i will stick to the make up once again :P i totally get what you saying about yourself and as you said if you do it on others you just have to know what are you doing, it's like if i want to sale a weight loss product i can't do it while being overweight! i dont quite agree with the ''use make up to feel better and more confident'' ( you havent said yourself it's just the general belief that is an accurate fact). Moreover saying girls can't express themselves, feeling ugly etc etc is something boys have a harder time with and they dont use make up whatsoever, only anabolics :P

the truth is that make up is the easiest and fastest way to deceive everyone and yourself and make others believe you are beautiful so that you believe in yourself too ( now for how long and what life would that be it's another story) let's say we have sarah that with make up boost herself a 30% more of what she is ( i would it's way more than that but ok) then she uploads Instagram photos with filters and with a more careful approach 30% will be in a short period of time 50%+ of what she was. a couple of guys will start sending messages (i bet you know what i am talking about), her ego and confident will start to rise and boom sarah is now happy and confident with a fair amount of people and guys talking to her and flirting with her,till she finds out most of the people she meets with that kind of life would be complete trash, many problems will occur resulting in conflicts between friends and her own self and someday she will realize that '' i am not my self any more''

if you have low self esteem and don't believe in yourself while you are the type that want to have friends and dont be lonely the best way but the hardest one is to go out and talk with people being the real you. most of the friends you make will be real friends and long term you be happier

to make it up (make it up get it? i am too funny) i have some guides for you that i think are kind of unique out there and can help you way to much by people who know their stuff

https://steemit.com/steemit/@thecryptofiend/the-missing-faq-a-beginners-guide-to-using-steemit
https://steemit.com/steemhelp/@lehard/steemit-for-dummies-5-simple-steps-from-beginner-to-steemian-80-lvl-50-useful-links-2-edition

and the above is some tools that will help a lot more as you grow for example you can check your followers how many are active, who are the followers that vote most of your posts ( your royal ones etc etc)

https://steemit.com/steemit/@steem-buzz/the-best-10-steemit-tools-you-can-use-to-grow-faster

keep it up and i am watching you