Read Online 50 Psychology Classics by Tom Butler-Bowdon - Free Book Online Page A

state that proceeds from a negation or destruction of one’s values.”
    â€œThe collapse of self-esteem is not reached in a day, a week, or a month: it is the cumulative result of a long succession of defaults, evasions, and irrationalities—a long succession of failures to use one’s mind properly.”
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    In a nutshell
    Self-esteem occurs naturally when we choose to live according to reason and our own principles.
    In a similar vein
Albert Ellis & Robert A. Harper
A Guide to Rational Living
(p 74)
Susan Forward
Emotional Blackmail
(p 94)
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CHAPTER 6
Nathaniel Branden
    This book popularized the concept of self-esteem. Previously most psychologists recognized that how we perceive ourselves is important, affecting our behavior in areas such as work and love, but few had looked into exactly why.
The Psychology of Self-Esteem
attempts to get to the roots of personal estimation—what increases it, and what diminishes it.
    Nathaniel Branden was a disciple and lover of Ayn Rand, a famous Russian-American philosopher and author of the classic novels
Atlas Shrugged
and
The Fountainhead
. As a result, for a work of psychology his book is very philosophical, driven along by Rand’s notions of supreme rationalism and individualism.
    The Psychology of Self-Esteem
takes as its premise that we are rational beings in full control of our destiny. If we accept this truth and take responsibility for it, we naturally see ourselves in a good light. If we fail to take responsibility for our life and actions, that estimation falls into danger.
    Many readers find this book tough going, especially the first half, but it is one of the earliest classics of the popular psychology genre and still has the power to change minds.
Conceptual beings
    Branden devotes many pages to highlighting how humans are different to other animals. His chief point is that while other animals may have consciousness, or at least awareness, only humans require a
conceptual
framework by which to view themselves. Other animals can perceive green-colored objects, but only we have the idea of “green.” Dogs can perceive individual people, but only we have the concept of “humankind.” Only humans can ask questions about the meaning of life. There is nothing automatic about such conceptualizing; thinking, therefore, is for us an act of
choice
.
    Branden refutes the two schools of psychology that were dominant at the time he was writing. Freudian psychoanalysis had humans as an “instinctmanipulated puppet,” while behaviorism saw us as a “stimulus–response machine.” Neither took account of our powerful conceptual mind that gives us self-awareness and the ability to reason. Branden recalls Ayn Rand’s remark: “The function of your stomach, lungs or heart is automatic; thefunction of your mind is not.” We have the power to regulate and shape our own consciousness to achieve our goals.
    We are created to think, and we must do so in order to esteem ourselves highly. If we dim our awareness, or are passive or fearful, step by step we kill our greatest gift. The result is that we hate ourselves. To love ourselves, we must cherish our ability to think.
Emotions and self-esteem
    Have you ever been in a position where you know intellectually you should do something, but emotionally cannot bring yourself to do it? Psychological maturity, according to Branden, is the ability to think in terms of principles, not emotions. Psychological immaturity is being swamped by the moment and the emotion so that we lose sight of the broader picture. When we sacrifice thought and knowledge to feelings that cannot be justified rationally, Branden notes, the result is that we subvert our self-esteem.
    Only if we have a rational approach to our emotions can we be free of paralyzing self-doubt, depression, and fear. This does not mean becoming a robot or a cold person, but simply having the awareness that emotions must be