SELF-ESTEEM-The Begining of Self Improvement

How do you stay calm, composed and maintain self-esteem in a tough environment? Here are some tips you may want to consider as a starter guide to self improvement.
Imagine yourself as a Dart Board. Everything and everyone else around you are the dart at one point or another. These darts will destroy your self-esteem and pull you down in ways you won’t even remember. Don’t let them destroy you or get the best of you. So which darts should you avoid?

Dart Pin #1 : Negative Work Environment
Avoid the “dog eat dog” environment where everyone else is fighting just to get ahead. This is where non-appreciative people usually thrive. No one will appreciate your contributions even if you miss lunch and dinner, and stay up late. Most of the time you work too much without getting help or the appropriate credit. Stay away from this, it will ruin your self-esteem. Competition is at stake anywhere. Competition is healthy. But, don’t set yourself up for failure and undue stress by contributing to unhealthy competition.

Dart Pin #2: Other People’s Behavior
Bulldozers, brown-nosers, gossip mongers, whiners, back stabbers, snipers, controller freaks, naggers, complainers, exploders, patronizers, sluffers… all these kinds of people will pose bad vibes for your self-esteem, as well as to your self improvement scheme.

Dart Pin #3: Changing Environment
Change challenges our paradigms. It tests our flexibility, adaptability and alters the way we think. Change will make life difficult for awhile, it may cause stress but it will force us to find ways to improve ourselves. Change is forever, and we must adapt to it.

Dart Pin #4: Past Experience
It’s okay to cry and say “ouch!” when we experience pain. But don’t let pain transform itself into fear. It might grab you by the tail and swing you around. Treat each failure and mistake as a lesson. Pack that baggage and use move to a different and better place.

Dart Pin #5: Negative World View
Look at where you’re looking. Don’t wrap yourself up with all the negativities of the world. In building self-esteem, we must learn how to make the best out of worst situations.

Dart Pin #6: Determination Theory
Your psychology and behavioral traits are said to be a mixed of your inherited traits, your upbringing, and your environment e.g. your spouse, the company, the economy or your circle of friends. You have your own identity. If your father is a failure, it doesn’t mean you have to be a failure too. Learn from other people’s experience, so you’ll never have to encounter the same mistakes.

Sometimes, you may wonder if some people are born leaders or positive thinkers. Being positive, and staying positive is a choice. Building self-esteem and drawing lines for self improvement is a choice. God wouldn’t come down from heaven and tell you, “You may now have the permission to build self-esteem and improve your self.”

In life, its hard to stay tough specially when things and people around you keep pulling you down. When we get to the battle field, we should choose the right weapons to bring and armor to use. Life’s choices give us an array of options. Along the battle, we will get hit and bruised. And wearing armor ideally means ‘change.’ The kind of change that comes from within. Armor or self change means changing 3 things: our attitude, our behavior and our way of thinking.

Building self-esteem will eventually lead to self improvement if we start to become responsible for who we are, what we have, and what we do. Its a flame that gradually spreads like a brush fire from inside and out. When we develop self-esteem, we take control of our mission, values and discipline. Self-esteem brings about self improvement, true assessment, and determination. So how do you start building the blocks of self-esteem? Be positive. Be contented and happy. Be appreciative. Never miss an opportunity to compliment another or yourself. A positive way of living will help you build self-esteem.

Inspiration-Can Woody Allen Help?

Life poses so many challenges that sometimes we must seek the help and inspiration of others. Sometimes we need to just walk it off. What's really interesting is that how do people go through the usual part of life when faced with vein-popping stress? Zen or yoga is one of the good things and it actually works. Is there room for the intellectual side of people who can actually smell the roses-in-a-can while on the move? It kind of had me thinking that there really must be something in this 'mind-over-matter' thing.
Other times humor is indeed the best medicine there is whenever you are. I mean anyone can pay good money to listen to a comedian just to make you wet your pants after laughing so hard. Despite of what's been happening, and to those who has gone though the ordeal, it's better to just laugh while facing the troubles with a clear mind than anger with a clouded vision. You can talk just about anything with a man, and he's bound to mock the subject and you'll end up laughing rather than being upset about it. Then there is Woody Allen.
Woody Allen has this to say:
1. "Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons." It sounds good to me, I mean the practicality of all things does involve money but it doesn't have to take an arm and a leg to get it. 2. "I believe there is something out there watching us. Unfortunately, it's the government." 'Nuff said.
3. "There are worse things in life than death. Have you ever spent an evening with an insurance salesman?" This happens to be one of the classic ones. I mean the issue about life's little problems isn't all that bad, until 'he' shows up.
Sure, relationships can get complicated, or does have its complications that probably any author about relationships is bound to discover it soon. We follow what our heart desires, unless you're talking about the heart as in the heart that pump blood throughout your body.
4. "Love is the answer, but while you're waiting for the answer, sex raises some pretty interesting questions." And if you want more, just keep on asking!
5. "A fast word about oral contraception. I asked a girl to go to bed with me, she said 'no'." It sounds, 'practical', I think.
And when it comes to everyday life, he really knows how to make the best out of every possible scenario, and it doesn't involve a lawsuit if he strikes a nerve.
6. "Basically my wife was immature. I'd be at home in the bath and she'd come in and sink my boats." I never had a boat in my bathtub before. Just staring at it while soaking in hot water makes me seasick already.
7. "I am not afraid of death, I just don't want to be there when it happens." If it rains, it pours.
8. "I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose." It could get worse when you're guzzling on beer… or mouthwash, and it happened to me once!
9. "If you want to make God laugh, tell him about your plans." At least he doesn't smite us with lightning, and I'm thankful for that.
And despite of what may happen to all of us in the next ten, twenty, or even thirty years, I guess we all have to see things in a different kind of light and not just perspective. I can't seem to imagine life without any piece of wisdom that could guide us. Whether we're religious or not, it takes more courage to accept your fears and learn how to deal with them is all that matters when it comes to even just getting along.
And to sum things up, here is the last nugget of wisdom to go by… however, whenever, and wherever we may be.
10. "The talent for being happy is appreciating and liking what you have, instead of what you don't have."