---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If your self-esteem really does depend on…"
description: "\"If your self-esteem really does depend on how you look you're always going to be insecure. There's no way you can get around it because you are going t..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/153/portia-de-rossi-7193_age_if-your-self-esteem-really-does-depend-o_1761737.png"
---

#  If your self-esteem really does depend on how you look…

![“If your self-esteem really does depend on how you look you're always going to be insecure. There's no way you can get around it because you are going to age. Even if you get that perfect body you're going to get older and older and older. You can't avid it. So you have to somehow, at some point…” quote by Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/153/portia-de-rossi-7193_age_if-your-self-esteem-really-does-depend-o_1761737.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/153/portia-de-rossi-7193_age_if-your-self-esteem-really-does-depend-o_1761737.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/153/portia-de-rossi-7193_age_if-your-self-esteem-really-does-depend-o_1761737.png)

> “If your self-esteem really does depend on how you look you're always going to be insecure. There's no way you can get around it because you are going to age. Even if you get that perfect body you're going to get older and older and older. You can't avid it. So you have to somehow, at some point, take control and sift the focus and decide who you are, what you can contribute to the world, what you do and say, is so much more important than how you look.”

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Self-worth shouldn't hinge on appearance because aging is inevitable, making looks a fleeting source of confidence.

**In simple terms:** Self-esteem must come from within, not looks.

Key Takeaway

Focus on character and contribution.

Themes

self-esteem aging identity confidence values

Mood

reflective motivational

Type

advice inspirational

When to use this quote

- career planning
- relationship building
- personal development
- public speaking
- mental health counseling

Key Concepts

existentialism psychology self-determination

Questions to Reflect On

- How can you shift focus from appearance to purpose?
- What actions reinforce your inner value?

A Different Perspective

Physical appearance will always change; internal growth requires ongoing effort.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Esteem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/esteem/) [Focus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/focus/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Self esteem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-esteem/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/)

## Related quotes

> [“If your self esteem really does depend on how you look, you're always going to be insecure. There's no way you can get around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/if-your-self-esteem-really-does-depend-on-how-you-look-you-re-always/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [“A beautiful face will age and a perfect body will change, but an awesome person will always be an awesome person.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/comic-strip-mama/a-beautiful-face-will-age-and-a-perfect-body-will-change-but-an-2/)

Comic Strip Mama

> [“A beautiful face will age and a perfect body will change, but an awesome woman will always be an awesome woman!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/comic-strip-mama/a-beautiful-face-will-age-and-a-perfect-body-will-change-but-an/)

Comic Strip Mama

> [It was a very vulnerable time going from being insecure about my body and who I am to becoming comfortable with me. I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/queen-latifah/it-was-a-very-vulnerable-time-going-from-being-insecure-about-my-body/)

[Queen Latifah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/queen-latifah/)

> [When I was a teenager, my self esteem was really low. But when I stood next to Yunho and his crooked teeth, I felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaejoong/when-i-was-a-teenager-my-self-esteem-was-really-low-but-when-i-stood/)

[Jaejoong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaejoong/)

> [“Ridiculous really, when you think that I come from a broken home and I probably have low self-esteem. But the way I see it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsty-eagar/ridiculous-really-when-you-think-that-i-come-from-a-broken-home-and-i/)

[Kirsty Eagar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsty-eagar/)

> [Age has been the perfect fire extinguisher for flaming youth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/navjot-singh-sidhu/age-has-been-the-perfect-fire-extinguisher-for-flaming-youth/)

[Navjot Singh Sidhu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/navjot-singh-sidhu/)

> [Any age is the perfect age to follow your dream!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-forleo/any-age-is-the-perfect-age-to-follow-your-dream/)

[Marie Forleo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-forleo/)

> [Oh you Muslims! You have slept for a long time, long enough for the tyrants to take control over you. You accepted to live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheikh-abdullah/oh-you-muslims-you-have-slept-for-a-long-time-long-enough-for-the/)

[Sheikh Abdullah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheikh-abdullah/)

> [I feel especially vulnerable when I know I've let the reactive ego take control of my actions and it may have had hurtful implications…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-brancatisano/i-feel-especially-vulnerable-when-i-know-i-ve-let-the-reactive-ego/)

