Productive achievement is a consequence and an expression of health and self-esteem, not its cause.
Nathaniel BrandenSuffering is just about the easiest of all human activities; being happy is just about the hardest. And happiness requires, not surrender to guilt, but emancipation from guilt.
Nathaniel BrandenThe reputation you have with yourself - your self-esteem - is the single most important factor for a fulfilling life.
Nathaniel BrandenWe tend to feel most comfortable, "most at home", with people whose self esteem level resembles our own.
Nathaniel BrandenThe more you surrender to the fear of someone's disapproval, the more you lose face in your own eyes, and the more desperate you become for someone's approval. Within you is a void that should have been filled by self-esteem. When you attempt to fill it with the approval of others instead, the void grows deeper and the hunger for acceptance and approval grows stronger. The only solution is to summon the courage to honor your own judgment, frightening though that may be in the beginning.
Nathaniel Branden