Principle 1: Don't step out of Line - part 1: family

" you were born an original, don't die a copy"
          - John Mason
  It can be difficult to be authentic. We are all influenced my family, friends, media, etc... we 5arnt taught to be authentic and most of us didn't learn to be authentic from our families. actually the opposite happens in families, because almost everyone on the planet has trouble being authentic including your family. In addition, even healthy families have unresolved issues. more than 60% of all American children are from devorced families, and 15% admit to be victim of domestic violence. ether way most life desisions we make are influenced by family, directly or inderectly. Family plays a big roll on our ability/inability to be athentic.

Being authentic

In the book, Be Yourself, Everyone Else is Already Taken by Mike Robbins, it is important to be authentic. The book lists 5 principles of authenticity. I love this book and it inspired me to do this blog, with my own additions of course. Soon I will be posting the 5 principles of authenticity.

Beauty for Girls

    Girls, we all want to have the perfect Victoria's secret model face and body. Well odds are, you'll never have that look. 90% of their look is Photoshop anyway. I would not want to weigh 90 lbs. You can never achieve the 'perfect look' because it doesn't exist. Those girls on the TV are just, what? 50 out of 7 billion? And think of all the plastic surgery they go through to get that body. Its unnatural.
   I want to tell you a story, when I was in Cinderella state pageant, which is supposed to be an "all natural" no- makeup, fake hair pageant. I got in my dressing room to get ready for my first dinner and let me tell you, I sat for two hours straightening my hair and another hour caking makeup on my face. By the way, my profile picture is a picture of me looking out the window of the hotel after they were done with 'perfecting' me.
   My hair has really tight spiral curls and we had to put a relaxer in it to get it even that strait. The ironic part was that they had to re- curl my hair to get 'Barbi Doll' curls. You know, the big curls that girls with strait hair have almost every day. I did not win the pageant and was considered the 'underdog' because I wasn't blond haired- blue eyed.
   I am half white and half black. At my school there is only one other black person beside me. I know what it is like to 'stick out like a sore thumb' but I wouldn't change who I am for the world. People sometimes comment on how dark of a brown my eyes are that they just looked black. They said that they couldn't see the pupils in my eyes. I really don't care what they say. And if your reading this, and you have problems with what others say, if you remember anything from this blog remember this: "Those who care don't matter and those who matter don't care"... ... a quote form... i don't know who... my friend just said that to me the other day...so ya... ... ... have a miraculous day :D

Guys, if there is a girl you like here are some tips on how to get her attention.

1. Try to befriend her. 90% of friendships grow into more than just friendships. I feel there is no such thing as the "doomed friend zone" because many adults I know who are married were friends all through school.
2. whatever you do, DO NOT act like an idiot. I'm not talking about saying something weird or being awkward. Some guys at my school, if they like a girl, they will just be plane rude ans stupid thinking they're funny. Trust me, you'll just completely turn her off.
3. Just try to talk to her, honestly, with confidence. I personally prefer guys who talk to me with confidence
4. There is nothing a girl loves more than feeling like she is perfect. Complement her. Even if she looks like she is having a bad day, that is your chance to put a little sunshine into it with a nice complement like: " I hate to see someone who looks as beautiful as you so upset" then ask if she would like to talk about it. Even if you don't care, it will make her feel better just to get it off her chest.
5. They say if you ask a girl out the worst thing she could say is "No! Beat it!" Honestly I feel that would be just rude if a girl said just that when a guy got the courage to ask her out. There is a rule in the church at dances that if a guy asks you to dance never say no, because who knows, he may be a great guy. ... .... Girls, I'm not saying say yes to every guy who asks you out.... just use common sense.

The secret to clear skin, for boys and girls:

1. drink A Lot of water.. this will flush all the toxins away. Water is the key hydration and if your skin is not hydrated it will break out
2.  Get at least 8 hours of sleep... when you sleep your skin cells will renew and regenerated itself. Also, when you sleep stress levels go down lowering the chance of your skin breaking out. If you don't get enough sleep your skin will look dry and dull and will eventually break out. they don't call it beauty sleep for nothing!
3.  Try to sleep on your back... if you sleep on your side or stomach you can cause permature siding and the bactiria from your pillow can cause you to break out.
4.  Change pillowcases often... the bactirea can cause you to break out
5. Clean off your mobile phone screen often... the oil and bacteria from use (especially a touchscreen) can cause you to break out
6.  Eat a healthy diet... if you eat a lot of fating and greasy foods this will cause your skin to break out. eat foods that are high in antioxidants like lemons, tomatoes, strawberry, blueberries, etc...
7. HYGIENE!!!!! make sure to wash your face morning and night. try not to sleep with dirty hair and try not to touch your face alot. The oil and bactiria on your hands can cause you to break out. Always splash your face with cold water first to get the blood to flow and you get circulation in your skin. keep your room clean because with a clean environment you'll feel it and stress levels will go down.
8. Exercise... when you exercise it increases blood circulation which is really good for your skin, and it reduces stress levels and just makes you feel good. make sure to sower after! ;)
9. Avoid dairy...the hormones in dairy cause you to break out.
10. Moisturize... don't clean your skin too much. Use a good oil free moisturizer. try to stay away from cream and go for gel moisturizers.
11. Identify your skin type... use common sense on what products are safe for you to use and work best.
12. Don't completely rely on products...they can only help so much.
13. Find  good cleanser... I prefer Nutragena (they don't pay me to say that) it just cleans my face thoroughly and gently.

   Girls, we all want the same thing, to be beautiful, smart, and popular. Right now I want to focus on popularity. First of all, how you define popular is up to you. It could be having a million friends in a clique, everyone knowing your name, or just anyone who passes by you in the hall say hi when you don't even know them. To me, popular means respect. not everyone has to hang out with you and be your best friend. Just knowing of you and respecting you is what I consider very popular.
   Many girls at my school are very known and considered 'popular' but only because they do outrageous things that a respected girl would never do. Other girls are popular due to being fun to be around. Others, like me, don't have many people who hang around them, but are very known and respected due to many things like winning science fairs, beauty pageants, or are just overall good people.
 

Jr. High and high school is hard. We all know this. Its a given fact. Girls are mean teachers are strict and boys are jerks. I honestly would say that school is harder for girls, since I am a girl, but boys have problems of their own. From friends to grades it is tough and is only gonna get tougher. I have some tools of the trade and tips to boost self confidence tohelp you achieve the best you that you can be.