[Richard Brancatisano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-brancatisano/)

> [If you can’t take responsibility for your own well-being, you will never take control over it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-hudson/if-you-can-t-take-responsibility-for-your-own-well-being-you-will/)

[Jennifer Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-hudson/)

> [I am me. I have to define myself. I'm going to stand up at the back of the train and take control of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-masterson/i-am-me-i-have-to-define-myself-i-m-going-to-stand-up-at-the-back-of/)

[Kelly Masterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-masterson/)

> [Whenever you feel happiness it is always from the inner. Then mind immediately jumps in and takes control and says, 'It is because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/whenever-you-feel-happiness-it-is-always-from-the-inner-then-mind/)

[Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/)

> [ Simply disabling specific critical thinking skills is all that is necessary for the god virus \[to take control of a person\]. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darrel-ray/simply-disabling-specific-critical-thinking-skills-is-all-that-is/)

[Darrel Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darrel-ray/)

> [Corporate America is a 20th-century dinosaur, trembling on the edge of extinction, and the only way for you to have a genuinely secure future…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kiyosaki/corporate-america-is-a-20th-century-dinosaur-trembling-on-the-edge-of/)

[Robert Kiyosaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kiyosaki/)

## More by Portia de Rossi

> [In high school I had sex with girls quite a few times. They were straight women who I convinced to jump in the sack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/in-high-school-i-had-sex-with-girls-quite-a-few-times-they-were/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [Supermodels are over, and the new picture girl has become the television actress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/supermodels-are-over-and-the-new-picture-girl-has-become-the/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [I knew that I was gay, I knew it. I just couldn't see myself as a gay woman, even though that's where my heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/i-knew-that-i-was-gay-i-knew-it-i-just-couldn-t-see-myself-as-a-gay/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [You don't have to be emaciated or vomiting to be suffering. All people who live their lives on a diet are suffering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/you-don-t-have-to-be-emaciated-or-vomiting-to-be-suffering-all-people/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [I began to see myself as someone who can help others understand diversity rather than feeling like a social outcast. Ellen taught me to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/i-began-to-see-myself-as-someone-who-can-help-others-understand/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [The most important thing for me was to never, ever, ever deny it. But I didn't really have the courage to talk about it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/the-most-important-thing-for-me-was-to-never-ever-ever-deny-it-but-i/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [I would eat 300 calories a day - a lot of Jell-O and no-sugar everything, of course. I was doing Pilates, weight-training, circuit training;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/i-would-eat-300-calories-a-day-a-lot-of-jell-o-and-no-sugar/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [The diet industry is making a lot of money selling us fad diets, nonfat foods full of chemicals, gym memberships, and pills while we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/the-diet-industry-is-making-a-lot-of-money-selling-us-fad-diets/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [I really never stopped thinking about Ellen, because I just haven't felt that kind of energy with anyone in my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/i-really-never-stopped-thinking-about-ellen-because-i-just-haven-t/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [Even if I'm hormonal and I feel like I've got a couple pounds of water weight, I will never starve myself, I will never,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/even-if-i-m-hormonal-and-i-feel-like-i-ve-got-a-couple-pounds-of/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [Restriction generates yearning. You want what you cannot have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/restriction-generates-yearning-you-want-what-you-cannot-have/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [I didn't choose the fact that I was gay, but I did choose whether to live my life as a gay woman-that was the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/i-didn-t-choose-the-fact-that-i-was-gay-but-i-did-choose-whether-to/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [You live with the fear people might find out. Then you actually have the courage to tell people and they go, I don't think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/you-live-with-the-fear-people-might-find-out-then-you-actually-have/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [I'm living by example by continuing on with my career and having a full, rich life, and I am incidentally gay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/i-m-living-by-example-by-continuing-on-with-my-career-and-having-a/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

> [I stumbled into acting and just loved it. I deferred law school-and I'm still deferred.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/i-stumbled-into-acting-and-just-loved-it-i-deferred-law-school-and-i/)

[Portia de Rossi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

[Explore all 93 Portia de Rossi quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/)

