13 Self Worth Quotes to Help Build Your Confidence & Self Esteem

Fostering healthy self love is an important goal that everyone should strive for. Having a good self image influences all aspects of life, including our mental health and even our social and economic success. When you establish true self esteem, you become your best self, which is the greatest accomplishment of all.

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That said, finding self love can be challenging. Sometimes we need a reminder to regain self esteem. Whether you suffer from chronic low self esteem or just want to harness more confidence, the following self esteem quotes can inspire you. 

Read on for a selection of the best self esteem quotes and the way they can inspire you to love yourself better. 

"The better you feel about yourself, the less you feel the need to show off." - Robert Hand

One of the most beloved confidence quotes is this one attributed to Robert Hand. These words show that healthy self love means that a person can love oneself without needing to make a scene about it. True self esteem is quiet and subtle. It’s a humble but reasonable confidence. 

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

Roosevelt’s words are often quoted for a reason: Her sentiment about self confidence presents low esteem as one’s own weakness. Instead of falling into self pity, this quote implores people to prioritize one's dignity, one’s own life and one’s own beliefs.

It’s a reminder that you hold the power when it comes to feeling lesser than in someone else’s eyes. In order to not feel inferior, you must continue to build self respect. 

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

One of the most cited self-esteem quotes are the words by Michel de Montaigne. They highlight the personal satisfaction of being at peace with oneself.

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When you’ve finally figured out how to love yourself, you can enjoy a sense of calm and dignity like no other. 

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

Furstenberg, as a curator of true beauty within the fashion industry, knows a great deal about having the right mental attitude to accept oneself completely.

Her words remind us that we should strive to be good company for ourselves. By finding self worth we can truly enjoy living our own skin. 

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

This self esteem quote is also about motivation: In order to really believe in yourself you need to purge the limiting thoughts that hold you back.

Once you conquer fear and doubt, you can truly do anything you put your mind to. For some, this is a hard task but as you build confidence it becomes easier to discard thoughts that don’t serve you. 

“Confidence comes not from always being right but from not fearing to be wrong.” - Peter T. McIntyre

One's definition of self esteem differs from the next person’s. However, most of us can agree that being willing to make mistakes and take chances is a key component of having confidence.

When you have healthy self esteem you’re not hyper focused on what might happen if you fail—you’re more focused on all of the amazing possibilities that can happen in your life instead. 

“Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude.” - Thomas Jefferson

This self esteem quote from one of our founding fathers explains that with reasonable confidence anything is possible.

But when you don’t have the right mindset for achieving your goals—maybe you’re focused on your own weaknesses or negativity—you will never make headway. You must find your self worth or you will never achieve what you wish to. 

“You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.” – Buddha

The Buddha was known for his many inspirational self esteem quotes, including many self love quotes, that are often cited today. While it’s only natural to lose confidence from time to time, doing so for a prolonged period of time will only bring the worst loneliness.

If you can’t love yourself, you won’t feel at peace. Buddha reminds us with this quote that we are all deserving of our own devotion. 

"Love yourself first and everything else falls into line. You really have to love yourself to get anything done in this world." - Lucille Ball

As an actress and businesswoman, Ball broke down all the barriers in the entertainment industry. Her achievements provide overwhelming evidence of just how true this quote of hers on confidence and self esteem really is.

When you believe, you can achieve. If you can harness a deep self love, anything you want is possible because you know in your soul that it can happen. This knowing influences your actions, allowing you to chase down your dreams. 

“I prefer to be true to myself, even at the hazard of incurring the ridicule of others, rather than to be false, and to incur my own abhorrence.” - Frederick Douglass

When you live a life of true integrity and meaning, like Douglass did, having high self esteem follows. Doing the right thing, even when it’s hard, allows you to maintain your honor and keeps you from falling into self-loathing.

When you act in a way that’s in line with your values, you can establish more confidence and self worth because you truly love and believe in the person you are. 

"The deepest principle in human nature is the craving to be appreciated." - William James

While James doesn't outright say so in his self esteem quote, it can be argued that the craving to be appreciated by oneself is indeed the most important principle of all.

When you can appreciate yourself for who you are, flaws and all, you move into a new level of confidence and assurance that’s hard to shake, even in times of adversity. 

“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

According to Carnegie, active people are successful people. As with other quotes to boost confidence, this one is all about facing hard things and doing them anyway. Each time you stand up to your fears, doubts or weaknesses you build one more notch of self esteem.

Collectively, these experiences add up to true confidence and a belief that you can get through whatever life sends your way. 

“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” - Henry Stanley Haskins

This quote is all about harnessing your own powers, remembering that your life circumstances are not as important as the you that experiences your life.

Haskins would likely agree that performing self esteem and self care is not a selfish act but rather a necessary act to nourish what lies within—your consciousness or soul—so that you can be your best self.

It’s a powerful message to remind you that your internal life is far richer and more meaningful than anything happening on the outside. 

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