WOWsdom! The Girl’s Guide to the Positive and the Possible is a new interactive book I found recently on Kickstarter that has one very important mission: to help raise our female leaders of tomorrow. And they’ve set out to do just that by sharing the intimate and life-changing experiences of other women and girls so that those who may not have a mentor in their lives can still find ways to connect, learn, and grow into smart, empowered women.
Truly wow-worthy, in my opinion.
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WOWsdom! is the work of Generation WOW, an organization of women that works to bring about change for girls by offering mentoring programs, student-led school clubs, and workshops on college admissions and personal finance. And while we did notice that the organization itself is not made up of a very diverse group of leaders, we do feel they are doing an excellent job of including diverse voices and working to help all our girls.
The women and girls featured in WOWsdom! come from all walks of life and different backgrounds. There are business and community leaders like Geraldine Laybourne (co-founder of Nickelodeon), popular sports figures like pro-golf legend Annika Sorenstam, artists and performers such as Tina Lifford (currently starring in Queen Sugar), as well as policewomen, mothers, and teen girls from all across the country. And their stories are there to inspire and support girls to help them feel empowered and confident — something I feel all our girls could use more of each and every day.
According to the Generation WOW, only 50 percent of girls ages 12–19 believe they have what it takes to be a leader and just 25 percent of girls rarely or only sometimes feel confident in themselves.
So we love how this book combines the personal hopes, dreams, and even concerns of teenage girls — what the writers call “WOW” — with the advice and wisdom of women who have been there, done that in real, non-preachy ways. But the advice isn’t just from women — this book smartly includes letters from dads to daughters in an effort to offer up their insightful advice and wishes for their girls, and others too.
I particularly love the section where grownups share their stories and personal life lessons in the form of “Letters to my younger self” and the side-by-side comparison, “Letters to my future self,” written by teen girls. Though the letters are the real anchor of the book, the activities featured — writing prompts, short quizzes, Basic Training tips, and games and puzzles — are meant to help our girls process these lessons in fun, interactive ways.
And anything that opens up a dialogue between generations and helps to encourage and support young girls is very, very cool in my book.
You can order of WOWsdom! on Kickstarter for $25. If you donate $50 or more, they’ll also send a copy of the book to a special girl in your life.
