I used to care about what people thought of me, but as I got older, I stopped caring what people thought of me. In life, you have to be your own person regardless of what people think of you. People are going to talk about you no matter what. They talked about Jesus Christ, but he still did his own thing. :-)

you basically just try to realize the fact that You are You. People should love you for who you are, and if they don’t- why would you want them to love you?
i mean.. if they love you for someone you’re not – they wouldn’t really love you would they?
I really cant explain it. But just be confident!

In a world so void of consistently true, meaningful social connections, there are a multitude of opportunities everyday to feel like you don’t measure up.

I don’t think that you ever need to completely stop caring. As you age and learn who’s advice to value and who’s comments are poisonous, it becomes easier to find your own confidence. Be true to yourself, your passions, your real friends, and find YOUR path.

I personally love Winston Churchill quotes, and here’s a good one for you:

“Courage is the first of human qualities because it is the quality which guarantees all others.”

You seem pretty young, at least to me. I’m going on 36. But anyway, when I was in school, & even somewhat going into my young 20’s, I kept worrying about what everyone thought about me. I used to get so upset & offended by looks & things that people would say. People can be jerks sometimes. But after awhile, I just started not to care. I focused more on myself & interests that I have. It definitely builds your self-esteem when you set goals for yourself & complete them. Plus, you have to make a habit to remind yourself everyday of the things that you love about yourself. Keep a scrapbook of things that you’ve done…things that make you feel good about you. If you start to notice yourself listening to those jerks again, pull it out & go through it. It helps. I’ve done it.
F.Y.I- It didn’t exactly hurt for me to find out that some of the ones that were being stupid ended up not being who everyone thought they were. They ended up in a worse place that you would’ve thought…& that was there karma. Trust me…they’re not that great. Don’t let them put you down. =)