’t let mental blocks control you. Set yourself free. Confront your fear and turn the mental blocks into building blocks.”  —  Dr. Roopleen

Embracing Self-acceptance: Inspirational Quotes About Self-worth

self esteem quotes

62. “Keeping busy and making optimism a way of life can restore your faith in yourself.” —  Lucille Ball

63. “Low self-esteem is like driving through life with your hand-break on.”  —  Maxwell Maltz

64. “Never make this mistake of thinking that you elevate yourself by humiliating people.”  —  Robert Greene

65.“Nobody holds a good opinion of a man who holds a low opinion of himself.”  —  Anthony Trollope

66. “When I extend small kindness to others, I find it easier to like myself. If you feel that your self-esteem is low, try extending small kindness to strangers.”  —  Haemin Sunim

67. “Hiding, secrets, and not being able to be yourself is one of the worst things ever for a person. It gives you low self-esteem. You never get to reach that peak in your life. You should always be able to be yourself and be proud of yourself.”  —  Grace Jones

68. “I think high self-esteem is overrated. A little low self-esteem is actually quite good. Maybe you’re not the best, so you should work a little harder.”  —  Jay Leno

Persuading Quotes About Self-worth And Value: Rising Above Insecurities

self esteem quotes

69. “Narcissism is not about self-love. It’s a clinical trait that belies a deep sense of emptiness, low self-esteem, emotional detachment, self-loathing, extreme problems with intimacy.”  —  Drew Pinsky

70. “It is weakness that is the source of all selfishness.”  —  Swami Vivekananda

71. “You’ve been criticizing yourself for years and it hasn’t worked. Try approving of yourself and see what happens.” —  Louise Hay

72. “There are so many more important things to worry about than how you’re perceived by strangers.”  —  Dennis Lehane

73. “You were not born a winner, and you were not born a loser. You are what you make yourself be.”  —  Lou Holtz

74. “Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one’s definition of your life, but define yourself.”  —  Harvey Fierstein

75. “Don’t waste your energy trying to change opinions … Do your thing, and don’t care if they like it.”  —  Tina Fey

Advertisement

Strengthening Your Self-worth: Affirming Self Assurance Quotes

self esteem quotes

76. “Once you embrace your value, talents, and strengths, it neutralizes when others think less of you.”  —  Rob Liano

77. “Avoid focusing on what you cannot do. Instead, focus on what you can do and accomplish without expecting approval and recognition from others.”  —  Lisa Lieberman-Wang

78. “You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.”  —  Maya Angelou

79. “Feeling good about ourselves is essential in our being able to love others.”  —  Fred Rogers

80. “Your sense of self-worth comes from you alone – never the opinion of others.”  —  Robert Greene

81. “Don’t let anyone make you feel that you don’t deserve the good things that happen in your life.”  —  Paulo Coelho

82. “A person’s self-esteem has nothing to do with how she looks. ”  —  Halle Berry

83. “Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.”  —  Dr. Seuss

84. “When you undervalue what you do, the world will undervalue who you are.”  —  Oprah Winfrey

Powerful Self-esteem Quotes: Unlocking Your Inner Strength

85. “Nothing builds self-esteem and self-confidence like accomplishment.”  —  Thomas Carlyle

86. “"The oak fought the wind and was broken, the willow bent when it must and survived." — Robert Jordan

87. “Without love our self-esteem weakens. Without it, our courage fails. Without love we can no longer look out confidently at the world.”  —  Chief Dan George

88. “Someone else’s opinion of you does not have to become your reality.”  —  Les Brown

89. “The way you treat yourself sets the standard for others.”  —  Dr. Sonya Friedman

90. “You have within you right now, everything you need to deal with whatever the world can throw at you.”  —  Brian Tracy

91. “If you really put a small value upon yourself, rest assured that the world will not raise your price.”  — Anonymous

92. “Too many people overvalue what they are not, and undervalue what they are.”  —  Malcolm Forbes

93. “The most important key to the permanent enhancement of esteem is the practice of positive inner talk”.  —  Dennis Waitley

