If you struggle with low self-esteem, you might compare yourself to others, judge yourself harshly, and feel unworthy of good things. Low self-esteem is difficult to overcome and can affect many areas of our lives.
If you are feeling inspired to change negative beliefs about yourself, and are looking for some uplifting sayings to help you do so, then you’ve come to the right place.
The following 152 quotes about self-esteem will help inspire you to improve your self-worth and change the way you see yourself.
Sections:
- Low self-esteem quotes
- Depression and low self-esteem quotes
- Positive quotes to boost self-esteem
- Self-esteem and self-confidence quotes
- High self-esteem quotes
- Body image and low self-esteem quotes
- Self-esteem quotes for her
- Self-esteem quotes for him
- Self-esteem quotes for kids
- Short self-esteem quotes
- Affirmations for self-esteem
- Funny self-esteem quotes
- Common questions
Low self-esteem quotes
The way you see yourself is directly impacted by low-self esteem. If you find that you are struggling with self-worth and need motivation to improve your relationship with yourself, then you have come to the right place. The following are deep and inspiring quotes about having low self-esteem.
1. “If I have lost confidence in myself, I have the universe against me.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson
 
2. “I try to believe it, but deep down, I don’t feel my self-worth.” —Christina Hibbert, Discovering Self-Worth
 
3. “If we want to fully experience love and belonging, we must believe we are worthy of love and belonging.” —Brene Brown
4. “Deep down, everyone feels the same… at our core, we all just want to belong. We all just want to be loved.” —Christina Hibbert, Self-Esteem and Self-Worth
 
5. “Quiet that voice of doubt inside of you. You are good enough. You do deserve good things. You are smart enough. You are worthy of love and respect. You are amazing just the way you are.” —Lorri Faye
 
6. “We’ve been told and taught to believe that there are things about us that make us unworthy.” —Julie Kristina, The Six Keys to Self-Esteem, YouTube
7. “Maybe I’m dumb, maybe I’m not smart enough.” —Self-Esteem Documentary, Youtube
 
8. “I refuse to follow the rules where society tries to control people with low self-esteem.” —Kanye West
 
9. “I need to work on my self-esteem. It’s very bruised.” —Hlehle_Lupindo, March 2 2022, 9:29AM, Twitter
10. “Wanting to be someone else is a waste of the person you are.” —Marilyn Monroe
 
11. “Whenever we are trying to do something on the outside… so what we can feel good about ourselves on the inside, it is a losing battle.” —Julie Kristina, The Six Keys to Self-Esteem, YouTube
 
12. “Dare to love yourself as if you were a rainbow with gold at both ends.” —Aberjhani
13. “Low self-esteem: when every compliment sounds sarcastic.” —Unknown
 
14. “Low self-esteem comes from who you assess yourself to be. It’s about who you are, and I didn’t think I was anything or anybody.” —Gloria Gaynor
 
15. “Low self-esteem involves imagining the worst that other people can think about you.” —Roger Ebert
16. “It’s not what you think you are that’s holding you back. It’s what you think you are not.” —Unknown
 
17. “While everyone struggles with occasional dips in self-esteem, those who have chronically low self-esteem may actually be struggling with low self-worth.” —Hailey Shafir, Self-Worth Vs. Self-Esteem, 2021
 
18. “People with low-self esteem are less self-confident and have more negative thoughts and feelings about themselves.” —Hailey Shafir, Self-Worth Vs. Self-Esteem, 2021
19. “There are so many factors around me that have made me question who I am, whether I’m doing the right thing, whether I am worthy enough.” —Self-Esteem Documentary, Youtube
 
20. “Feeling good enough is not just about letting go of your insecurities and gaining healthy self-esteem. Actually having a healthy self-esteem is a gateway to further development.” —Marko Sander, Self-Esteem Documentary, Youtube
 
