What factors might affect an individual's self-esteem?

An individual's self-esteem can be affected by genetics as well as environmental factors, and poor self-esteem often begins in childhood. A person who experiences an abusive childhood or who didn't get enough approval from authority figures, feels his or her self-worth was based on achievements or feels excluded will often have poor self-esteem.

Other factors that affect self-esteem include:

• Being unemployed
• Having a difficult time making life choices, such as choosing a profession
• Having poor psychological health, such as anxiety or depression
• Comparing oneself to other successful people or media images of people.

The signs of poor self-esteem include:

• Feeling bad about oneself
• Having a negative sense of self-worth
• Avoiding spending time with others
• Engaging in activities that are not good for oneself
• Avoiding trying new things
• Feeling jealous of others
• Feeling devastated if one fails at a particular activity.

The signs of a good self-esteem include:

• Feeling "good enough" despite not excelling at everything
 
• Feeling the right to be recognized and respected
• Feeling able to speak one's mind
• Acceptance that people won't always like each other
• The ability to ask for help if needed
• Feeling comfortable in approaching other people.

Self-esteem is not based on how well a person is doing, but how that person views or experiences him- or herself.