## More Age quotes

> [I need a bath." He chuckled. "You smell of smoke, as do I." The duke turned, leaning heavily on his cane. "Jameson, open the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hawkins/i-need-a-bath-he-chuckled-you-smell-of-smoke-as-do-i-the-duke-turned/)

[Karen Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hawkins/)

> [While we've youth in our hearts, we can never grow old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/while-we-ve-youth-in-our-hearts-we-can-never-grow-old/)

[Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/)

> [It's easier to change a law than an age-old mentality. Deep down, many prejudices, many hostilities, many fears persist. But if we take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dacia-maraini/it-s-easier-to-change-a-law-than-an-age-old-mentality-deep-down-many/)

[Dacia Maraini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dacia-maraini/)

> [When I first started writing, when I was 15, I would go to work with people and they would tell me my lyrics were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabrina-claudio/when-i-first-started-writing-when-i-was-15-i-would-go-to-work-with/)

[Sabrina Claudio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabrina-claudio/)

> [Real people speak in my books about the main events of the age, such as the war, the Chernobyl disaster, and the downfall of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svetlana-alexievich/real-people-speak-in-my-books-about-the-main-events-of-the-age-such/)

[Svetlana Alexievich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/svetlana-alexievich/)

> [As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-jones/as-a-child-i-was-very-involved-with-sports-and-i-knew-at-age-9-that-i/)

[Marion Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-jones/)

> [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/)

[Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/)

> [I am just enjoying the dream of being Milan coach at the age of 40.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gennaro-gattuso/i-am-just-enjoying-the-dream-of-being-milan-coach-at-the-age-of-40/)

[Gennaro Gattuso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gennaro-gattuso/)

> [Age is an accumulation of life and loss. Adulthood is a series of lines crossed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-goodman/age-is-an-accumulation-of-life-and-loss-adulthood-is-a-series-of/)

[Ellen Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-goodman/)

> [I calculated that if I live up to the age of 80, then I end up using 450 toothbrushes in my life. All that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dia-mirza/i-calculated-that-if-i-live-up-to-the-age-of-80-then-i-end-up-using/)

[Dia Mirza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dia-mirza/)

> [Why is wisdom so fair? Why is beauty so wise? Because all else is temporary, while beauty and wisdom are the only real and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/why-is-wisdom-so-fair-why-is-beauty-so-wise-because-all-else-is/)

[Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/)

> [It was only when I went to acting school that I was like, "You are absolutely such a pigheaded freak show that you thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-matthey/it-was-only-when-i-went-to-acting-school-that-i-was-like-you-are/)

[Giles Matthey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-matthey/)

> [That old man dies prematurely whose memory records no benefits conferred. They only have lived long who have lived virtuously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-brinsley-sheridan/that-old-man-dies-prematurely-whose-memory-records-no-benefits/)

[Richard Brinsley Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-brinsley-sheridan/)

> [We have started to make music at age seven. That was a hard work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-kaulitz/we-have-started-to-make-music-at-age-seven-that-was-a-hard-work/)

[Bill Kaulitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-kaulitz/)

[Browse all 18,948 Age quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "If your self-esteem really does depend on how you look you're always going to be insecure. There's no way you can get around it because you are going to age. Even if you get that perfect body you're going to get older and older and older. You can't avid it. So you have to somehow, at some point, take control and sift the focus and decide who you are, what you can contribute to the world, what you do and say, is so much more important than how you look.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Portia de Rossi"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/if-your-self-esteem-really-does-depend-on-how-you-look-you-re-always-2/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Age"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/if-your-self-esteem-really-does-depend-on-how-you-look-you-re-always-2/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/153/portia-de-rossi-7193_age_if-your-self-esteem-really-does-depend-o_1761737.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/153/portia-de-rossi-7193_age_if-your-self-esteem-really-does-depend-o_1761737.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/153/portia-de-rossi-7193_age_if-your-self-esteem-really-does-depend-o_1761737.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“If your self-esteem really does depend on how you look you're always going to be insecure. There's no way…” — Portia de Rossi",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Portia de Rossi",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/portia-de-rossi/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "If your self-esteem really does depend...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/if-your-self-esteem-really-does-depend-on-how-you-look-you-re-always-2/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/portia-de-rossi/if-your-self-esteem-really-does-depend-on-how-you-look-you-re-always-2/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
