Self-Esteem Self-Assessment: How Do You Really See Yourself?

Self-esteem is one of the foundational stones of our emotional and mental well-being. As psychologist Nathaniel Branden said, “Self-esteem is the reputation we acquire with ourselves.” It constitutes the core of how we measure ourselves in relation to our characteristics, abilities, and morals. Healthy self-esteem is linked with higher achievements, fulfilling relationships, and life satisfaction. Of course, lower or highly inflated levels of self-esteem can lead to challenges. This self-assessment, based on the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), will help you understand your current levels of self-esteem. Read further to explore more tools for self-reflection.

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What This Self‑Assessment Covers

The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES) is a widely used self-assessment tool designed to measure overall self-worth and self-acceptance.
This questionnaire explores:

1. Self-worth: The degree to which you feel you are a person of value.
2. Self-respect: How much you appreciate and accept yourself as you are.
3. Confidence: Belief in your abilities and capacity to handle challenges.
4. Self-criticism: The tendency to focus on flaws or perceived failures.
5. Resilience of self-esteem: How stable your self-view remains under pressure.

The RSES is a simple, effective way to reflect on your self-image and take steps toward building a healthier relationship with yourself.

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Who this Self‑Assessment is for.

This self-assessment is for anyone questioning their self-worth or struggling with confidence.

1. You often criticize yourself or feel like you're not good enough
2. You struggle to accept compliments or believe in your abilities
3. You avoid opportunities out of fear of failure or rejection
4. You compare yourself harshly to others
5. You want to build a healthier, more compassionate relationship with yourself

Self Esteem Scale Self Assessment Test

How to Use This Self‑Assessment

To get the most from this self‑assessment:

1. Set aside a few minutes in a quiet, private space
2. Reflect or journal as you respond
3. Bring your insights to therapy or support groups
4. Revisit the self‑assessment periodically, especially as you heal

Each response is just for you. The point of this self‑assessment is just to understand your current situation and emotional gaps.

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Exploring Your Self-Esteem - Looking Inward

Self-esteem is both intrapersonal and relational, meaning it builds on how you view yourself in your own internal world as well as how you measure yourself in relation to other things and people. We will explore how you can use both these perspectives to assess your levels of self-esteem.

Your intrapersonal self-esteem refers to your internal sense of worth, separate from your external relationships. For exploring this, look inward:

  1. What is your self-talk like? Is it critical or encouraging, dismissive or validating, blaming or supportive? What does it say when you make small mistakes or when you’re struggling with something?
  2. How capable do you think you are? Your self-efficacy is your confidence in your own capabilities, talents, and skills to navigate different situations. Do you trust yourself to effectively navigate life’s common challenges?
  3. Where does your self-worth come from? Do you tie your self-worth to your achievements and failures, or is it more inherent? Authentic self-worth comes from within - “I“ am worthy irrespective of my current circumstances, relationships, and accomplishments.”
  4. Are you able to feel proud of yourself? Self-pride does not mean arrogance, but rather a recognition of your own capabilities and growth. Do you feel good about how you handle most situations?

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Exploring Your Self-Esteem - Looking Outward

A lot of our self-esteem is derived from our interactions with other people and life situations. Moreover, this relationship is bidirectional, meaning our interactions and experiences shape our self-esteem, while our existing self-esteem also affects how we navigate relationships, handle criticism, and pursue achievements. To explore your relational self-esteem, look outward:

  1. You, in comparison with others - how do you feel when you compare yourself with others? Do you feel confident in your capabilities when competing against others? Do you still feel grounded when someone else seems more capable or confident?
  2. You in your relationships - how do you perceive yourself in your relationships? Do you think you are a good friend, spouse, daughter, etc.? Do you feel the need to change to feel accepted?
  3. You in groups - do you feel comfortable being yourself in group settings? Do you feel confident to speak your mind, or do you feel the need to polish certain parts to blend in?
  4. Conflicts and criticism - Social acceptance is paramount to our well-being. However, it needs to be balanced with authenticity. How do you react when someone criticizes you? Do you feel threatened in the face of conflict? A stable sense of self-esteem allows us to make adjustments while still upholding our sense of worth.

Self-esteem isn’t fixed - it’s a dynamic reflection of how we experience ourselves and the world around us. Taking the time to observe your internal dialogue and social patterns can offer deep insight into where your self-worth stands today.

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Workshops

Learn tools to rebuild your self-image, set boundaries, and begin speaking to yourself with more compassion.

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Therapist-Led Support Groups

Join a related therapist-led group to practice self-worth, learn from others, and challenge negative inner narratives.

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1-on-1 Talk Therapy

Work with a therapist to understand the roots of self-doubt and build a more grounded, confident sense of self.

Explore

Unsure of your next steps?

Book an Exploratory Call with one of our therapists to gain initial insights, practical solutions, and personalized guidance on the best options for your needs.

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FAQs

Unfortunately, today’s social media is based on fueling comparison in order to promote brands, products, services, etc. This makes it harder to have a stable sense of self-worth. Still, it’s worth exploring how often this feeling of “being left behind” comes up. Are there any specific triggers? E.g. Is it witnessing people’s professional achievements, or appearance, or their social groups? Do you think it’s consistent with how you feel in real life as well? This reflection might help uncover the areas where your self-worth may be conditional on external comparison.

Some mild fluctuations in self-talk are completely normal. When we are having an especially bad day, for example, we might pass a self-judgment or two. However, if you notice your self-talk completely shifting on the basis of what’s currently happening in your life or how others treat you, this might be an indication of unstable or contextual self-esteem. You can use journaling to track what situations and people prompt these internal shifts and then explore deeply to adopt healthier core beliefs.

Regular journaling and mood logs are effective tools to track your dynamic self-esteem. Thought-emotion-belief mapping can be used to track how you think and feel after a particular event and what deeper belief is activated. Other tools like the Johari Window, the Self-esteem Audit Wheel, and the Core Belief Iceberg Exercise can help you uncover deeper self-perceptions and beliefs.

Yes. Self-esteem is just one part of emotional well-being. Some people may have stable self-esteem but still struggle with anxiety, perfectionism, or emotional reactivity. Self-esteem refers to how you feel about yourself as a person, while anxiety and insecurity can be about specific situations, fears, or external judgments. Although having high self-esteem is helpful, it doesn’t always prevent negative emotions or insecurities. Self-reflection can help you discern which of these negative emotions are linked to your self-worth and which are situation-specific.

Healthy self-esteem is grounded in authenticity and objectivity. It means that you’re aware of most of your strengths and weaknesses and try your best to accept them. While an inflated self-esteem might come from exaggerating your strengths and turning a blind eye towards your shortcomings. If you’re concerned that your self-esteem is inflated, you can first rate yourself on particular traits that you’re doubtful about and then undertake tasks and check how you perform. If you overestimated your efficiency, your self-esteem might be inflated in this context.

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