Over the years, we have all been guilty of viewing ourselves as being less valuable than we are. I have heard a countless number of my friends admit to it and be guilty of it too. In fact, I myself have also been guilty of it and it is a hard monster to change. Many people are blind to their own beauty, intelligence, talents and so on. This is because they have yet to learn how to love themselves. But how do you just love yourself?

Well, when your self-esteem is low, loving yourself is completely foreign to you. You see yourself as unworthy, and feel as if there is nothing about yourself to love. In fact, there seems to be far more reasons to dislike yourself than to love yourself. Actually, the worse you feel about yourself, the less energy and motivation you have to do what it takes to build your self-esteem back up. Your self-esteem continues to plummet as your brain locks on negative thinking. Self-esteem improves by changing both your thoughts and your behaviors. You must practice new thoughts and new behaviors until you begin to change your own feelings about yourself. And you must continue practicing them to maintain a healthy love for yourself and I'm here to help you over come your low self-esteem just as I did.

1. Exercise.

Exercising makes you feel healthy physically, mentally and emotionally. It doesn't matter how intense of a work out you're putting in, as long as you're moving and getting out there.

2. Volunteer.

When you have a chance to help others, there is a sense of uplifting brought on you. Helping others out in a time of need makes you feel better about yourself as a whole.

3. Take care of a pet.

This one truly works. A dog is a man's best friend, and it shows when you struggle with self-esteem. A pet may only be in a portion of your life, but for them it is all of their life. Pets show us unconditional love and fulfill our goals of being shown love and affection.

4. Hang out with friends.

Our true friends are going to be there for us no matter what. And they are going to love us for us without any judgement. Don't be afraid to be the initiator — it is okay to text them first and set something up.

5. Read something inspirational.

This is an especially helpful tip. (Even if it is just temporary and you forget it in a few days.) For the time being, it helps give you hope, it inspires you, and it will make you feel positive. It could be a book, a blog, a website, a magazine — anything that piques your interest.

6. Teach someone something.

You have skills, abilities and talents to share with others. Teach someone who is interested in learning something new. There are more people out there interested than what you think.

7. Increase your standards.

Demand more of yourself in certain areas of your life. Challenge yourself to do a little bit better, go a little bit farther, set the bar a little bit higher. Do these things and you will feel proud of who you are.

8. Ask for forgiveness.

This is more important than you may think right away. If you have wronged someone, apologize. Don't live with that shame and guilt. Do right.

9. Slow down and simplify.

This one helped me in many ways. An over-scheduled and complicated life will lead you to stress out and be overwhelmed. You have no time to make positive changes in your life that help build self-esteem if you are overly busy. Begin to clear things off your to-do list and simplify all areas of your life. Basically, stop and smell the roses.

10. Detach yourself from the opinions of others.

When you worry about what others think of you, you never feel free to be completely yourself. Begin making choices and decisions based on what you want and what will be best for you, not what you others want for you.

11. Embrace failure.

I saw a quote from Thomas Edison one time that said "I have not failed. I have just found 10,000 ways that did not work." Allow this to be your way of thinking. Failure is evidence of effort and you almost always learn something.

Boosting your self-esteem takes time, practice, and commitment, it doesn't just happen overnight. You must value the importance of feeling good about yourself, having self-worth, and being comfortable with who you are. The alternative is staying stuck in depression, unhappiness and having negative thoughts. Begin to practice self-esteem thoughts and behaviors, start acting as though you believe in yourself and love who you are even if your feelings haven’t caught up yet. Give yourself reasons to feel proud, accomplished and worthwhile. Most importantly, learn to love yourself!