In the lead up to International Women’s Day 2019 we asked all our mentors and supporters this question: What would YOU say to your teenage self?

Most of us have had those moments where you think back to a situation, to something you said or thought as a teenager, to the company you kept, to a crippling fear you had, to a piece of advice you didn’t listen to, to a fashion faux pas, and you want to grab your younger self and just scream at them, maybe shaking that trilby hat right off their head (as in the case of our colleague Tigan!).

At The Girls’ Network, these moments are the diamonds in the rough of mentoring advice. For International Women’s Day 2019, we wanted to collect as many pieces of from-the-heart advice as we could, not just from mentors but from our wider following and from people who had never heard of us before, with the ultimate aim of sharing them with our mentees and ambassadors.

Research shows that only a third of teenage girls feel positive about themselves and their future. Many believe this is exacerbated by social media. For a week in March, however, our campaign took over and filled Twitter and Instagram with wise word, selfies, and old-school teenage photos dug out of shoe boxes. We were so grateful for the honesty, vulnerability and generosity of everyone who shared their #DearTeenageMe moment this year. Here are some of the recurring themes we picked up on, and some of the more practical to-the-point bits of advice, too…

Check out our YouTube channel for more!

A huge thanks to our partners for getting involved: JP Morgan, Ubisoft Reflections, DCMS, FlyKick, Oath.

May 2020 update: Dear teenage me, here are some self-awareness tips! From coach Megs

June 2020 update: Dear teenage me, look after yourself! From coach Megs

July 2020 update: Dear teenage me, look after yourself part 2! From coach Megs