When I first launched The Intuitive Writing Project in 2013, all I knew was how important writing had been for me . Today, after twelve years and over 3,500 hours of class-time, I can say with 100% certainty that writing is the most effective, the most cathartic, the most clarifying, and also the most joyful way to build self-confidence and self-awareness in teenage girls.   Here are three reasons why I believe writing is the antidote   to everything  teenage girls are str

By Elizabeth Perlman, first published on April 12, 2023 “When people say to me, ‘What should I tell my daughter?’ I always say, ‘The most important thing is to listen. This is how she learns she has something to say.’” — Gloria Steinem As we continue to unpack the recent   Youth Risk Behavior Survey  from the CDC, evidence that “America’s teen girls are engulfed in a growing wave of sadness, violence and trauma,” I believe the most meaningful thing we can do is to continue th

By Elizabeth Perlman, first published January 23, 2023 "Unlike the competition and criticism most kids experience at school, The Intuitive Writing Project offers a world of radical acceptance and emotional support.” At the Intuitive Writing Project, our programs are grounded in The Amherst Writing Method , a transformative writing philosophy created thirty years ago by the visionary teacher, Pat Schneider. The focus is on strength-building, ensuring that every individual is d

*The word "girls" is intended to include all gender-expansive youth By Elizabeth Perlman, first published on October 20, 2022 "You alone are enough. You have nothing to prove to anybody." — Maya Angelo Michelle Obama once said, “Your success will be determined by your confidence.” The trick, of course, is  how to build confidence— what I call  intrinsic confidence —especially in girls. To quickly define my terms, the word  intrinsic refers to our essential nature. The word  e

*The word "girls" is intended to include all gender-expansive youth By Elizabeth Perlman, first published on April 13, 2022 “As the number of studies increased, it became clear that writing was a far more powerful tool for healing than anyone ever imagined.” — Dr. James W. Pennebaker “you do not have to learn. how to love yourself. you just have to remember. there was nothing wrong with you to begin with.” — Nayyirah Waheed    Part 1: The Challenge   Last week, The Atlantic  

By Elizabeth Perlman, first published on February 22, 2022 “Stop measuring days by degree of productivity and start experiencing them by degree of presence.” — Alan Watts In a world measured by “productivity,” we often feel like eight billion, busy human factories, hustling as hard and fast as we can. But in the process of being “productive,” we tend to discount our creativity , overworked into believing “it doesn’t matter” and we’re “not that creative anyway.” Somehow it see

By Elizabeth Perlman, first published May 30, 2021 "Fear not. What is not real, never was and never will be. What is real, always was and cannot be destroyed." — The Bhagavad Gita Many years ago, the psychologist Robert Plutchik (friend of Albert Einstein) concluded that humans have the ability to experience 34,000 different emotions. (As I'm sure many women will agree, this comes as no surprise!) But at the root of all these emotions, I have learned that there are really jus

By Elizabeth Perlman, first published on April 17, 2021 "Intuition is an intelligence. It guides each of us to our highest potential." — Simone Wright To quote Tina Fey's character Titus Andromedon, "what the foop" is intuition and why should we care? In 250 words or less, here’s my take: Intuition is our most advanced intelligence.  It synthesizes all our knowledge and experience—mental and physical, conscious and unconscious—and pings us an instantaneous insight. Intuition

By Elizabeth Perlman, first published April 1, 2021 "In a society that profits from our self-doubt, liking yourself is a rebellious act." — Caroline Caldwell Hello Wonderful Humans! For those who don’t already know me, my name is Elizabeth. I’m the founder and Executive Director of The Intuitive Writing Project. (More on that later!) I’ve read that people spend an average of 1-2 minutes reading on each newsletter or blog post they open. That comes to about 250 words. Since I