In her 1968 anthology of essays, Slouching Towards Bethlehem, Joan Didion wrote the essay "On Self-Respect,” in which she points out that self-respect has nothing to do with the approval of others. Rather, self-respect comes from the willingness to accept responsibility for our lives. “Character...is the source from which self-respect springs.” She compares living without self-respect to watching a self-generated and never-ending film of our failures. We cultivate self-respect by doing what needs to be done regardless of whether or not we want to do those things, weighing the discomfort against future reward. She notes that self-respect is the product of self-discipline and that it cannot be faked, but must be developed.Read the full article here: Joan Didion On Self-Respect