How can I stop being a pushover?

Voice your own opinions when you disagree with people, believe in yourself and stand by your judgements.

Recognize your needs and wants and think about how saying "yes" to something will affect you in the long run. Learn to realize that you do not need to always say "yes" to everything. Voice your opinion when you need to, even when it may clash with those of others.

Taking the first step to standing up for yourself is definitely tough, however once you've done it even for the smallest thing, it gets progressively easier.

I've had trouble with this for a while and have been trying to overcome this thanks to one quote from a negotiations book: "Don't be afraid to be a little pushy." What those 7 words told me, was that I don't always need to agree with everyone and I don't need to please everyone. I can say no or disagree sometimes. I've been a pushover because I'm often very passive, and reading those words made me feel that it's ok if I'm a bit pushy sometimes. I have needs, wants, and ideas too.

First of all, nobody is a pushover. Every person is very important. Self-esteem is a strange thing for some people, but without it there will be no happiness without self-respect.

Stand up for what you believe in! Don't let people force you to do things you aren't comfortable with

It sounds silly but potentially it may be a good idea to research assertiveness on the internet. These things don't happen in a day, it's so easy to say yes, yes I'll do everything for you but sometimes saying no can be the hardest thing in the world.

You can stop being a pushover by being assertive when it comes to what you want or do not want and make it known that you will not change your mind.

There are many reasons that people may find it hard to stand up for their beliefs and opinions. First, it may help to examine why you are having a hard time speaking up for yourself. What emotions and thoughts are in your way? If it is a specific situation or person that makes it hard for you to speak up, it may help to practice what you want to say and prepare sentences or phrases you can uses when it comes up next time. It can also help to write it out in an email or letter sometimes if it is a specific situation. For more general situations, it can help to strengthen your self esteem through self-affirmations, self-acceptance, and possibly counseling depending what else is going on in your life and how significantly this has been impacting day-to-day life.

Learn how to say no to people and decline their offers. You don't want people to think that you do every little thing that they want to you to do.