Working with Self-Esteem in Psychotherapy: Sentence Completion

by Nathaniel Branden, Ph.D. (nathaniel@nathanielbranden.com)
Copyright © 1994, Nathaniel Branden, All Rights Reserved

The following thirty-week sentence completion program is designed to help you practice more consistently what Dr. Branden calls the six pillars of self-esteem. Also available on line are instructions for sentence completion programs.

Week 1

  1. If I bring more awareness to my life today —
  2. If I take more responsibility for my choices and actions today —
  3. If pay more attention to how I deal with people today —
  4. If I boost my energy level by 5% today —

Week 2

  1. If I bring 5% more awareness to my important relationships —
  2. If I bring 5% more awareness to my insecurities —
  3. If I bring 5% more awareness to my deepest needs and wants —
  4. If I bring 5% more awareness to my emotions —

Week 3

  1. If I treat listening as a creative act —
  2. If I notice how people are affected by the quality of my listening —
  3. If I bring more awareness to my dealings with people today —
  4. If I commit to dealing with people fairly and benevolently —

Week 4

  1. If I bring a higher level of self-esteem to my activities today —
  2. If I bring a higher level of self-esteem to my dealings with people today —
  3. If I am 5% more self-accepting today —
  4. If I am self-accepting even when I make mistakes —
  5. If I am self-accepting even when I feel confused and over-whelmed —

Week 5

  1. If I am more accepting of my body —
  2. If I deny and disown my body —
  3. If I deny or disown my conflicts —
  4. If I am more accepting of all the parts of me —

Week 6

  1. If I wanted to raise my self-esteem today, I could —
  2. If I am more accepting of my feelings —
  3. If I deny and disown my feelings —
  4. If I am more accepting of my thoughts —
  5. If I deny and disown my thoughts —

Week 7

  1. If I am more accepting of my fears —
  2. If I deny and disown my fears —
  3. If I were more accepting of my pain —
  4. If I deny and disown my pain —

Week 8

  1. If I am more accepting of my anger —
  2. If I deny and disown my anger —
  3. If I am more accepting of my sexuality —
  4. If I deny and disown my sexuality —

Week 9

  1. If I am more accepting exitement —
  2. If I deny and disown my exitement —
  3. If I am more accepting of my intelligence —
  4. If I deny and disown my intelligence —

Week 10

  1. Self-responsibility means —
  2. If I take 5% more responsibility for my life and well-being —
  3. If I avoid responsibility for my life and well-being —
  4. If I take 5% more responsibility for the attainment of my goals —
  5. If I avoid responsibility for the attainment of my goals —

Week 11

  1. If I take 5% more responsibility for the success of my relationships —
  2. Sometimes I keep myself passive when I —
  3. Sometimes I make myself helpless when I —
  4. I am becoming aware —

Week 12

  1. If I take 5% more responsibility for my standard of living —
  2. If I take 5% more responsibility for my choice of companions —
  3. If I take 5% more responsibility for my personal happiness —
  4. If I take 5% more responsibility for the level of my self-esteem —

Week 13

  1. Self-assertiveness means —
  2. If I lived 5% more assertively today —
  3. If I treat my thoughts and feelings with respect today —
  4. If I treat my wants with respect today —

Week 14

  1. If, when I was young, someone had told me my wants really mattered —
  2. If, when I was young, I had been taught to honor my own life —
  3. If I treat my life as unimportant —
  4. If I were willing to say yes when I want to say yes and no when I want to say no —
  5. If I were willing to let people hear the music inside me —
  6. If I were to express 5% more of who I am —

Week 15

  1. Living purposefully to me means —
  2. If I bring 5% more purposefulness into my life —
  3. If I operate 5% more purposefully at work —
  4. If I operate 5% more purposefully in my relationships —
  5. If I operate 5% more purposefully in marriage —

