Self-Improvement Books for Young Women

Do you ever just wake up one day and have loads of energy? Yeah, me neither. Sometimes however, I come across something that inspires me and gets me excited about life. Right now, this “something” is self-improvement books. Through life’s ups and downs there’s one thing that will remain constant: your ability to react. And often enough, how you react will determine whether the next hill takes you up or down.

Currently, life is a bumpy road. If I’m honest, I’d say that most of 2014 was a bit bumpy. It had its good moments, but I’m looking forward to a new year and hopefully a fresh start in a new place. Between school, part-time work, finding full-time work, blogging, and other little things, I’m a bit overwhelmed. Planning the future is hard when the future won’t allow you to plan it. In the meantime, I’m going to enjoy spending time reading a few books I’ve wanted to get my hands on. I’m a pretty independent girl but I also strive to be a classy lady. The books I choose to read will reflect that.

5 Books on My Reading List

1. “It” by Alexa Chung

2. “#Girlboss” by Sophia Amoruso

3. “Classy: Exceptional Advice for the Extremely Modern Lady” by Derek Blasberg

4. “Place to Go, People to See” by Kate Spade

5. “How to Marry Money” by Kevin Doyle

Some of these are more for pleasure and entertainment than self improvement, but hopefully I’ll enjoy reading them and learn a thing or two. Let me know what books you might like me to review!

How to be a Lady: 3 Helpful Hints

I absolutely adore the Disney movie The Aristocats.The cutest kitty in that movie is little Marie. Her best line in the movie is “Ladies don’t start fights but they can finish them!” This prompted me to write a short post on what it truly means to be a lady. We are all born girls but only a few of us manage to become ladies. Here are a few lady-like standards true ladies should adhere to.

Rule 1: Ladies really don’t start fights

This little lady was right- ladies don’t start fights. They can exchange words but hair pulling and wrestling each other doesn’t do much for the reputation of the women engaging in the argument. People can have disagreements but they have to remain civilized in polite company.

Rule 2: The shorter the hemline, the smaller the heel

You all know what I’m talking about. You see it at the clubs and bars; the girls with hemlines that may as well not exist and heels that give her another 6 inches of height (or maybe it’s the bump-it in her hair). Ladies, if you’re going to wear a short dress, then please wear a kitten heel. Those stilettos look amazing, believe me I understand, but with the hemline being so high, just refrain from wearing them. We are ladies, not adult performers.

Rule 3: Avoid crass language

I knew one girl who was so classy to look at but when she opened her mouth it was so disappointing. If you find yourself inserting a curse word into every other sentence you speak, then I’d say you need to work on that. In my opinion, people who use curse words abusively in conversation aren’t intelligent to find other words that could convey the same meaning but more eloquently.

Comments? Leave them below!

Turning 21: Diamonds and 4 Things I did for My Birthday!

There are several milestones an individual has to reach before they are considered a full fledged adult. Turning 16 means getting a license, 18 you can vote, and 21 means you can legally drink alcohol. Each milestone comes with a new responsibility. My 21st birthday was a few weeks ago and I truly feel like an actual adult now. I have all the rights of being one and the responsibility.

The best part of turning 21 for me? Diamonds. My dear, sweet boyfriend gave me a beautiful diamond ring! Besides being totally shocked and feeling very spoiled, I felt like a lady and a little girl at the same time. Not many gents can do that but he pulls it off!

4 Things I Did for My Birthday

Besides receiving the ring, here’s 4 others things I did for my 21st.

1. Went to Florida

My boyfriend lives in the Sunshine state so every few months I hop a plane and go down for a visit. Since the mid-atlantic region is still chilly by the beginning of spring I decided to spend my birthday with him, who also happens to have the same birthday as mine. 

2. Took Myself Shopping

I am a shopoholic. The movie Confessions of a Shopoholic was made with me in mind. Given that Florida is a touristy area they have more outlets than any other place I’ve been. Part of the birthday money I received from my parents funded my day of shopping, which by the way, was very successful. I spent about 8 hours trying on shoes, dresses, and things that I simply couldn’t afford. But it was my day, so I figured I’d try it on anyway. 

3. Tried My First Drink

A good friend of mine took me out to try my first mojito… which I ended up not exactly loving. I think alcohol is similar to coffee, you have to acquire a taste for it. Yikes that stuff was strong! When I was in my late teens, I figured my 21st would be like Jen’s on The Hills. All my friends and I would go out and lightly sip cocktails at a nice city lounge and chat. However, when most of your friends live all over the country and not in one place its hard to get everyone together. Additionally, I simply do not have a taste for alcohol. Something tells me that the ladies of The Hills had already acquired a love for drinks prior to their 21st birthdays. Our night out was still quite enjoyable though. 

4. Went to Busch Gardens

Not sure what to do for our day, my man and I decided that we (and a few friends) should go to a theme park. We spent our time flipping upside down on roller coasters, feeling sick, and making memories. I finally understand what it means to get older, crazy rides are no longer your friend but a thing that makes your brain want to fall out. 

Each birthday I have I realize that I’m drifting farther and farther from adolescence and that’s truly scary. Childhood, for some, is the simplest time of their lives and saying good bye to it is a soft reminder that nothing lasts forever. But the older I get, the wiser I become. Age, in my opinion, is viewed entirely wrong. With increasing days comes increasing knowledge. Google doesn’t always have all the answers, but time does. 

Comment, like, and share!

-Liz