The Importance of Self-Esteem A comfortable self image is a powerful tool to help one deal with life's ups and downs. Helping children feel good about themselves is one of the greatest gifts an adult can give. A child who has positive self-esteem will have an easier time resisting pressures to use alcohol or other drugs. A positive self-image enables a person to be productive and respond to others in healthy ways. Positive, nurturing family relationships are important in fostering self-esteem.
Parents can say negative things without destroying self-esteem.
Negative messages, when delivered clearly and in nondestructive ways, help children learn how to behave. But negative messages must be directed at the child's actions, not at the child personally. Name calling is deflating and hurtful, and can inflict lifelong damage. In Young Children Between the ages of one and three, children learn to think for themselves. This is the time for parents to set limits while al- lowing them to be creative and begin to make their own decisions.