Girls with Grit
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Mums with Mojo
The Girls Got Grit Forum is an award winning weekend workshop where we tackle the two biggest challenges facing our girls at the moment: body compassion and developing grit. Grit has been shown to be 2x more important than talent in predicting a girls ability to achieve her dreams. Body love challenges are consistently ranked top of mind for under 18's. This woman + girl weekend, gives us a toolbox to help our girls navigate the choppy waters of adolescence, build resilience, and learn to be kind to their bodies.
These very same tools have been shown to act as a resuscitation device for mummy mojo.
Why we do it
Two big issues. Two big days.
This is Harper, my niece. She is 7.
#1 = Body Compassion
"Around Christmas time two years ago, my neice Harper walked into my kitchen. She asked me... "Auntie Mandi...am I fat?"...she was 5. Seriously! I was completely and utterly gobsmacked. How was this even on her radar? My families struggle with eating disorders flashed in front of my eyes and I knew I had to do something to help before it was too late.
So I went on an adventure to find the answers. You can read a bit about it here.
Do I have the magic pill that will protect every girl ever from body shame? Nope, but collectively we do. It starts with learning to be compassionate with ourselves and with each other. If we can help a generation of girls to gather the tools they need to stay strong under the enormous pressure of a trillion dollar industry that only benefits when they question their own unique beauty, well then we have given them tools that will help with other pressures in their lives.
The obstacle becomes the way." - Mandi Lynn ( the trust's founder)
#2 = Girl Grit
Research indicates that grit is 2x more important that talent long term at seeing your daughter achieve her dreams.
Imagine what the world would be like populated by girls who were happy in their own skin and never backed down from a challenge when it came to something that they loved? Self compassion is linked closely with Gratitude. Grit and Gratitude have been studied and shown that when both are present the chances of suicidal ideation drop significantly. In New Zealand we top the charts in youth suicide. What if we could do something to change that.
This workshop supports girls to become grateful for their bodies just as they are and to learn techniques to amp up their natural grit.
How do we do it?
Playful weekend to bond, to stretch, to grow.
A gathering of woman + their girls
A weekend of art and movement-based activities that encourage
- Body compassion
- Grit - girl power and dedication to a vision
- How to turn down the internal critical voice
- Dial up the internal compassionate voice
- Learning to stand centred in our own personal power and avoid the bully victim pendulum.
You will basically get to play your way into a deeper knowledge of yourself, shed some things that are holding you back, and revive a bit of your mojo while your girl is given tools to become grittier.
In 2018, we put on events in Wanganui, South Taranaki, Upper Hutt, Waipa, and Rangitikei Regions. The events were so successful that we were identified as winners in the health and well being category for our region in the Wellington Airport Community service awards.
Device Free Zone
Where are we doing it?
We have been fortunate to receive seed funding from each of the below regions COGS funders. Once we have found the remaining funding/donations/volunteers to put on the event we will announce the dates and times for 2019.
Wainuiomata Town Hall
9-10 February 2019
Ilminster Intermediate
28th and 29th of April 2019
Warkworth Town Hall
4-5 May 2019
Papatoetoe Town Hall
9-10th May 2019
Rotorua Girls College
16-17th May 2019
Pathways into the Program
Social Enterprise Pathways (pay to play)
Buy a limited release ticket
If you are the sort of person who doesn't want to leave it up to someone else to see if you will get a space, then you can jump the waiting list cue and just buy a ticket. There are twenty tickets available this way. Once they are gone then the only way to get in will be by getting on the waiting list for a scholarship.
We are making a Girl Power Book
If your daughter is Gritty...If she has worked hard to push past her natural talents and is dedicated to a field of study she might be a candidate for the Girls Got Grit Book. It is a book about girls who might not be the best yet, but they will work the hardest.
We are showcasing a girl's unique beauty as well as what makes her gritty. Dancers, singers, artists, creatives, sportswomen, musicians, entrepreneurs, coders, academics...what ever her obsession might be.
This project is run as a social enterprise arm of our trust. All profits are used to run the Girls Got Grit Projects and bring them to more regions. This pathway includes two tickets to the Forum.
15 spaces available this way.
Body Positive Make Over Photoshoot Fundraiser
This pathway is for those who feel their Mojo may be more like No go. Or those mums who never seem to be able to convince their daughters of the beauty that they see in them. It includes a half day with Mandi Lynn the founder of Every Body is a Treasure Charitable trust who also happens to be New Zealands Creative Photographer of the Year 2017. You will receive a Make over and a photoshoot that celebrates your unique inner beauty. It is a one on one confidence and compassion building experience. Especially designed for those who hate having their photo taken or feel that they are not photogenic. You will receive two tickets to the event this way.
The cost of the photo session is donated to the trust.
Coming Soon
Free Entry Pathways
75% of the tickets go to free scholarships.
Participating school principals get to select a designated number of nominees from the tween and teen leaders at their school as well as a number of nominations for teachers to attend.
If you would like to get on the waiting list for a scholarship from your school please follow this link.
In each region, we are looking for:
- Visual Artists and Movement Teachers
- Holders of Maoritanga
- Regional Ambassadors
- Setup and Breakdown Crews
- Healthy Cook
Mia Cambell
When I first came across the Finding Venus project, I immediately thought it would be perfect for my daughter who is 9 and already being so self conscious about what she wears, how she looks or what shes doing... but after the morning session, I realized her confidence was 10/10 where mine was at 2/10. Throughout the day and the activities we participated in I could slowly but surely feel my confidence starting to rise and getting to know other women who were more than happy to share personal experiences with body positivity absolutely blew me away. My daughter made new friends, I made new friends and we left with our Mojo intact! I can't recommend this enough... Mandi, you and your fantastic team were absolutely magical and I hope to cross your path again as you have ignited something crazy/fierce inside of me and I'd love to show that to you again one day
Who we are
Event Support Crew
Frequently asked Questions
Societal pressures on girls
- Each day we see 400-600 Photoshopped images of a very narrow bandwidth of body shapes and colours.
- Girl Guides New Zealand's recent survey of girls aged seven to 17 showed body image was the biggest issue affecting them today.
- Suicide rates for girls ages 10 to 14 have dramatically increased since the advent of social media.
- If a girl is taught that her body is "not good enough" then this impacts her confidence in many areas of her life. Wasting create energy that could be put to many better uses.
Why Mother / Daughter
Our goal is to support the development of a self-aware, powerful, and compassionate female leader. It is a much easier task if her mother has received the same supportive education. Both mother and daughter are under a great amount of over cultural pressure to be "perfect". We support a girl to be perfectly herself. Sometimes it helps to support mums to do the same.
When mums have new babies they are often connected with a peer group but as their daughter ages, this sometimes wanes. Also, the new challenges of a daughter beginning to be self-reliant can cause its own little collection of stress. Research shows that a mother is more likely to be depressed when her daughter is a tween than at any other time in her life. Not saying you are depressed but there might be the odd one in the group that we can together support through connection and sisterhood.
We bring mothers and daughters together in a cell phone free environment to holistically support the females in the family. As you will have both received the same education you can support each other in living it. We teach non-violent communication, and how to turn down the critical voices in our own heads. This can do nothing but help support compassionate family dialogue.
Oh, and it is also probably important to know that we group the mothers together based on the ages of their daughters and the daughters will get into groups based on their ages. So you will be learning at the same time but not in each other's back pockets.
Supported By
Manukau, Gisborne, Rotorua, Rodney/North Shore, Hutt Valley