Blog - Page 15 of 18 - Kathleen Hassan | Confidence Coach

Teen Girls: Making the List

Last week at New Jersey’s top-ranked Milburn High School, senior “it” girls circulated their annual “Slut List” of incoming freshman girls. A dozen or more names are written on a piece of notebook paper along with vulgar descriptions and are copied and circulated around the school. Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy One might assume that this is just another awful example of girl bullying, but in this case, you’d be wrong. According to William Miron, the principal of Milburn High, this has been going on for a decade and said “We’ve had girls obsessed that their names are on it, and girls who were upset that they didn’t make the list.” That’s right, some girls actually are disappointed if they don’t make the list! Is this really what girl power is all about? Seriously? As a Confidence Coach, I help girls learn [...]

By Kathleen| 2017-03-07T14:51:47+00:00 September 29th, 2009|

Remembering 9-11: Let the Healing Begin

Much like, “where were you when JFK was shot?”, most of us remember exactly where we were and what we were doing on September 11, 2001. I remember getting a call from my sister. She was crying hysterically and said “Turn on the TV, we are under attack!” We sat together on the phone watching in shock and saw in real time the second plane fly into the second tower. I felt like the plane flew directly into me. I sat there shell shocked and then remembered that it was the first day of work for my new assistant. When she arrived I told her that I doubted we’d get any work done at all. So together we sat down and prayed. In a flash of divine inspiration I got an idea to offer a workshop to help others deal with the ramifications and post-terror emotions of this terrible tragedy. [...]

By Kathleen| 2009-09-11T02:21:06+00:00 September 11th, 2009|

Back to School Self-Esteem Check Up

New clothes… check. School supplies… check. New shoes… check. It’s that time again! Some kids are nervous, others are excited and just about every parent is ecstatic because it feels so good to get back to a schedule, have some alone time and above all know where your kids are, that they are safe and hopefully they are learning. Lots of preparation goes into gearing up for a new school year. Athletes are required to have a physical check up before playing any sports. But what about a self-esteem check up? How we feel about ourselves as we enter into any new situation will have a dramatic effect on whether we succeed or fail. So how does one go about this type of self-esteem check up? First we have to know what self-esteem is all about. There are two components that form a person’s self-esteem: competence and worthiness. Competence [...]

By Kathleen| 2017-03-07T14:53:36+00:00 August 31st, 2009|

One Giant Leap for Womankind

Moonwalk Long before Michael Jackson slid backwards across the stage, as a matter of fact, 40 years ago today man walked on the moon. July 20, 1969: Do you remember where you were that day? For my teen readers, you weren’t even born yet! I’ll never forget that day, but not because it was a day in history, but rather a day in herstory! One small step for a woman... I got my first period the day the astronauts walked on the moon! While the nation sat transfixed to their television sets, I was locked in my bathroom, afraid to come out and trying to figure out how to strap on the paraphernalia that my mother kept hidden in the linen closet! Note to moms: Don’t wait to have “the talk!” It’s scary enough to grow up female in this world and it’s important to know the facts of [...]

By Kathleen| 2017-03-07T14:53:49+00:00 July 20th, 2009|

Teen Girl With the Weight of the World on Her Shoulders

A Response to Jayleene what can you do when the world’s weight is on your sholders? i feel like i might just break down completely…and then end up Back in Rehab..but instead of outpatient in will be Inpatient…my problem is something that you spoke about when you came to my school..thou it’s not somthing you talked alot about..i guess it’s hard for people to understand what i do..and i don’t feel like saying cause i get judged. or called crazy. so whatever. but i guess i just need help..i need to know what to do so i can help myself..to stop my hurting. Hi Jayleene – thank you so much for reaching out to me. That is a HUGE accomplishment and it is like your soul is tugging on your sleeve trying to get your attention to wake up and discover your true power. It doesn’t matter what you’re doing [...]

