On what do you base your self-worth?

Question

Please, please, please answer this question with as much detail as you can muster. I am writing a paper on self-worth, so I need your honest answers...thanks for your imput!

Answer 1

What I know. Basically a person is worth the knowledge he has on himself. I can give an exmaple of people like Bill Gates he is one of the richest and well known in the world of computers just because of his knowledge. Isaac Newton, we are still readin about him because of what he knew.

Answer 2

I could answer this question beautifully and filled with wonderful things about where I get my self worth.........

But honestly,

I have always based my self-worth on how much whatever boyfriend or man in my life seems to love me.

It is sad but true.

This question has made me face something that is so scary. See I've recently gotten my life "together" if you can call it that, and after spending the past 10 years in different dysfunctional relationships, I came to realize that I could not depend on a man to make me happy, and that I should only be with someone who treats me with the utmost respect and care. Now I have that person, he is a wonderful man, but I am realizing that even with him, I constantly let my moods be determined on how much he seems to love and want me. It is not a comfortable way to live, and I don't want to do it anymore. I don't know how to change.

Answer 3

My self worth is based on the fact that I exist. If I was not worthy then God or Satan or someone or other would have found a way to get rid of me, or I would never have been born, I would have had an accident of some kind. As long as I'm around I am just as worthy as any other person on the planet.

Answer 4

I base my self worth on how much I am able to give back to society which spawned me. To be a giver and not a taker is the key. Self worth has nothing to do with net worth.

Answer 5

Thank you for your question. It's insightful and deep. I hope you get a lot of good answers for your paper.

At the heart of everything, I base my self-worth on both my intellect and my capacity for compassion. Everything else is ego, but these two things are the basis for love, and only love is real. I have a razor-sharp mind, am very discerning, but always I try to be compassionate.

As a teacher, I feel like I'm where I need to be, doing what I need to be doing with people who need me as much as I need them. I get to impart the best thing about myself, my knowledge, perhaps some wisdom, about my subject matter every day. I get to answer questions from students not only about the subject matter, but because they are middle schoolers, about everything.

Once they know me and trust me and see that I'm on their side, every year I get a lot of questions about what's right and wrong. I like being looked up to to help guide them. I try not to give them answers, but to ask questions too, so that we establish a dialogue, and they're able to come to their own conclusions. And even if we don't always have time to talk, I always make time to listen.

Part of that compassion I have extends way beyond my job. With my students (and with colleagues) I always try to be fair, firm, and consistent. But over the years, I've found that this is a pretty good way to deal with everyone, so I try to be fair, firm and consistent with myself first of all, then with students, and with anyone else I come into contact with in my life. Being fair, firm and consistent is deeply compatible with compassion. I maintain my own personal boundaries, but extend respect and courtesy to others. And when I fail, I forgive myself, look at what I did, think how I could do better next time, make apologies/amends as needed, and go on with life.

I base some of my self-worth on other characteristics that aren't as important as a discerning mind and a compassionate heart. I'm Scots-Irish by ancestry, so I take pride in my frugal, literate, musical, crazy, hot-blooded yet standoffish ancestors. I'm a left-hander, a child-free woman, an artist, photographer, investor, scrapbooker, music aficionado, cat lover, bibliomaniac, etc. All those labels help define me and put me in company with others like me.

Another way I self-define is politically. I am feminist, liberal, a Democrat, a socialist. I believe in helping those in need so they can stand on their own feet and help themselves. I believe that the Republic will take care of itself, but not all the people can. I believe in education as the main way for people to improve their lives and rise in social stature. I believe everyone deserves to be wanted, loved, fed, educated, clothed and sheltered. I believe that health should be shared by all, not just the wealthy. I believe that women deserve sovereignty and autonomy over their bodies. I believe in Hellenism over Hebraism, as defined by Thomas Carlyle.

Metacognitively, I put a lot of stock in personal virtue and in individualism, proving my Western roots and my 20th and 21st century, American point of view. I know that a lot of my self-worth and self-definition are based on 18th century Enlightenmen thinking as well as the social progressivism of the 19th century, a la John Ruskin, of whom I'm a major fan. I was raised by people who have a strong Protestant work ethic, and I share that, too. I also realize that not all of my personality is self-determined, but that I share lots of characteristics with my family and my original culture and geographic region where I grew up, which is north Louisiana.

I hope this helps. Cheers, K (38 years old, originally from Louisiana, living in Los Angeles for eight years, teacher but former journalist, Caucasian, married, childfree, raised Southern Baptist but left it at age 15 due to lots of questions and very few answers)

Answer 6

based on my capablilities mental and physical and past achievements both good and bad