1. Determine Who You Feel Inferior To
Instead of stopping at the realization that you have an inferiority complex, push through and figure out who you feel inferior to in the first place. Be as specific as you can in narrowing this down, and consider not only people you know but also celebrities and even imaginary concepts (e.g. "the perfect wife" or "the amazing renaissance man").
If you find it difficult to figure out who you are comparing yourself to, consider the following list of types of people who most frequently inspire inferiority complex:
Very physically attractive people
Rich people with lavish lifestyles
Smart people with multiple degrees
Those who have impressive, dynamic careers
Funny people who have large social groups
Once you have a better sense of the kinds of people who make you feel inferior, try to pick out specific people in your life who exemplify those traits.
Next, for each of these individuals, find at least one thing that you have and they don't. There will be something!
2. Stop Worrying About What Others Think
Disconnecting from the perceived judgments of others is one of the most important things you can do to destroy an inferiority complex. After all, the bulk of such complexes come from obsessing over what other people think of you. Sometimes this will relate to things people have actually said to you, and at other times it will be all about what you imagine they think.
At the end of the day, only your opinion of yourself matters. Plus, research shows that when we feel good about ourselves, others feel better about ourselves in response.
So, how do you stop worrying about other people's views?
Firstly, focus on what makes you happy. What brings passion, joy, and fulfillment into your life? When you're spending time on this, you'll spend far less energy on worrying about what other people think.
Secondly, try to remember that others are typically too concerned with their own appearances to devote much thought to negatively evaluating you. Similar to the 'it's more afraid of you than you are of it' in regards to phobias, often people are just as worried or insecure as you are.
3. Build Your Self Confidence
When you learn how to feel better about yourself, this increased security will begin to make you feel worthy (rather than inferior).
There are many moving parts to the process of building self-esteem, but we'll canvass a few of the major factors:
Treat yourself better. When you do this, you cement subconscious beliefs that you are valuable and worth taking care of. Are you exercising regularly, eating well, and getting enough sleep? If not, work to build these aspects of self-care into your life.
As mentioned above, you'll also feel better about yourself if you're living an authentic life, doing what you truly love. Ask yourself what's holding you back from that, and make a plan to defeat those obstacles.
Act confident. Project a deeper sense of self-worth, watch how others buy into it, and notice the feedback loop that actually creates more confidence in yourself.
Make a list of ten things you like about yourself, and pin it up where you'll see it every day.
4. Self-Talk
The term "self-talk" refers to how you speak to yourself in your own mind; the words you use, the tone you imagine, and the origins of your inner critic. This internal voice has an enormous impact on how you see yourself and your actions. When it's negative, it feeds an inferiority complex and a sense of self-loathing. And when it's positive, it encourages you to see yourself as worthy and helps you to sustain happiness in the longer term.
What you need to do is locate negative self-talk, eliminate it, and replace it with self-affirming talk.
There are different ways to approach it (some of which form the foundation of cognitive behavioral therapy), but an affirmation-based one is easiest to do at home. Try writing down some of the cruel and undermining things your inner voice says, then write down positive alternatives. Recite those positive affirmations daily, ideally into a mirror.
5. Surround Yourself With Positive People
Finally, it's vital to recognize that your inferiority complex may be linked to the people you spend time around. Perform an inventory of your social circle, think about your interactions with family members, and consider how you get along with colleagues.
If you identify people who actively try to bring you down, who don't reciprocate your caring behaviors or who draw you into unneeded drama, start thinking about how you can distance yourself from these individuals. Consider completely removing toxic people from your life in order to surround yourself with positivity.
To develop better self-esteem and a more positive sense of your identity, find people who build you and support you. Nurture the friendships in which reciprocal listening, kindness, and responsibility are present. And if you feel like your life currently lacks these sorts of positive people, today is the day to go out there and start trying to find them!