21. “There are others for whom no amount of achievement, prestige and financial security ever seems to do the trick.” —The School Of Life, Self-Esteem, Youtube
22. “They anxiously chastise and critique themselves. Always feeling that they’ve underperformed, never quite trusting that they really deserve to exist.” —The School Of Life, Self-Esteem, Youtube
 
23. “We don’t feel inadequate in relation to everyone who has more than us, only those who we’ve come to see as belonging to another crucial determinant of self-esteem: our peer group.” —The School Of Life, Self-Esteem, Youtube
 
24. “Every time someone we went to school with does better than us, a small part of us will die.” —The School Of Life, Self-Esteem, Youtube
25. “It’s not so easy running around your whole life long desperate to put out the raging fires of self-hatred, striving to impress everyone you meet in search of an unsatisfied desire for a parental approval you never knew.” —The School Of Life, Self-Esteem, Youtube
 
26. “Knowing about the odd internal origins of self-esteem is crucial because of how often we pursue goals in the belief that success will, at last, give us the keys to feeling good about ourselves.” —The School Of Life, Self-Esteem, Youtube
 
27. “When we promise things to ourselves and we break that integrity, our brain is listening… and it’s like ‘I can’t trust you’.” —Julie Kristina, The Six Keys to Self-Esteem, YouTube
28. “In our efforts to be ‘enough,’ we often find ourselves stuck in a damaging cycle of perform, please, and perfect, shaming ourselves for our shortcomings and hiding them from others.” —The Secret to Being Enough, Fabulous Gist
Low self-esteem can easily make you sabotage yourself. You might also like to check these self-sabotage quotes.
Depression and low self-esteem quotes
Having low self-esteem can create feelings of depression. When you notice your view of yourself having a negative impact on your mental health and other areas of your life, it’s time to make a change. Hopefully, the following quotes can uplift you and give you the strength you need to make positive changes in your life.
1. “The happiness wasn’t there; I realized why that was. There was such an attempt to achieve these things and keep going that you lose sight of the people and the blessings that you have around you.” —J. Cole, Self-Esteem Documentary, Youtube
 
2. “My walls went up as my confidence went down.” —Unknown
 
3. “Sometimes people with low self-esteem will try to punish you for caring about them.” —Unknown
4. “Mental health issues such as depression or anxiety often come from a lack of self-esteem, lack of worth, lack of acceptance and struggles to see the positives in yourself.” —Jonny Pardoe, Self-Esteem and Self-Confidence, 2019
 
5. “One day, this pain will make sense to you.” —Unknown
 
6. “Before you diagnose yourself with depression or low self-esteem, make sure you are not, in fact, surrounded by assholes.” —William Gibson
7. “Constant failure to attain goals throughout life results in defeatism, low self-esteem or depression.” —Theodore Kaczynski
 
8. “Low self-esteem is not possible when you understand the nature of everything. Depression is not possible. The universe is absolutely friendly.” —Byron Katie
 
9. “People with low self-esteem are more likely to sabotage themselves when good things happen to them, because they don’t feel deserving.” —Unknown
10. “Self-esteem seems to underlie almost every issue for which my clients come to therapy. They say they’re there because of depression, or anxiety, or relationship problems, but at its core, the real problem is almost always a struggle with self-esteem.” —Christina Hibbert, Self-Esteem and Self-Worth
 
11. “‘I still don’t feel good enough’. This is learned helplessness, and it puts people into depression.” —Marko Sander, Self-Esteem Documentary, Youtube
Here are some more mental health quotes to inspire you.
Positive quotes to boost self-esteem
The following quotes are a great pick-me-up. They can be helpful in keeping you inspired about your journey towards healthy self-esteem. Here are some of the most motivational quotes about self-esteem.
1. “People always tell you to be humble, be humble, be humble. When was the last time someone told you to be great, to be amazing, to be awesome?” —Kanye West
 
2. “Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.” —Albert Einstein
 
3. “My self-esteem is high because I honor who I am.” —Louise Hay
4. “Never let self-doubt hold you captive. You are worthy of all that you dream and hope for.” —Roy Bennett
 
