"The Myth of Self-Esteem" by Albert Ellis

The main idea of the book revolves around the fact that self-esteem building doesn't quite work the way we want it to work. Even though Albert seems to have gone into a more critical examination of other psychologists, this work has a few useful bits.

Basically, Ellis is suggesting replacing conditional self-esteem based on achievements with unconditional self-acceptance. Then, the author presents the concept of unconditional other acceptance. He also delves in depth into how different religions propagate this concept in their teachings.

I believe that self-esteem has its place when we're striving to improve ourselves; however, after reading extensively on stoicism and the concept of free will, I also think that letting go of expectations for others and oneself can be a powerful tool.