Aside from dispensing beauty and lifestyle advice on her website, JustAskMarlene.com, Marlene Wallach --- president and owner of the model and talent agency Wilhelmina Kids & Teens --- has also published a four-book series called The Tween Lifestyle Collection, which aims to help teens and tweens navigate the bumpy road of adolescence. In today's guest blog, she shares some great tips on creating a healthy self-image that she's learned from first-hand experience and has been passing on to her clients for the past ten years.Terrific, terrifying, wonderful and wacky. Being a girl today is all those things and so much more. It’s great to be you, but it’s also complicated. You’re a best friend, a daughter, a student, a trendsetter and a thrill-seeker --- which is quite a lot for one girl to handle! That’s why I wrote the My Tween Lifestyle Collection of books and created the JustAskMarlene website --- so you can feel good about yourself and enjoy all of the amazing opportunities headed your way. Never before have there been so many fun activities, ideas to ponder and doors to open to your future. So let’s turn the knob and enter!
Confidence Club
Your life is an amazing adventure, with everything changing so quickly. You might like different activities than you did when you were a little kid. Maybe you’ve changed schools and even have different friends. You are certainly growing, which means your body is changing as well. All of these things are exciting, but they can be a little scary too. You need to value who you are to easily navigate through the ups and downs of this time. The amount you value yourself is your self-esteem. If you believe that you nail any activity you try and anyone who doesn’t want to be your friend is crazy, then you have high self-esteem. If you think you’re crummy in school, sports and everything in between, then your self-esteem is low. Most people fall somewhere in between these two extremes. Wherever you land on this spectrum, you can always build your self-esteem. Let’s find out how.
Give your Self-Esteem Some Steam!
Self-esteem is important because it affects everything you do. When you feel good about yourself and are appreciated by others, it’s easier to make friends, try new activities, and push yourself in school. This is different than being conceited. You don’t need to pretend you’re the greatest person in the world. That would be fake. A healthy self-image actually comes from accepting who you are --- just the way you are. Here are some ways to improve your self-esteem:
—Let lots of people into your life: Camp counselors, teachers, relatives, classmates and neighbors make up your support network. Don’t forget friends who move to another town --- pen pals are a terrific hobby. Keep the members of this network updated on what’s going on in your life. Their opinions, love and guidance will come in handy one day.
—Be helpful: Whether it’s carrying an elderly person’s groceries across the street or showing a new student around the school, helping out feels great. Making a difference in someone else’s life will definitely make one in your own.
—Try new experiences: Are you a jock? Then give drama a try. At first it might be intimidating to experiment with a new activity, but soon enough you’ll find that you’ve developed a host of new talents, skills and friends!
—Don’t try to be perfect: Everyone makes mistakes. It’s normal to worry about making them, but they are really lessons in disguise. So don’t let the fear of mistakes keep you from trying new things. When you learn how to ride a bike, every time you fall off you are teaching your body how to balance. If you keep getting back on the bike, eventually you will ride like the wind… or at least to your friend’s house.
—Believe in yourself: Have faith that you can accomplish the goals you set for yourself. Make a plan for what you want to achieve and stick to it. You might not always end up where you thought you would, but you’ll be better for the journey.
—Ask for help: There’s nothing wrong with asking for help when you need it. If you are stuck on a math problem, ask your friend the math whiz to explain it to you. You can learn from everybody in your life, not just your teachers. Your friends and family are a rich resource, so use them.
For more articles and tips like this one check out www.justaskmarlene.com and the My Tween Lifestyle Collection. And don’t forget --- you are BEAUTIFUL!
