My Declaration of Self Esteem

I am me.

I am unique. There's not another human being in the whole world like me -- I have my very own fingerprints and I have my very own thoughts. I was not stamped out of a mold like a Coca-Cola top to be the duplicate of another.

I own all of me -- my body, and I can do with it what I choose; my mind, and all of its thoughts and ideas; my feelings, whether joyful or painful.

I own my ideals, my dreams, my hopes, my fantasies, my fears.

I reserve the right to think and feel differently from others and will grant to others their right to thoughts and feelings not identical with my own.

I own all my triumphs and successes. I own also all my failures and mistakes. I am the cause of what I do and am responsible for my own behavior. I will permit myself to be imperfect. When I make mistakes or fail, I will know that I am not the failure -- I am still O.K. -- and I will discard some parts of me that were unfitting and will try new ways.

I will laugh freely and loudly at myself -- a healthy self-affirmation.

I will have fun living inside my skin.

I will remember that the door to everybody's life needs this sigh:

Honor Thyself
I have value and worth.
I am me, and I am O.K.

(Adapted from Self Esteem by Virginia Satir)