Table of Contents

Introduction  1

Part I: The Lowdown on Self-Esteem  5

Chapter 1: The Nature of Self-Esteem  7

Chapter 2: Understanding the Impacts of Low Self-Esteem  19

Chapter 3: Where Does Low Self-Esteem Come From?  29

Chapter 4: Measuring Your Self-Esteem  43

Part II: Expressing a Positive Attitude  53

Chapter 5: Affirming and Visualizing Your Better Self  55

Chapter 6: Nurturing Yourself to Create Happiness  67

Chapter 7: Creating a Healthy Body Image  83

Part III: Changing Your Negative Thoughts and Coming to Grips with Being a Perfectionist  97

Chapter 8: Dealing with Your Negative Self-Talk  99

Chapter 9: Analyzing Perfectionism  115

Chapter 10: Dealing Positively with Perfectionism  127

Part IV: Growing Your Self-Esteem  137

Chapter 11: Increasing Your Confidence through Self-Awareness  139

Chapter 12: Moving Beyond the Fear That’s Zapping Your Faith  159

Chapter 13: Creating and Reaching Your Goals  171

Part V: Dissolving Internal Barriers to Success in Love and Work  183

Chapter 14: Examining Your Role in Creating Conflicts in Your Relationships  185

Chapter 15: Rewriting Your Love Story  201

Chapter 16: Getting Beyond Loving Love  215

Chapter 17: Improving Personal Relationships  229

Chapter 18: Re-Creating Your Image for Professional Success  243

Chapter 19: Managing Your Relationships at Work  263

Chapter 20: Presenting with Confidence  279

Part VI: Nurturing Self-Esteem in Others  293

Chapter 21: Helping Family and Friends  295

Chapter 22: Helping Children and Teens Achieve Healthy Self-Esteem  309

Part VII: The Part of Tens  323

Chapter 23: Ten Famous People Who Raised Their Self-Esteem  325

Chapter 24: Ten Approaches to Pursuing Excellence  337

Chapter 25: Ten Tips for Quickly Improving Your Self-Esteem  347

Index  355

About the Author

S. Renee Smith is a renowned self-esteem and brandingexpert, speaker, author, and resource to the media. Her expertisein personal and professional development and ability to inspireothers to make positive, permanent changes has made her asought-after consultant and speaker to Fortune 500 corporations,universities, government and nonprofit agencies, and churches.Vivian Harte has taught assertiveness skills online to over10,000 students worldwide. She has 14 years of experience teachingin the classroom at Pima Community College and the University ofPhoenix. She also hosted her own radio and television shows formany years in Colorado Springs, Minneapolis, and Tucson.