5. “Remember no one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” —Eleanor Roosevelt
 
6. “Maybe having a healthy self-esteem means to surround yourself with the people you love.” —Marko Sander, Self-Esteem Documentary, Youtube
7. “You don’t have to do or be or become anyone or anything in order to be good enough.” —Julie Kristina, The Six Keys to Self-Esteem, YouTube
 
8. “It took me a long time to realize I had low self-esteem. You want to know the secret to beating it? You need to allow yourself to make the attempt. After you fail, you need to do it again. You need [to] train yourself to trust yourself. Keep trying. Don’t give up on your success.” —FCG_Dad, March 3 2022, 4:29PM, Twitter
 
9. “There are three musts that hold us back: I must do well, you must treat me well, and the world must be easy.” —Albert Ellis
10. “Your success depends mainly upon what you think of yourself and whether you believe in yourself.” —William J. Boetcker
 
11. “You can have anything you want if you are willing to give up the belief that you can’t have it.” —Dr. Robert Anthony
 
12. “Successful people have fear, successful people have doubts, and successful people have worries. They just don’t let these feelings stop them.” —T. Harv Eker
13. “One of the greatest regrets in life is being what others would want you to be, rather than being yourself.” —Unknown
 
14. “The people who contributed to your sense of low self-esteem will be ashamed when God gets through unleashing you. You won’t have to prove anything. God will prove it.” —Unknown
 
15. “Our relationship with ourselves is an inside job.” —Julie Kristina, The Six Keys to Self-Esteem, YouTube
16. “If you could meet yourself, you might really like her.” —Niko Everett, Meet Yourself, TedxYouth
You might also be interested in these quotes to help you love yourself.
Self-esteem and self-confidence quotes
Without healthy self-esteem, it is difficult to feel self-confident. Self-esteem is a belief about yourself that will allow you to feel confident in who you are, as well as your abilities. Hopefully, the following self-confidence quotes can help you to overcome low self-esteem.
1. “I used to feel embarrassed, but then I realized that nobody’s watching and nobody gives a damn.” —Barbara Corcoran
 
2. “You can have anything you want as long as you are willing to give up the belief that you can’t have it.” —Dr. Robert Anthony
 
3. “Don’t waste your energy trying to change opinions … Do your thing, and don’t care if they like it.” —Tina Fey
4. “Once you embrace your value, talents, and strengths, it neutralizes when others think less of you.” —Rob Liano
 
5. “True confidence has no room for jealousy and envy. When you know you are great, you have no reason to hate.” —Unknown
 
6. “The single most powerful way to build confidence is to act with the confidence you aspire to have.” —Margie Warrell, Use It or Lose It, 2015
7. “Confidence comes not from always being right but from not fearing to be wrong.” —Peter T. McIntyre
 
8. “Confidence is a habit that can be developed by acting as if you already had the confidence you desire to have.” —Brian Tracy
 
9. “I have faith in my ability to learn it; I have faith in my ability to try; I have faith in my ability not to give up.” —Brooke Castillo, Self-Confidence, Life Coach School Podcast
10. “External approval can temporarily boost your self-esteem, but ultimately keeps you trapped in the same cycle of relying on external validation to feel good about yourself.” —Hailey Shafir, Self-Worth Vs. Self-Esteem, 2021
 
11. “Self-esteem begins with self-understanding, grows with courage and perseverance, ends with confidence.” —Maxime Lagacé
 
12. “Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.” —Dale Carnegie
13. “If you have good self-confidence in one area but a lack of self-esteem, you are not likely to be happy.” —Jonny Pardoe, Self-Esteem and Self-Confidence, 2019
 
14. “Feeling good about who and how we are helps us feel good about life’s situations and other people, and helps us face challenges with confidence and compassion.” —Christina Hibbert, Self-Esteem and Self-Worth
 
