Rachel Simmons
Leadership for Life
Latest Blog Posts
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Ask Rachel: How Do I Overcome My Shyness?
Rachel advises a shy teen how to take small steps that could lead to big, positive changes.
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The Mommy Vortex: Take Care, Moms
Top ten ways moms can take care of ourselves all year round – not just on Mother’s Day!
Upcoming Events
Fri, May 31, 2013
Thu, June 6, 2013
Fri, July 26, 2013 to Sun, July 28, 2013
Girltips
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Girl Tip #61: Your Friends Will Disappoint You
Freaking out & condemning a friendship when someone lets you down isn’t productive. No one is perfect, & your friendships…
Hi Rachel I’m doing just what you said to do, I’m writing down 3 things I’m good at.
1.) I’m really good at writing ficton books
2.) I’m good at trying my very best to always be there for my friends
3.) I’m good at sewing
And 4 just for fun.) I’m good at shoping
Hey Rachel,
I’m 16, tall and a tiny bit chubby.
Throughout Primary school I was always the girl that was left behind or excluded from the ‘clique’ so I would always go to the library and read books about Egyptian gods and godesses and Mythological creatures, I was and still am fascinated by the strange and unusual.
My teenage/highschool years haven’t changed much, except now I have more stress caused by assignements and outrageous homework tasks and personal family problems.
I drift between groups at school because I don’t get a welcomeing feeling and our conversations always get awkward, and I feel like they are only tolerateing my presence to avoid hurting my feelings.
I can’t connect to people because I am interested in things that they have never heard about and they are interested in things that I have never heard about. I just feel alone at school and that my time can be spent doing something better.
I wish my cousin Kelly was still in school so that she could keep me company, we have a really good relationship, we tell eachother private and weird things, laugh together and cry together.
Back in 2010, I had an emotional breakdown, I started crying to myself and had to sit down for an hour before I could get up.
I don’t really have self-confidence or a social life.
So any advice of yours would be nice.
From Rebecca.
I’m sorry for you but I’m been going through the same thing. i may be younger than you but my mind is much more mature. I’ve been trying to talk to more people like you. I really think that it would be good for you talk to other people like you too. if you want to contact me email me at hasalv [at] gmail [dot] com
keep on trying
Hana
Dear Rachel,
Have you ever heard of one of the girls who is always put down? Well, thats me. In school, i have a nickname. And that is WhaleGurl. They think that i enjoy that nickname, when the truth is, i feel bullied when they call me by it. I dont want to say “I HATE THAT NAME! GIVE ME A NEW NICKNAME!” You know what im saying? Please help me think of a way to tell them in a polite way that the nickname of WhaleGurl is offensive to me and i would like a better nickname that gives me more self confidence. Thanks Rachel Simmons!
Love,
Annie Jenkins
Hey Annie, that is so hard. It’s tough to know what to do. Part of me wants to tell you to try and ignore it, and focus on hanging out with the people you care about, because sometimes bringing it up makes the bullies even worse. The other thing you might do is try to be kind of casual or sarcastic about it, like maybe say, “Hmmmm, WhaleGurl. Is that really the best you can do?”I also want to suggest you consider telling an adult. Have you ever read the book “Blubber”by Judy Blume? It is one of my favorites from growing up. Check it out. Be good to yourself — I promise it won’t always feel this bad or this hard.
–Rachel
I found your video very interesting and am ordering the book of Amazon, but I have a question.
What do you do if a group of girls complement you all at once? For example, you’ve painted a picture and they all keep say “Your such an artist” and “I wish I could paint like that” but over and over again. Should you Say thank you or, do what I do, say “yours is really good too!”?
hi rachel,
One of my best friends is uncomfortable with her appearance. Mostly her weight.
She is very pretty and definitely not overweight but she is always saying, “i’m so fat”, “i need to loose weight”, even “i’m obese” and “I look so ugly”.
My friends and I always tell her that she looks great, but she doesn’t listen.
Do you have any suggestions of what I as her friend, can do to help her become more confident in herself?