modern mentorship: getting you across campus (and beyond) one pep talk at a time
Many of my students are seniors in high school waiting to hear back from their early decision schools this month. When we chatted during the week, they told me how uncomfortable it was to talk to relatives at holiday parties about where they’ve applied and if they’ve been accepted or rejected. We all have sensitive subjects that we don’t want to talk about especially in a public setting. Today, I’m sharing my advice for when someone brings up a touchy topic!
https://youtu.be/mfxsC7UlV0E
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that there is so much homework before break. Every project is due. There are midterms, finals, and on top of that you have family things on the weekends. Plus you’re eating lots of foods that you don’t normally eat which can make you feel sluggish. Don’t freak out because I got you! These tips are what save me when I feel like I have a lot to do. Check out my tips for managing stress AND I’m giving away a free meditation!
https://youtu.be/WlE1SqQDe_U
https://youtu.be/xn7wLqRMms0
Today I’m sharing what I learned from Taylor Swift about #squadgoals with my best friend, McKenzie. When there’s a lot going on during the holiday season we can get caught up in what everyone else is doing. McKenzie is one of my biggest supports and today we’re chatting about it!
https://youtu.be/vUCI-IyJmOQ
Over the summer, I followed a fitness blogger on Instagram and I constantly compared myself to her. Every time I looked at her posts, I felt like I wasn’t enough. It was nothing she was doing. She has no idea who I am. It was the internal dialogue I had with myself when I looked at her content. I decided to unfollow her in order to choose inspiration that builds me up.
I don’t know one girl who isn’t constantly comparing herself to people online. In a world where there’s a lot of information, FOMO (Fear of Missing Out), and social media drain, we need to be mindful of what we’re looking at online. The relationship we build with ourselves starts with the inner dialogue we’re having. This means intentionally following people that make us feel good and not bad. Today I’m sharing my top 5 Instagram accounts that bring me positivity and make me smile!
These adorable doodles come with such great messages. Whenever I catch one, I take it as what I needed for the day!
Gabby is my long time mentor. I love her! Her Insta is so inspiring. I love knowing what she’s up to, her tips on life and meditation as well as motivational quotes.
Pumpkin is a rescued raccoon who lives with a family (and dogs) in the Bahamas. She’s so cute and always doing goofy things.
My friend Trella runs a yoga nonprofit called Yogi’s Heart, which brings yoga scholarships to individuals 15-25 years old who want to practice regularly. Her Instagram feed is as beautiful as she is inside and out!
I love to travel and this Insta is like taking a mini vacation. Plus I love learning about new places! #travelgoals
The other day I found myself jealous as I scanned through a (stranger’s) instagram feed. The girl looked like she was having a super successful day while I was figuring out how to delete hacked code from my website… in my pajamas. Jealousy and envy are normal human emotions that aren’t talked about too often. Even in the mentoring groups I run as a professional big sister, we kind of breeze by it and instead talk about comparing. So what is jealousy really? For the rest of the article click here.
A note about Halloween:
This Halloween so many girls reached out to me panicking. There was stress over what costumes to wear, which group of friends to dress up with, which group of friends to go trick-or-treating with and the disappointment when things didn’t work out the way they wanted. November 1st, I heard all about the FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) from all the pictures they’ve been seeing online of everyone else’s Halloween.
All the stress over the holiday definitely took away from the fun. We forget that people are only showing us what they want us to see, not the whole story. Also, this is an amazing #MeToo moment. So many girls reached out to me and need to hear that they’re not alone.
In today’s blog, I’m sharing a week in life of a Modern Mentor and in order to give you a more whole version of the story, I’ve also included insight on what’s not shown. I hope you enjoy!
I spent all day getting ready for Friday’s #HangIn. I packed up everything the night before (something I recommend to my students too)! These are all the water bottles that I wrapped in my stickers while watching Scandal.
Not pictured: Putting stickers on water bottles took a long time! Also, this picture can’t show you how nervous/excited I was for the event. I get afraid I’m going to forget something and I always get butterflies before a new group.
The HangIn! I had the best time on Friday. The first part of the class was yoga to center my students then we went into a super fun talk about social media/texting/everything before finishing up with a really awesome Q&A. All the girls took a polaroid before class that they were able to take home after. Props included for the pics!
While the girls were in the yoga class, I hung up all the pictures. I even wrote little messages on the clothes pins too!