15. “Many of us seek to ‘have’ self-esteem, but self-esteem is hard to ‘have’ because it’s based mostly on things that change.” —Christina Hibbert, Self-Esteem and Self-Worth
16. “There are no authentic or inauthentic people. Authenticity is a practice; you choose it every day. Am I gonna show up and let myself be seen? That’s a choice.” —Brené Brown
High self-esteem quotes
If you’re looking for quotes about self-worth, you’ve come to the right place. Having healthy self-esteem means that you value yourself and know that you deserve nothing but the best. Enjoy the following 11 uplifting quotes about high self-esteem.
1. “Successful people have fear, successful people have doubts, and successful people have worries. They just don’t let those feelings stop them.” —T. Harv Eker
 
2. “We need not feel like we must prove ourselves to be part of the world because there are no prerequisites to being good enough.” —The Secret to Being Enough, Fabulous Gist
 
3. “It’s about waking up in the morning and saying that I’m worthy of love, belonging, and joy. It’s about engaging with the world from a place of worthiness.” —Brené Brown
4. “There are people with modest jobs, unspectacular bodies, and unglamorous friends, who confidently nevertheless lay claim to buoyant levels of self-esteem.” —The School Of Life, Self-Esteem, Youtube
 
5. “Our goal shouldn’t be to ‘feel good about ourselves.’ Our goal should be to be able to know and say, like this man I admire greatly: ‘I believe in myself.’” —Christina Hibbert, Self-Esteem Vs. Self-Worth
 
6. “Greater self-esteem produces greater success, and greater success produces more high self-esteem, so it keeps on spiraling up.” —Jack Canfield
7. “The only thing that matters in life is your own opinion of yourself.” —Osho
 
8. “We can’t be expected to look and behave the same perfect way all the time because we are ever-changing. Nobody is immune to imperfections. We need help. We make mistakes. We outright fail.” —The Secret to Being Enough, Fabulous Gist
 
9. “Self-esteem has a strong relation to happiness.” —Rosenburg Self-Esteem Scale, Fetzer Institute
10. “Self-acceptance is saying this is who I am right now, right or wrong, good or bad.” —Julie Kristina, The Six Keys to Self-Esteem, YouTube
 
11. “Healthy self-esteem comes when we stay and we speak up and we… believe that our voice counts.” —Julie Kristina, The Six Keys to Self-Esteem, YouTube
Body image and low self-esteem quotes
The way you see yourself is quite often very different from how everyone else sees you. Beauty really does come from within, and when you believe you are beautiful, you are. If you are looking for positive quotes for low self-esteem related to body image, then these 15 quotes are perfect for you.
1. “And I said to my body softly, ‘I want to be your friend’. It took a long breath and replied, ‘I have been waiting my whole life for this.’” —Nayyirah Waheed
 
2. “No amount of self-improvement can make up for any lack of self-acceptance.” —Robert Holden
 
3. “One day I had to sit down with myself and decide that I loved myself no matter what my body looked like and what others thought about my body.” —Gabourey Sidibe
4. “Body image is as simple as making the choice to love yourself despite your shortcomings—to embrace your whole self and not let others dictate how you feel about your body.” —Paige Fieldsted
 
5. “Body confidence doesn’t come from trying to achieve the perfect body, it comes from embracing the one you’ve already got.” —@Lyfe2cool1, Feb 27 2022, 7:28PM, Twitter
 
6. “We are told that if we’re beautiful, if we’re skinny, if we’re successful, famous, if we fit in, if everyone loves us, that we’ll be happy. But that’s not entirely true.” —Self-Esteem Documentary, Youtube
7. “Beauty begins the moment you decide to be yourself.” —Coco Chanel
 
8. “Be happy in your own skin. If you are unhealthy, start by making small changes to become healthier. You are unique, beautiful and worthy.” —Octavia Spencer
 
9. “Say goodbye to your inner critic, and take this pledge to be kinder to yourself and others.” —Oprah Winfrey
10. “Fall in love with taking care of your body.” —Unknown
 
11. “You have been criticizing yourself for years, and it hasn’t worked. Try approving of yourself and see what happens.” —Louise Hay
 
