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About See Jane Win® For Girls See Jane Win ® for Girls grew out of a study I did with over 1,000 successful women. I asked the women to describe how they felt and what they did when they were kids, and how those experiences helped them to become successful women. Using what we learned from this study, my daughters and I wrote two books for adults, See Jane Win® and How Jane Won. Today those books are helping many people raise their daughters to be the best they can be. Now, in my new book, See Jane Win
for Girls, I bring some of these stories, lessons, and memories to girls
directly. Ive included some excerpts from See Jane Win for Girls,
which you may want to share with your daughters or students. The book
is intended for teen girls from about age nine. The table of contents
is also included here. *Excerpts from See Jane Win for Girls
Dare to Dream You can have a bright future, and daring to dream is part of creating it. But dreaming isn't enough. For dreams to come true, you have to take action, too. That means becoming an I CAN girl. My book will tell you how. Many of the women you'll read about in See Jane Win for Girls were I CAN girls when they were growing up. That means that they loved to take on new challenges and become actively involved in things that interested them. They brought a positive attitude to much of what they did. Exercising Your Self-Esteem Muscles Odd as it may sound, your self-esteem
how you feel about yourselfcan help shape your future. When you
respect yourself and your values, feel good about what you've achieved,
and have confidence in your abilities, your self-esteem is healthy.
Remember: You can feel smart without having to be the smartest. You can have friends without having to be most popular. And you can be athletic, musical, or artistic without having to be the best. If you'd like, tape a note to your mirror that says, "I don't have to be perfect or be liked by everyone to feel good about myself. I am an I CAN girl. When Your Self-Esteem Depends on Boyfriends In general, girls mature earlier than boys do. That means their bodies and emotions may tell them to become interested in romance before boys' bodies and emotions send out a similar signal to them. So if your self-esteem is dependent on how many boys like you, you could have a problem. Some of the nicest guys you know may not even have noticed that girls exist. Some won't be interested in having a girlfriend until high school or college. And some may never be interested in girls as girlfriends, just as some girls may never be interested in boys as boyfriends. Other boys may only like girls who they think aren't as smart as they are. Others may only like girls who are very thin, or have a certain color hair, or are a certain height. Boys who judge you by superficial traits like these can hurt you and your self-esteem if you let them. That's because they're only focusing on a small part of who you are. If you do feel ready (or almost ready) for boyfriends, look for someone who shares your interests and who truly wants to get to know you. If it seems that in order to attract someone you have to: appear less smart or talented
than you are
Another thing you can do when you're critical of yourself is take a reality check. Are you comparing yourself with others? If you are, remind yourself that you're not the only one with flaws. Everyone has them. Instead of feeling bad about what you don't have or can't do, focus on your strengths. What can you do that other people value? What can you do that you value? appear less smart or talented
than you are Boyfriends can be exciting, which makes it hard to act sensibly. But play it smart and be an I CAN girl: put your self-respect, confidence, and interests first. If you want others to value you, first and foremost you have to value yourself! Another thing you can do when you're critical of yourself is take a reality check. Are you comparing yourself with others? If you are, remind yourself that you're not the only one with flaws. Everyone has them. Instead of feeling bad about what you don't have or can't do, focus on your strengths. What can you do that other people value? What can you do that you value?
A Better You = A Better World Here's one other thing you can do
to stay positive about yourself, and it may surprise you: Spend some
time helping somebody else! Many successful See Jane Win women say that
they feel most fulfilled and happiest with themselves when they're helping
others or doing something to make the world a better place. Public radio
host Kathleen Dunn, for example, is proud that, as a former VISTA volunteer,
she spent two years helping low-income families. And Congresswoman Shelley
Berkley is such a strong believer in the importance of volunteering
that she sponsored legislation aimed at encouraging people to do it
even more. Kids are capable of making a big difference in the world.
There are many good causes in the world for you to get involved in if
you'd like.
Feel Smart by Releasing Your Brainpower It's one thing to be smart. It's another
to use your intelligence. One of the most important parts of being smart
has to do with I CAN attitudes like enthusiasm, optimism, and a willingness
to learn. The successful women in See Jane Win discovered that the smarter
they felt, the more willing they were to use their brainpower to keep
getting smarter. Using your creativity and doing well
on tests are only two ways to show your intelligence. Traits like kindness,
sensitivity, good social skills, independence, strong leadership abilities,
and showing what a trusted friend you can be may not show up on your
report card. But they have led to success in life for many I CAN girls. Page 1 of 2 Next Also read How to Raise a Whole Smart Family at this web site and go to www.sylviarimm.com for Dr. Rimm's many other parenting articles. |
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