The girls were amazing during our chat!
My friend Cat (on the right) taught the yoga class!
Not pictured: The torrential rain that happened RIGHT before the HangIn started. It stressed me out, soaked the bottom of my jeans, and made me feel rushed when I finally did get to the studio. Also I was super nervous. I always want to make sure everyone finds the space and has a great time! It’s sometimes hard being a mentor and putting yourself out there!
Saturday night I met up with college friends who were in town. It was super fun to catch up. I miss them.
Not pictured: All the work I did before hanging out with my friends. I had groups, privates, and emails to get back on. By the time we got back from dinner, I wanted to fall asleep! #GroupNap
My sister, cousin, and I went for a hike near the George Washington Bridge. The views were amazing and it was perfect day for a hike.
Not pictured: We originally went to a trail that was closed because of bears! Eek! Also we had lots and lots of girl talk.
I got sent a picture of my Modern Mentor card hung up in a dorm room. It made me so happy to know that my work is growing and making an impact on girls.
Not pictured: All the hard work it took (and still takes) to be a resource for girls!
On Tuesdays I have dance. We had rehearsal at a different studio this particular class and we were so squished.
Not pictured: All the rushing I did to make it to rehearsal on time.
Nothing. I didn’t take any pictures. I was mentoring and packing for my trip to Dallas the next day.
I got to Dallas and became very familiar with the Sprinkles Cupcake ATM.
Not pictured: How excited my best friend and I were to see Taylor Swift. We must have listened to the 1989 album a million times. Also not pictured, how I cried through the airport when I left Dallas. Best friends are the best!
My best friend, McKenzie, is the Global Trainer and Lead Aesthetician at Tata Harper, an amazing natural skin care brand. Today she’s giving us all the scoop on how to get great skin. In this video, we cover how to clear up blemishes, what to do after a workout, and the biggest secret to beauty. This might be my most favorite video ever!
https://youtu.be/Tei5zcP9oBo
Also because McKenzie is one of the most generous people I know, she’s giving away Tata Harper products on my Instagram. Check out it out later today for all the details on how to win the essentials package. It’s magical. Thanks McKenzie for all your amazing tips! I feel so lucky to be your friend!
Winding down at night can be a challenge. I know because it’s one of the questions I get asked the MOST. Today I’m sharing my little creative secret to help shut down all the thoughts in your head so you can actually get to sleep!
https://youtu.be/q8ylSzVYgXk
Everyday my students tell me how stressed out they are and I totally get it. We have so much going on that it can be hard to do everything. The amount of questions I get about finding balance are on an all time high, but what interests me is my student’s shift into anxiety and its relationship to worthiness, deserving, and feeling good enough. Stress and anxiety are all things that EVERYONE faces, but what helps? My secret:
Mentorship and meditation.
These two things together helped me realize that I’m enough as I am. I don’t need anything on the outside (likes on Insta, cool friends, a hot boyfriend) to feel like I’m worthy on the inside. Allowing myself to be mentored has opened me up to hearing the, “Me Too,” or knowing that everything I’m going through is normal and human. It’s helped me get to know myself. Girls come to me all the time feeling like they need to be fixed. You’re not broken. There’s nothing wrong with you. Your fears are normal.
The second secret is meditation. You can’t get to know yourself if you’re not able to sit with yourself. Meditation is recharging. It’s a way to find peace in chaos, but you need to work it in order for it to work for you. Girls feel like it’s hard to meditate, but that’s a myth. Want to build a meditation practice? Below is my meditation playlist on Spotify (which all my students ask me about). Some songs are upbeat for energy. Some are softer to calm you down. Pick a song and focus on your breath for the entirety. Everyday is different so sometimes it will be easy to sit; somedays it’ll be hard. Thoughts start to drift? Totally okay! Come back to focusing on your breath. Try to meditate once a day for 21 days. You’ll be surprised how much you crave your meditation time once it becomes part of your routine.
I originally had a different blog planned for today, but the idea of happiness came up a lot in my groups lately. I think we have the misguided idea that we have to be happy all the time or push down uncomfortable feelings. The opposite is actually true. Instead of aiming for happiness, we should be moving towards wholeness. Check out today’s blog to hear a story about when I was unhappy and the question that got me through it!
https://youtu.be/jh8lDNfj_Cs