12. “To me, there is nothing more rare, nor more beautiful, than a woman being unapologetically herself; comfortable in her perfect imperfection. To me, that is the true essence of beauty.” —Steve Maraboli
13. “A person’s self-esteem has nothing to do with how she looks.” —Halle Berry
 
14. “The first step toward being loved is learning to love what you see when you look in the mirror.” —Tadahiko Nagao
 
15. “It’s not selfish to love yourself. In fact, selfishness involves very little self-love.” —Christina Hibbert, The Pyramid of Self-Worth
If you struggle with your body image, see this article about how body neutrality can help you feel better about yourself and your body.
Self-esteem quotes for her
Women and teenage girls often struggle with self-esteem. Improving your view of yourself can be difficult, but it is definitely worth the hard work. Here are some of the best quotes for women to improve their self-esteem and build confidence.
1. “She believed she could and she did.” —Unknown
 
2. “I’ve never wanted to look like models on the cover of magazines. I represent the majority of women, and I’m very proud of that.” —Adele
 
3. “Strong women don’t play victim, don’t make themselves look pitiful, & don’t point fingers. They stand and they deal.” —Mandy Hale
4. “Think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to fail. Failure is another stepping stone to greatness.” —Oprah
 
5. “In love with my future self.” —Unknown
 
6. “We live in a culture of scarcity, of never enough. There is only one way out of scarcity – and that is enoughness. At some point, we need to say: I am enough.” —Brené Brown
7. “Confidence is the ability to feel beautiful without needing someone to tell you.” —Mandy Hale
 
8. “A strong woman builds her own world. She is one who is wise enough to know that it will attract the man she will gladly share it with.” —Ellen Barrier
 
9. “You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.” —Buddha
10. “You are of worth. You are valuable. You are loveable. You are important. You are essential to this world. And you don’t have to believe me. Not yet.” —Christina Hibbert, Is Self-Esteem a Myth?
 
11. “Self-esteem comes from being able to define the world in your own terms and refusing to abide by the judgment of others.” —Oprah Winfrey
 
12. “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that frightens us most.” —Marianne Williamson
13. “Oh god, I struggle with low self-esteem all the time! I think everyone does. I have so much wrong with me, it’s unbelievable!” —Angelina Jolie
 
14. “Women with low self-esteem love bad boys. Women who have work to do love bad boys. Women who love themselves love good men.” —Tracy McMillan
 
15. “I’m the girl that talks others out of suicide but has a hard time doing the same for herself. She truthfully assures everyone how beautiful, lovely, wonderful, and precious they all are because she doesn’t want them to feel the same way she does: the opposite.” —Unknown
Self-esteem quotes for him
Men can often feel as though the world has high expectations of them, and the worry of not living up to them can affect their self-esteem. The following quotes are great inspiration for any guy who is trying to improve their self-esteem.
1. “Don’t worry about hurting my feelings because I guarantee you not one bit of my self-esteem is tied up in your acceptance.” —Dr. Phil
 
2. “Self-esteem is made up primarily of two things: feeling loveable and feeling capable.” —Jack Canfield
 
3. “A positive self-image and healthy self-esteem is based on approval, acceptance, and recognition from others; but also upon actual accomplishments, achievements and success upon the realistic self-confidence that ensues.” —Abraham Maslow
4. “Man often becomes what he believes himself to be.” —Mahatma Gandhi
 
5. “A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval.” —Unknown
 
6. “The greatest evil that can befall man is that he should come to think ill of himself.” —Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Self-esteem quotes for kids
When it comes to our youth, it’s important that we build them up as early as we can. Healthy self-esteem is created when you’re a teen. The beliefs that you pick up when you’re young can affect you for the rest of your life. The following are positive self-esteem quotes to boost confidence in kids and teens.
1. “Parents need to fill a child’s bucket of self-esteem so high that the rest of the world can’t poke enough holes to drain it out.” —Alvin Price
 
