Dr. Kashey shares his conceivably unpopular opinion that self-esteem is a poison worse than hate. If you disagree, don’t go anywhere just yet, because you must know by now that Dr. Kashey does a thorough job of digging deeper and explaining how he came to this conclusion. Self-esteem can lead us to judge ourselves and our value by our own expectations as well as expectations set forth by other people. This can be dangerous. When expectations are disappointed, it gets sticky if we then associate the seemingly “bad” outcome with our identity, worth, or humanity. Everyone knows it’s impossible to be perfect. Self-esteem doesn’t leave room for failure, which is a normal part of life. People should not avoid risk in order to avoid failure/imperfection for the sake of protecting their self-esteem. Dr. Kashey cautions us against anxiously seeking self-esteem, and instead prompts us towards self-respect, which is much more helpful and rewarding.