Week 16

  1. If I operate 5% more purposefully with my children —
  2. If I were 5% more purposeful about my deepest yearnings —
  3. If I take more responsibility for fulfilling my wants —
  4. If I make my happiness a conscious goal —

Week 17

  1. Integrity means —
  2. If I look at instances in which I find full integrity difficult —
  3. If I bring 5% more integrity into my life —
  4. If I bring 5% more integrity to my work —

Week 18

  1. If I bring 5% more integrity to my relationship —
  2. If I remain loyal to the values I believe are right —
  3. If I refuse to live by values I do not respect —
  4. If I treat my self-respect as a high priority —

Week 19

  1. If the child in me could speak, he/she would say —
  2. If the teenager I once was still exists inside of me —
  3. If my teenage self could speak, he/she would say —
  4. At the thought of reaching back to help my child self —
  5. At the thought of reaching back to help my teenage self —
  6. If I could make friends with my younger selves —

Week 20

  1. If my child self felt accepted by me —
  2. If my teenage self felt I was on his/her side —
  3. If my younger selves felt I had compassion for their struggles —
  4. If I could hold my child self in my arms —
  5. If I could hold my teenage self in my arms —
  6. If I had the courage and compassion to embrace and love my younger selves —

Week 21

  1. Sometimes my child self feels rejected by me when I —
  2. Sometimes my teenage self feel rejected by me when I —
  3. One of the things my child self needs from me and rarely gets —
  4. One of the things my teenage self needs from me and has not received is —
  5. One of the ways my child self gets back at me for rejecting him/her is —
  6. One of the ways my teenage self gets back at me for rejecting him/her is —

Week 22

  1. At the thought of giving my child self what he/she needs from me —
  2. At the thought of giving my teenage self what he/she needs from me —
  3. If my child self and I were to fall in love —
  4. If my teenage self and I were to fall in love —

Week 23

  1. If I accept that my child self may need time to learn to trust me —
  2. If I accept that my teenage self may need time to learn to trust me —
  3. As I come to understand that my child self and my teenage self are both part of me —
  4. I am becoming aware —

Week 24

  1. Sometimes when I am afraid, I —
  2. Sometimes when I am hurt, I —
  3. Sometimes when I am angry, I —
  4. An effective way to handle fear might be to —
  5. An effective way to handle hurt might be to —
  6. An effective way to handle anger might be to —

Week 25

  1. Sometimes when I am exId, I —
  2. Sometimes when I am aroused sexually, I —
  3. Sometimes when I experience strong feelings, I —
  4. If I make friends with my exIment —
  5. If I make friends with my sexuality —
  6. As I grow more comfortable with the full range of my emotions —

Week 26

  1. If I think about becoming better friends with my child self —
  2. If I think about becoming better friends with my teenage self —
  3. As my younger selves become more comfortable with me —
  4. As I create a safe space for my child self —
  5. As I create a safe space for my teenage self —

Week 27

  1. Mother gave me a view of myself as —
  2. Father gave me a view of myself as —
  3. Mother speaks through my voice when I tell myself —
  4. Father speaks through my voice when I tell myself —

Week 28

  1. If I bring 5% more awareness to my relationship with my mother —
  2. If I bring 5% more awareness to my relationship with my father —
  3. If I look at my mother and father realistically —
  4. If I reflect on the level of awareness I bring to my relationship with my mother —
  5. If I reflect on the level of awareness I bring to my relationship with my father —

Week 29

  1. At the thought of being free of Mother psychologically —
  2. At the thought of being free of Father psychloogically —
  3. At the thought of belonging fully to myself —
  4. If my life really does belong to me —
  5. If I really am capable of independent survival —

Week 30

  1. If I bring 5% more awareness to my life —
  2. If I am 5% more self-accepting —
  3. If I bring 5% more self-responsibility to my life —
  4. If I operate 5% more self-assertively —
  5. If I live my life 5% more purposefully —
  6. If I bring 5% more integrity to my life —
  7. If I breathe deeply and allow myself to experience what self-esteem feels like —