2. “If there were ever a magic bullet that could transform a young person’s life, it would be a pill coated with self-esteem. This powerful yet fragile quality is the key to the future for a teenager.” —Nicholas Emler, Self-Esteem, 2001
 
3. “Always remember you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” —Christopher Robin, Winnie the Pooh
4. “The way we talk to children becomes their inner voice.” —Peggy O’mara
 
5. “When someone has low self-esteem they tend to avoid situations where they think there’s risk of failure, embarrassment or making mistakes.” —Self-Esteem and Teenagers, Reachout.com
 
6. “Kids who feel good about themselves have the confidence to try new things.” —Your Child’s Self-Esteem, KidsHealth
7. “Why fit in when you were born to stand out?” —Dr. Seuss
 
8. “Too many young girls have eating disorders due to low self-esteem and distorted body image. I think it’s so important for girls to love themselves and to treat their bodies respectfully.” —Ariana Grande
Short self-esteem quotes
Sometimes short and sweet is exactly what we need. The following are the best and most famous short self-esteem quotes.
1. “The most powerful thing anyone can say to us is what we say to ourselves.” —Christine D’ercole
 
2. “It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves.” —Sir Edmund Hillary
 
3. “Nothing holds you back more than your own insecurities.” —Unknown
4. “To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance.” —Oscar Wilde
 
5. “It’s not possible to have ‘too much’ self-esteem.” —Christina Hibbert, Self-Esteem and Self-Worth
 
6. “The real difficulty is to overcome how you think about yourself.” —Maya Angelou
7. “Low self-esteem is like driving through life with the handbrake on.” —Maxwell Maltz
 
8. “Your sense of self-worth comes from you alone – never the opinion of others.” —Robert Greene
 
9. “Self-esteem isn’t everything; it’s just that there’s nothing without it.” —Gloria Steinem
10. “If you live off a man’s compliments, you’ll die from his criticism.” —Cornelius Lindsey
 
11. “The worst outcome in the world is not having self-esteem. If you don’t love yourself, who will?” —Naval Ravikant
 
12. “I can do all this through him, who gives me strength.” —Philippians: 4:13, NIV
Affirmations for self-esteem
If you struggle with low-self esteem, repeating self-loving mantras can be a good tool. You can repeat them to yourself when you notice you are feeling insecure or nervous.
Different sayings work for different people, so you may need to experiment with different types of positive self-talk to find what works for you. Take care to only use affirmations you can actually believe in, forcing yourself to repeat affirmations that seem unrealistic can have the opposite effect.
1. “I love myself, imperfections and all.”
 
2. “I might still have a way to go, but I am proud of how far I have already come.”
 
3. “I am enough.”
4. “I am worthy, just as I am right now.”
 
5. “This is an opportunity for me to try something new.”
 
6. “I know I am more capable than I give myself credit for.”
7. “Even though it wasn’t the outcome I hoped for, I learned a lot about myself.”
 
8. “I am capable and strong and I will get through this.”
 
9. “Attempting to do this took courage and I am proud of myself for trying.”
10. “I forgive myself for the mistakes I have made in the past.”
Funny self-esteem quotes
Although low self-esteem can be a difficult issue, even the wise know how important it is to be able to laugh at yourself. You don’t need to be strong all the time. If you need a reminder to laugh at yourself and not take yourself too seriously, these are the perfect quotes for you.
1. “I have a problem with low self-esteem, which is really ridiculous when you consider how amazing I am.” —Unknown
 
2. “Sometimes I pretend to be normal. But it gets boring, so I go back to being me.” —Unknown
 
3. “Too busy working on my own grass to notice if yours is greener.” —Unknown
4. “I have this weird self-esteem issue where I hate myself, yet I still think that I’m better than everyone else.” —Unknown
Common questions
What is low self-esteem?
Low self-esteem is a lack of confidence in one’s worth and ability. Generally, when you have low self-esteem, you have very little belief in yourself and do not feel deserving of good things. Fortunately, low self-esteem is something that can be changed over time.
