Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul on Tough Stuff: Stories of Tough Times and Lessons Learned

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I told her my day had not been so great. She said she was sorry and offered to walk me outside. At that moment I realized how wrong I was in wanting to only be friends with popular people. Those people weren’t even going to consider being my friends, but there were some people who I’d already met today and liked and they liked me. Maybe I shouldn’t decide whether a person is worthy of being my friend or not by their reputation, but by who they are. I said, “Thanks, I’d like that. I’m sorry I was kind of rude this morning.” She said it was okay, she was new at school once too. Walking with Diane made me realize how nice it would be to have a friend like her. On the way to class she asked me if I wanted to go out after school to hang out with some of her friends and get to know them better. I did go out with Diane and had a lot of fun. Brianne Monett considered herself to be awkward as she made her way through her freshman year of high school. She had no close friends, didn’t play sports, wasn’t fashionable, and mostly kept to herself. As a result, her classmates were unkind to her.

Canfield received a BA in Chinese History from Harvard University and a Masters from University of Massachusetts. He has worked as a teacher, a workshop facilitator, and a psychotherapist. Also, many of them are unrealistic; they seem to go on and on about how everything has a happy ending. But that's just not the case... In my opinion, it's giving teenagers the wrong idea about success.I’ve always heard stories about how parenting today’s teens are “a dreaded few years,” but I’m here to tell you that it’s just not true. On the contrary, the preteen & teen years are wonderful, and parenting a teenager is like a reward for putting in the time & energy when our children are younger. Adolescence tests our character – our strengths and weaknesses. We hope that this book will help or has helped us come out of it alive and whole. The teenage years are when kids discover who they really are and define how the world sees them. It’s the time when they start to feel empowered, recognize their strengths, and become more mature about relationships with family and friends, learning how to be compassionate, forgiving, and open-minded. This is the time when they plan for their futures, try out working, and become more independent. This is also the time that they recognize that tough stuff happens, too, to themselves and the people they care about.

I followed them around, laughing when they told jokes, agreeing when they had opinions – most enthusiastically at the ones I disagreed with. I didn’t say much. I wouldn’t want them to think I was being rude by disagreeing. This continued for several months. Ashley agreed, but to make it worse, she said, “I know, I wish she would leave us alone. We were in summer school together and now she thinks we’re best friends or something. Get a life.” It didn’t bother me exactly, but I know that there are people who would definitely not cope with certain of these stories and they wouldn’t be warned up front. This is a book you will read and reread, sharing your favorite stories with one another over and over again.I suspect that some of these stories are fictional. The series (apparently) only accepts real, firsthand stories...but a lot of these seem inauthentic. The introduction of the book explains that the books can be read straight through or can be used as a guide book, depending on what issue the reader is going through. Canfield's most recent book, The Success Principles (2005), shares 64 principles that he claims can make people more successful. In 2006, he appeared in the DVD, "The Secret," and shared his insights on the Law of Attraction and tips for achieving success in personal and professional life.