Do you think it would be possible to train another person to think higher of themselves?

I don’t think being a follower necessarily makes someone less important and I don’t see how they would feel that way. Some folks like fitting in their little box and plugging away at life. Are they more or less of a person for being content to stick to their own method of survival? I say live and let live. There are too many chiefs and not enough Indians in this world anyway.

@DWW25921 Thanks for the answer.

Hypothetically, what would you say if the question were changed so that this person had come to you and asked for this?

EDIT: kind of like someone who wants help to stop smoking or something

@poisonedantidote I would say that anyone that is willing to change and is reaching out, is making the right steps to actually change. You can’t change people, they have to want to. With the new tidbit you gave me I can say that maybe if they went to the mall once in a while? Maybe a park? Try to strike up a simple conversation about the weather or a new pair of shoes? Something that way may help.

You can definitely make people feel better about themselves if you want too and know the angles. It’s called gassing them up. Any good confidence man can do it.

I think it’s definitely possible to make a person think more highly of him or herself. The first step is to acknowledge the employee when you see him/her. Smile if you can’t say hello. Second, give sincere compliments. If something is done well, say so. If a color a person is wearing is attractive, say so. If you notice anything to be complimentary about, say so. Best to spread the compliments around so it doesn’t look like you’re favoring one person. Third, have brief individual meetings to see how the job is going from the employee’s point of view. Give any observations you have made about good things and suggestions for improvement with assuring confidence that they will be able to make the improvements. Positive attention should raise anyonne’s sense of self-esteem.

It is possible, if, and only if, they want to learn, and have asked for help.

It is not possible to impose your standards on someone else without their cooperation.

I don’t think that someone else can “train” a person to have better self-worth once they’re over 12 years old, or so. That kind of change has to come from within, but external support and encouragement will certainly be beneficial.

I was trained from early childhood to feel worthless and like something that was not wanted but could perhaps be useful. I was verbally and sexually abused by a family member from my earliest memories, and there was no one giving me messages to counter the negativity and teach me that I was as deserving if live and happiness as anyone else. Therefore, I entered adulthood full of self-loathing. Various therapy techniques and medications were only a little but helpful, but no one could change my mind for me.

I really think so, yes. Relapse is a toughie, though. I would think you have to study and experiment with positivity and learn to identify success. Hard to be confident if you can’t identity positive circumstances.

I don’t think it is possible. I don’t think you can change how a person thinks or feels deep inside.

To add to the above… I have trained myself to think differently and I have discussed that process a lot in my time on Fluther. I literally made a conscious effort to look at the world and circumstances differently and to find positivity and express gratitude. I “acted” the way the person I wanted to become would behave (based on the traits of people whom I admire) until it became a natural action of my own – “Fake it ‘til you make it.” It wasn’t until a year or two later that I heard of cognitive behavioral therapy, which is similar. In those situations, the therapist acts more like a coach, but the person has to really be motivated to make those changes.

I know that it is possible to change one’s own way of thinking because I have done it.