Empowering Low Self-esteem Quotes to Boost Your Confidence

Self-Esteem Quotes

94. “Confront the dark parts of yourself, and work to banish them with illumination and forgiveness. Your willingness to wrestle with your demons will cause your angels to sing.” ? August Wilson

95. “You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.” ? Sharon Salzberg

96. “It's not my responsibility to be beautiful. I'm not alive for that purpose. My existence is not about how desirable you find me.” ? Warsan Shire

Advertisement

97. “You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.”  —  Carter Crocker

98. “Look well into thyself; there is a source of strength which will always spring up if thou wilt always look.”  —  Marcus Aurelius

99. “Noble and great. Courageous and determined. Faithful and fearless. That is who you are and who you have always been. And understanding it can change your life, because this knowledge carries a confidence that cannot be duplicated any other way.”  —  Sheri Dew

100. “When you are content to be simply yourself and don’t compare or compete, everyone will respect you.”  —  Lao Tzu

Embrace Your Worthiness: Short Quotes About Self-worth 

Self-Esteem Quotes

101.  “Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice.” —  Steve Jobs

102. “Wanting to be someone else is a waste of the person you are.” ? Marilyn Monroe

103. “The greatest thing in the world is to know how to belong to oneself.” ? Michel de Montaigne

104. “It is never too late to be what you might have been.”  —  George Eliot

105. “Respect yourself and others will respect you.”  —  Confucius

106. “Believe you can and you’re halfway there.” - Theodore Roosevelt

107.“The most terrifying thing is to accept oneself completely.” ? C.G. Jung

108. “Whether you think you can or think you can’t – you are right.”  —  Henry Ford

109. “The greatest success is successful self-acceptance.”  —  Ben Sweet

110. “Listen to your heart above all other voices.”  —  Marta Kagan

111. “Self-trust is the first secret of success.”  —  Ralph Waldo Emerson

Conclusion

Self-esteem quotes are a powerful tool for guiding us through life's trials and tribulations. They offer encouragement, strength, resilience, and courage to rise above adversity. These quotes serve as reminders during self-doubt, armor against judgments, and a source of comfort. Self-esteem is a lifelong journey that requires continuous nurturing, self-reflection, and commitment to self-care. Embrace your uniqueness, love yourself unconditionally, and embrace the extraordinary person you are

Also Read

55+ Inspiring Confidence Quotes to Help You Take on Any Challenge

FAQs

What are the 5 benefits of self-esteem?
Increased resilience and ability to cope with challenges. - Improved mental and emotional well-being. - Stronger motivation and drive to achieve goals. - Better relationships and social interactions. - Enhanced overall self-confidence and self-acceptance.

Is self-esteem the most important thing?
Self-esteem is essential for well-being, but it's not the sole determinant of a fulfilling life. Purpose, relationships, and personal growth also contribute to happiness and fulfillment.

Why is self-esteem more important than confidence?
Self-esteem encompasses self-worth and self-acceptance, while confidence refers to our abilities in specific situations. Healthy self-esteem fosters long-lasting confidence, allowing authenticity and resilience in various aspects of life.

How does self-esteem affect a person's day-to-day life?
Self-esteem impacts our perception and interactions, with positive self-esteem promoting optimism, resilience, healthy relationships, and aligning decisions, while low self-esteem can cause self-doubt, and anxiety, and hinder personal and professional growth.

How do you build self-esteem?
Self-esteem is a personal journey, requiring time and effort. Strategies include practicing self-compassion, challenging negative self-talk, setting realistic goals, celebrating achievements, surrounding oneself with supportive people, and seeking professional help.

Pinkvilla Pulse
Subscribe to our newsletter for entertainment exclusives, star interviews, and the latest lifestyle trends. Look No Further!
Subscribe
About The Author
Aastha Pahadia
Aastha Pahadia
Certified Relationship Coach

Aastha is a certified Relationship coach and she strives to help those who seek expert advice on relationships.

...

Advertisement

Latest Articles