Anyone have any advice for self esteem?

I have a certain tendency to slip self-degrading snippets when I speak about myself, and I'm working to eliminate it. I think the problem starts with the false conception that it makes you look 'humble'. In fact, such comments are a drag for the other person who listens, and the contrary of being humble, because they put you on focus and distract you from the actual point of the conversation. And, to a certain degree, you are forcing the other person to say something like 'oh, you're not that terrible', etc, which is a fuzz for them.

I've come to think of those self-degrading comments as a lack of courtesy towards the other person, like farting in public so to say -everybody has to deal with their own insecurities, but they don't rub them in your face-. Now, for example, I double check my emails before sending them and I always find sentences that I have to delete because I was justifying myself, asking pardon for some silly thing, that kind of 'pity parties'...

Maybe you could try having your boyfriend tell you one thing a day that he likes about you. Then for the day, you focus on that and build yourself up on that. Or you could make a list of all the things you like about yourself and focus on them.