Book Talk: “Enough As She Is” by Rachel Simmons

Posted: October 27, 2022

“Enough As She Is: How to Help Girls Move Beyond Impossible Standards of Success to Live Healthy, Happy, and Fulfilling Lives” by Rachel Simmons

This book is a perfect resource for anyone who leads, loves, or mentors young women. Simmons discusses the difficulties girls face related to their desire to achieve, succeed, and be exceptional in all that they do. She highlights that “competence does not equal confidence” and that the worth, resilience, and happiness girls experience today is significantly lower than previous decades.

“Enough As She Is” is great for:

-parents

-teachers

-counselors

-mentors

-any female in middle school, high school, or college

Megan’s favorite takeaways:

“Girls develop confidence when they face down the unknown and come out on the other side – note that I didn’t say succeed at the other side.”
We have to maintain the focus on attempting the things in life that are difficult or make us feel anxious, regardless of if we succeed in them. If we focus on the outcome alone, anxiety can increase and the avoidance will as well.

“Feeling good about your body – genuinely, sustainably good – will never come from an external source.”
To support the young adults in our life, we should be focusing on the needs their bodies have to be strong and get through our days, not on the body’s weight, size, or shape.

“When competition begins to eat away at connection, resentment and even paranoia can follow.”
Comparison can eat away at our self-esteem and confidence and is one of the most prevalent and ineffective ways we measure our success and happiness.

Self-compassion is the key to regulating our emotions, procrastinating less, and finding a balance in our everyday lives that brings us joy.

Megan Barfield, MS, LMFT