THE EMPOWERED TEEN is a mentoring and coaching program specializing in helping young women create their identity so that they can become confident, make a positive and conscious impact on the world, and live their life purpose.
HELLO AND WELCOME! I AM ANDREA,
AND I AM ON A MISSION:
to change the next generation of women by helping teenage girls and young women EMBRACE THEIR POWER WITHOUT THE STRESS AND BURNOUT OF TODAY’S AGE so they can be TRUE LEADERS, live a passion driven life and make a BIG IMPACT in the world.
I BELIEVE…
- TEENS NEED TO BE EQUIPPED WITH TOOLS TO RESPOND WITH THE CHALLENGES OF LIFE so that they can become independent thinkers, empowered and confident. Confident teens become self-assured adults who can freely pursue their dreams and desires.
- PARENT DEPENDING ON THEIR CHILDREN TO GIVE THEM HAPPINESS is the biggest form of control and abuse.
- CHILDREN SHOULD FEEL FREE TO EXPRESS THEMSELVES and to question expectations placed upon them.
- IT IS IMPORTANT TO HAVE A CHILD-LIKE WONDER and to question the status quo. Curiosity, innovation, openness and intuition are essential to finding solutions.
- TEENS WANT TO FEEL SAFE TO COMMUNICATE THEIR FEELINGS and experiences with their family and close friends.
- THERE ARE NO COINCIDENCES and every experience is a learning opportunity. (It’s no coincidence that you are reading this!)
- TRUE GROWTH HAPPENS when we work outside of our comfort zone.
- EVERYONE WANTS TO FEEL SPIRITUALLY CONNECTED and fulfilled in their relationships.
- WHEN A WOMAN IS UNABLE TO MAKE A DECISION SHE FEELS DISEMPOWERED, depends on the validation of others, seeks constant approval and teaches self-sacrifice to the next generation.
THE BIGGEST STRUGGLES FACING TEENS:
- TEENS WANT TO FEEL LIKE THEY ARE PART OF A GROUP, clique or social circle and will find a group to belong and be a part of. Therefore, it is imperative that teenagers today are aware of their values and live in harmony with them so they can make positive choices.
- TEENS HAVE LEARNED TO BECOME WORKAHOLICS, to sacrifice their happiness and well-being for the sake of others and are in desperate need to create new patterns in order to live a stress-free, healthy and prosperous life.
- YOUNG WOMEN ARE LOOKING FOR VALIDATION AND APPROVAL FROM OTHERS to measure their self-worth and therefore suffer from low self-confidence.
LET ME JUST SAY THAT I WHOLEHEARTEDLY
BELIEVE THAT TEENS ARE AWESOME.
I FIND MYSELF ENERGIZED AND INSPIRED by their curiosity and passion. With fifteen years of experience as a high school teacher I have experienced alongside my students the pressures and stress that they go through.
I KNOW NOW MORE THAN EVER, that teens are faced with overwhelming stress, anxiety, pressure from peers and are bombarded and confused by images on social media of celebrities living what for most is an unrealistic lifestyle.
THE TRUTH IS, WHEN I WAS A TEEN I FELT JUST AS CONFUSED.
I DIDN’T FIT IN WITH MY PEERS, felt misunderstood and I had an overwhelming amount of stress to be the perfect student, daughter, sister and friend. I grew up feeling constant pressure and stress at home. As a first generation American with a mixed ethnicity, my mother is from Colombia and my father from India (I know, not your typical American), cultural differences were also a source of struggle for me. I never felt fully one culture nor the other and often felt it very difficult to fit in with my peers because of my very different background. I felt like no one understood me.
I FELT THE PRESSURE TO WEAR MULTIPLE HATS and be all things to everyone, but at the same
time I felt that I wasn’t good enough and I became obsessed with “doing better,” and didn’t know
how to deal with defeat. In efforts to keep friends, I didn’t know or understand boundaries and
often felt taken advantage of, and as a result I resented people and found it hard to trust others.
DESPITE THE PRESSURES, I WANTED TO BECOME SOMEONE, but really didn’t have the support to explore my interests, nor did I have successful women as role-models. As a teenager, I started to explore my independence, by my twenties I discovered my voice and started to develop myself spiritually and mentally. I became a personal development junkie, reading books and listening to inspirational leaders and speakers.
I LEARNED TO EXPLORE MY INTERESTS, AND CAN PROUDLY SAY I CREATED MY OWN PATH.
I BECAME A HIGH SCHOOL TEACHER with the mindset that I would teach my students culture and
language and hopefully inspire them to explore the world. I never realized how much I would end up loving working with young adults. While working with my students, I found that the very struggles I went through were still prevalent in the lives of teens.
IN EVERY TEEN THAT I SEE STRESSED, overwhelmed, or frightened into immobility I realize the importance of using my experience and training to help them transform their lives so they can become the leaders of tomorrow. I have found a passion in helping young women discover who they are so they can have a full life, while honoring themselves.
WHY DO I FEEL PASSIONATE FOR THE WORK I DO?
WHAT I SEE HAPPENING IS GIRLS FEEL THEY HAVE TO BE THE PERFECT IMAGE. They feel they have to look like Kylie Jenner and also cure cancer, create the next popular app and be the cool girl next store. Instead, girls must learn to be themselves and not confuse someone else’s path for what they should be doing or for who they are.
A quote I love by Judy Garland explains it well, “Always be a first-rate version of yourself instead of a second-rate version of someone else.”
TEENS NEED TO CONNECT AND BECOME AWARE OF THEIR INTUITION, LEARN TO LISTEN TO THEIR INNER VOICE AND GET USED TO BEING UNCOMFORTABLE SO THEY CAN LEARN AND GROW.
Unfortunately, teens want to know all of the answers without having to experience failure, when in fact failure is THE ULTIMATE source of learning and understanding. Instead of viewing taking risks as a possibility to fail, teens need to look at taking risks as an opportunity to learn and grow even if they do trip and fall along the way. Coping and growing from failure is essential for success. Struggles and failures don’t define you, but rather it is how you respond to them that shows who you truly are. Everyone has a dream and purpose for their life, but needs to go on a journey of self-discovery in order to make it a reality.
Teens are desperate for role-models who are confident, independent and inspirational. Teens today are highly aware of the impact they can make in their community and world and want to play big so they can have an influence and make lasting changes.
Today’s teen girls need to be equipped with tools to respond to the pressures of today, so that they can live in alignment with their values.