15 Negative Self-Talk You Shouldn’t Say About Yourself

What negative self-talk do you tell yourself? Are you aware that the negative things you say about yourself can be really damaging? If you are not careful, they will make you feel like nothing is ever going to work out for you or that your life isn’t worth living. Research shows that negative self-talk contributes largely to feelings of depression. It’s important to stop negative thoughts in their tracks before they get the best of us and affect our lives negatively.

If you want to change the way you think about yourself and your life, then here is a list of negative things you shouldn’t say about yourself.

“I am not worth anything.”

When you believe that you are worthless, it’s hard to shake that self-defeating belief about yourself. If you don’t think that you are worth anything in life, then why should anyone else? The harmful self-talk in this statement may even contribute to self-destructive behaviours and self-esteem issues.

Read: How to Turn Negative Self-talk into Positive Self-talk

It’s easy to fall into self-defeating self-talk like this when you are feeling discouraged. When you say something like “I’ll never be good enough for that job promotion” or “I’ll never be good enough for my friends to like me” it may sound self-defeating, but you’re doing yourself a disservice by believing it.

“I am just an idiot, and you’ll always be one.”

You may feel self-defeated when you think about yourself in this way, but it’s actually self-destructive and makes it more difficult for you to move past these self-defeating thoughts.

You can’t even get your own life together – how are you going to take care of anyone else?

This self-defeating self-talk statement makes you feel overwhelmed and inadequate. It’s easy to think that you can’t do anything right or that you don’t have what it takes to accomplish things in life. If you are always thinking this way, then you will never be motivated to do anything.

“I’m not good enough.”

Sure, self-doubt is a part of life and we all wonder if we’re doing the right thing sometimes. But constantly telling yourself that you’re never going to be good enough can make it seem like there isn’t any point in trying to accomplish anything. This doesn’t help your self-esteem at all!

Read: Top 35 Inspiring Doubt Quotes To Believe In Yourself

“I can’t do anything right.”

No one is perfect, and no one is going to be good at everything. The sooner that you realize this, the better off you’ll be. You’re going to mess up from time to time – it’s a part of life. The only thing that matters is how you handle these mistakes and learn from them so you can improve.

If you keep telling yourself that you can’t do anything right, then of course nothing is going to end up working out! You need to stop putting yourself down for every little mistake that you make.

“No one likes me.”

Believe it or not, there are going to be people out there who will like you. You’re going to have friends and family members who will love you for exactly who you are! Now, that doesn’t mean that everyone is going to love you but constantly telling yourself that no one likes you is just self-defeating.

How many times have you been proven wrong by someone who does like you? The more that you tell yourself no one likes you, the harder it’s going to be to make and keep friends.

“I don’t deserve anything.”

Sure, we’re all going to have those days when we just feel down on ourselves and self-pity gets the best of us. But think about all the positive things that you have in your life. Life is kind of like a game of Jenga, and when one thing goes wrong it’s not going to be easy to keep everything else up in the air.

Believe it or not, you deserve a lot more than you think! Maybe you don’t have everything that you want right now, but self-doubt will only make this worse.

Read: 35 Inspirational Quotes On Doubt

“I’m a failure.”

Don’t call yourself a failure. Failure is nothing more than a lesson that needs to be learned. Just because you aren’t perfect doesn’t mean that you’re a failure! Everyone has what they are good at and not so good at; self-esteem is all about learning to accept yourself for who you are, flaws and all.

If you’re constantly telling yourself that you’re a failure, self-esteem will not be a priority on your list.

“I’ll never be able to do it.”

Do you constantly tell yourself that you can’t do something? Then self-esteem is not going to be your priority. If self-doubt starts creeping in, self-esteem will go out the window right after!

Remember, self-esteem is about learning to accept yourself for who you are, flaws and all! You can do it if you just keep telling yourself that you will.

“I don’t even deserve to live.”

Give yourself a break! No one is perfect, and self-esteem is not about being perfect. There’s more to life than self-doubt, self-pity, and self-defeat.

If self-doubt is the only voice in your head, self-esteem isn’t going to be a priority on your list. Don’t want it anymore? Great! You can always get rid of self-esteem with self-doubt.

“I’m not pretty/handsome enough.”

All humans are beautiful. There’s no way anyone can convince you otherwise, self-esteem or not! You have what it takes to love yourself for the person that you are.

So if self-doubt is getting into your head, self-esteem will be last on your list – literally.

That’s right, self-esteem is about learning to accept yourself for who you are, flaws and all!

“I hate myself.”

Hate is a strong word. It’s so much stronger than self-doubt, self-pity, self-defeat, or self-pity. To be able to have self-esteem you have to love yourself for the person that you are. If self-doubt starts creeping in, self-confidence goes out the window right after self-esteem.

If self-doubt is the only voice in your head, self-confidence isn’t going to be a priority on your list. Don’t want it anymore? Great! You can always get rid of self-doubt with self-confidence.

“Life just hates me.”

Life might not hate you, but self-doubt definitely does! If self-doubt starts getting into your head, self-esteem won’t be a priority on your list.

If self-doubt is the only voice in your head self-esteem isn’t going to be a priority on your list. Don’t want it anymore? Great! You can always get rid of self-esteem with self-doubt.

“I’ll never be good enough.”

All humans are good enough. There’s no way anyone can convince you otherwise, self-esteem or not! You have what it takes to love yourself for the person that you are.

So if self-doubt is getting into your head, self-esteem won’t be a priority on your list – literally.

That’s right, self-esteem is about learning to accept yourself for who you are, flaws and all!

Moment of Truth

These self-defeating self-talk statements are just a few examples of the negative things you shouldn’t say to or about yourself. If you want to stop self-defeating self-talk and start believing in your abilities, then here are a few self-esteem boosters to get you started:

Stop thinking about the negative things that have happened in your life. Instead, think about what you have learned from these experiences to become a better, stronger person.

Have self-confidence in yourself. Make a list of your strengths and qualities and keep it with you to remind yourself of the things that make you a good person.

Don’t let self-defeatist thoughts take over your mind. Instead, tell yourself positive self-affirmations when self-defeating self-talk creeps in.

When you start to say self-defeating self-talk statements to yourself, try these self-esteem boosters so you can start feeling better about yourself. If you are interested in self-defeating self-talk self-esteem, then you are definitely not alone. It’s easy to start thinking self-defeated self-talk statements, but self-esteem is an important part of your self and self-worth.

Find ways to boost self-esteem and self-confidence in yourself and you will be well on your way to self-esteem self-talk.