Five Ways to Help The Girl in Your Life Shatter That Pesky Glass Ceiling

The Hillary Clinton campaign for President and the election, while it may not have had the outcome you were expecting, has energized women and girls. Now more than ever, more attention is being paid to the needs of girls - on getting them a real shot at being anything they want - including POTUS! I mean, a Women’s March on Washington this coming January 21st to raise awareness of girl and women issues? That’s super cool.

So, yes, it seems like now more than ever before it is essential to make it clear to our girls (our daughters, nieces, granddaughters, god-daughters) and everyone else that YES, we can and will shatter that glass ceiling. If not today, tomorrow.

Now’s the time. Now’s the time to do what you can to help the girl in your life know she’s got what it takes to be the next President of the United States of America! Here’s how:

1. Get her speaking positive words to herself. What we say to ourselves we believe. You can never live a positive life speaking negative words. And not only teach her that her words matter, show her! Speak positively to yourself too! If you’re not modeling the behavior you want to see from her, don’t expect her to be any different than you.
2. Teach her to never give up! Failure, while it appears to be an end, is really just a course correction. It's a beginning. I once watched Oprah talk about failure and she said this, “Failure is just there to point you in a different direction.” Brilliant.
3. Find out what her passions are and introduce her to someone in your community who can be a mentor. Studies show kids with mentors are more likely take leadership roles in school and extracurricular activities and to regularly volunteer in their communities. If she can see it, she can be it!
4. Get her to do something for others. We all know the good feeling (hello, confidence!) you get when you step outside yourself and do something for someone else. This does not have to be a big production. Remember, less is more. Host a lemonade stand and donate the proceeds to your local pet shelter, she’ll feel like a champion for having done it.
5. Stretch her. Get her out of her comfort zone. Whatever it is she’s scared of doing, have her do that. Once she succeeds, she’ll know she’s got more power inside of her than she ever thought possible.

When Julia, my 11 year old daughter, and I started TIA GIRL CLUB, a new empowerment brand for girls, we had all of the above in mind. We wanted to teach girls to speak power into their lives, and now, through the TIA Statement of TODAY I AM, over ten thousand girls have done just that on our Instagram. With our monthly Treasure Box subscription, hundreds of girls are connecting with positive role models who are teaching them that yes, anything is possible if you stay true to yourself and your dreams. And, in December we are honored to have our first male Trailblazer, Derek Hough (girls and women cannot be the only ones talking about girl power!)! Derek was bullied as a kid, and is passionate about our mission. He inspired and curated two TIA Boxes (a Treasure Box for girls and a first ever, limited edition TIA Box for Boys!) filled with inspirational messaging and activities.

So, yes, now is the time. We cannot let the momentum of this recent call to action fade out. It should be something we actively practice every day with our girls, not just during times of vulnerability. So, please, join me in raising the next generation of strong, empowered women. Women who will shatter that pesky glass ceiling! I don’t know about you, but I’m excited to see it.

Join us in the #TodayIAm hashtag movement! Create your own #TodayIAm and post it to social media. Girls can do and be anything!