Improving Self-Esteem and Confidence with Journaling

The reason we encourage kids and teens to write in a journal, among the many other 
benefits, is because it can help a lot with their confidence and self-esteem. You are 
probably aware of how fragile this can be in your youth, and want to help your kids grow 
up feeling confident as much as possible. Journaling is a wonderful way to do that.


Explore Kids’ and Teens’ Issues with Self-Esteem

The thing with low self-esteem is that most people don’t recognize right away, especially 
adolescents. Your kids might not even realize they are struggling with self-confidence. 
This is what journaling is going to open up for them.

Just through the act of writing with open and honesty, both kids and teenagers often 
discover patterns of negative self-talk. This can give them a little insight into their own 
self-esteem issues, and work to overcome it also with the help of the journal.


Work on Building Confidence Slowly

With confidence, it is not something you don’t have one day, and just shows up the next 
day. It happens slowly, over time, and with a lot of work. Luckily, there are journal 
prompts that can help tremendously. 

Journal prompts for confidence often vary between determining a person’s confidence 
and self-esteem level, and trying to figure out where their mindset is. Here are a few 
examples:

1. How confident do you feel when you walk in a room?
2. Do you feel brave enough to talk to someone you don’t know?
3. How do you feel about yourself?
4. What are your favorite qualities about yourself?
5. What would you improve about your appearance if you could?


Using Positive Wording in the Journal

Being positive when writing in a journal can help a lot, especially when writing about 
ones’ self. This is a technique that does take a little practice, but you can give your kids 
or teens prompts that require them to do this. For example, have them write down 
something they don’t love about themselves, but frame it in a positive way. 

If your teenager wishes they were better at math, they can either write down a list of 
other subjects they are really good at, or write down how can improve their math skills.


Daily Affirmations for Lifting Them Up

Try introducing the use of affirmations with your kids and teens, giving them a positive 
statement that makes them feel good about themselves.  Affirmations like:

I am bold, strong, and beautiful.
I can achieve anything.
I am worthy of love. 

Have them choose a daily affirmation, and write it down in their journal.

