Self Development

Trying Something New

Many men and women from lower income families have been the first to go to college and university and have had to put off a lot of things for a long time. What things have you felt a need to do? Could you make time to do them?

Self Development

How to Justify Not Growing Out of It...

If your teenage years were anything like mine, you'll have often heard "I wouldn’t worry, it’s just a phase" during conversations about your pink hair / activism / penchant for corsetry / statement of choice. Then suddenly, wonderfully, everyone accepts it. Then you reach the end of your period of grace...

Self Development

Dark English Rose

"I have always felt myself an oddity. Not quite British, not quite Indian. It was more than just skin colour; I went through adolescence liking anime and adoring Jane Austen. Surely the idea of the English Rose was not completely inaccessible to us darker skinned ladies?"

Self Development

Keeping your identity... as a professional

"A few weeks ago, I looked at myself in a mirror and I realised - I have lost something of myself". Is it possible to retain one's alternative outlook and outward appearance in the professional world? Can self-expression and voluntary adherence to work structure exist?

Self Development

WHAT IS BRAVE? A working mother's truth

Bravery. Is it base-jumping? Running with bulls? Standing up for your beliefs and waving a placard? Being a working mother and sole carer of an artistic, intelligent family with various mental health problems? Yeah, bravery. It comes in many forms.

Self Development

Calling friends out on their oppressive views

“It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends” - Albus Dumbledore. Facing oppression is already a difficult experience when it comes from society at large, but when it comes from your closest friends it can be an even more painful experience.

Self Development

Letter to my teenage self

“It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends” - Albus Dumbledore. Facing oppression is already a difficult experience when it comes from society at large, but when it comes from your closest friends it can be an even more painful experience.