Self-respect is not thinking you deserve everything; it is knowing what you refuse to become for anything.

It is easy to mistake self-respect for a sense of entitlement, as though it meant believing the world owes you good treatment. The actual substance is narrower and firmer than that. It is a short list of things you will not do, no matter what is offered, and a clear sense of the version of yourself you refuse to trade away. That list does what no amount of confidence can.

Try writing down three things you would not become for money, approval, or relief. Keep them specific rather than noble. Having named them, you will recognise the moment one is being asked of you, and the recognition alone usually settles the answer.