By Kathleen| 2009-04-09T10:42:19+00:00 April 9th, 2009|

Oscar Buzz: Forget Best Dressed… How About Best Message

Last night I was in awe watching the Academy Awards. Not because of the designer gowns, the red carpet parade of who’s who celebs, but because of the powerful and gentle message delivered by A.R. Rahman in his acceptance speech for winning his second Oscar of the night. Rahman received Oscars for Best Original Score and Best Original Song – both for the song “Jai Ho” from the movie “Slumdog Millionaire.” The composer was soft-spoken and unassuming and spoke from his heart. He ended the acceptance speech by saying something in his native language and I had to google it this morning to find out that he said “God is great” in Tamil, something he says after winning every award. “All my life I had a choice between hate and love. I chose love and I am here”, were his concluding words. Each one of us has the opportunity [...]

By Kathleen| 2017-03-07T14:54:51+00:00 March 23rd, 2009|

Parents: Giving Advice to Tweens & Teens

Finger wagging advice NEVER works! The other day I received a request from a journalist who is writing an article for Good Housekeeping and she was looking for tips on how to give advice to tweens and teens. Being right up my alley, I immediately dashed off an email with 9 tips that absolutely flowed out of me and onto the page. I still haven’t heard back from the writer as to whether or not she’ll be quoting me in her article and the way it usually works is you find out just before the publication goes to print. I’m not holding my breath, but just happy to have been asked and figured I may as well share that information with all of you instead of waiting for the article to come out. So here’s what I wrote to her: My name is Kathleen Hassan and I am known [...]

By Kathleen| 2017-03-07T14:55:51+00:00 March 5th, 2009|

6 things to do before your teen goes away for spring break

I just received this google news alert and thought it was important enough to re-post on my blog for your consideration. SunSentinel.com February 27, 2009 No matter where teens are traveling for spring break this year, Family Circle magazine has six things you must do before your teen goes away. Sit them down and talk to them about the behaviors you expect from them. Reinforce the same things you taught them when they were younger: trust their instincts, don’t wander off with strangers, stress that there is safety in numbers. Set up communication rules. Find out if your teen’s cell phone will work wherever they are traveling. If it won’t make sure they have money for a pay as you go phone that they can purchase when they arrive. Decide on a specific time every day for your child to call or text you to check in. Make sure you [...]

By Kathleen| 2009-03-02T10:49:59+00:00 March 2nd, 2009|

Daring to Disagree: Taking the Sting Out of Queen Bees & Wannabees

For most of my life, I was a people pleaser; afraid to rock the boat and speak my truth. But thankfully because I walk my talk and practice what I preach, I have dared to go deep within and have found my voice and my true power. As a result, I am no longer willing to acquiesce to the opinion or acclaimed wisdom of others when I just don’t agree – even if that other person is a best-selling author and her book was the basis of a hit movie. I recently attended a program by the author of Queen Bees & Wannabees who spoke about girls and bullying. I walked out of the auditorium feeling uneasy and the energy in the room was palpably heavy. The woman I went with, who also works in this field, took voracious notes and loved it. I wrestled with these feelings for days [...]

By Kathleen| 2009-01-28T11:14:15+00:00 January 28th, 2009|

Heal Our Young Women ~ Heal the World

While millions of Americans journied to our nation’s capital to be a part of history in the making, while workers watched the inauguration online through CNN & Facebook, while people from around the world observed the 44th President of the United States of America take his oath of office and pledge his allegiance and service to our great nation, many girls across the country still were unable to shift their focus away from their own inner battles to embrace the power of this day. In the middle of watching the streaming video from CNN in partnership with Facebook, I received not one, but five emails from teen girls who were all asking me advice on how to be thin, how to be more confident, how to get a guy to like them, how to stop being so shy and quiet – and basically how to be anyone else but who [...]

By Kathleen| 2009-01-20T11:16:39+00:00 January 20th, 2009|