A 3-PART LEARNING SERIES FOR PARENTS & GROWN-UPS WHO CARE ABOUT A GIRL AGES 8-12
You Don't Have to Have All the Answers.
You Just Have to Show Up.
The Girls & workshop series gives you the language, tools, and everyday practices to help a girl build confidence, find her strengths, and grow through the toughest years.
THE RESEARCH IS CLEAR, THE WINDOW IS NOW.
Around age 8, something shifts.
For many girls, the years between 8 and 12 are when confidence begins to slip - quietly, and often without warning. Research shows that by age 14, girls' confidence can drop by as much as 30%. At the same time, anxiety rates for girls have risen sharply.
30%
decline in girls’ confidence between ages 8 and 14
What girls are navigating during this window:
Pressure to be 'good,' kind, and perfect all the time
Fear of making mistakes or standing out from peers
Social comparison - in friendships, school, sports, and online
Big emotional shifts they don't yet have language for
Here's what the research also shows: women don't tend to reach the same confidence levels as men until their 40s. That's far too long to wait. The good news is that confidence is not a personality trait - it's a learnable skill. And it builds fastest when reinforced by a trusted adult.
“Confidence, ambition, and self-compassion are not personality traits. They are skills. And they are learnable.”
INSIDE THE GIRLS& LEARNING SERIES
Three workshops.
One grownup at a time.
A lasting difference for a girl.
Each pillar builds on the last, so by the end, you have a complete, practical framework for supporting confidence, ambition, and self-compassion in everyday life.
1
Confidence
STRENGTHS, SELF-TRUST & BELONGING
Confidence is not about being bold or outgoing. It's about trusting yourself - your judgment, your qualities, your abilities. In this workshop, you'll learn:
How confidence is built through thoughts, feelings, and actions
Why strengths recognition matters more than generic praise
How belonging and language shape a girl's self-belief
Simple rituals that reinforce confidence in everyday moments
2
Ambition
PURPOSE, VALUES & SELF-ADVOCACY
Ambition is not about pressure or competition. It's a healthy, positive force - grounded in purpose and values. In this workshop, you'll learn:
Common myths girls absorb about ambition and success
Why many girls learn to downplay their wants or wait for permission
How purpose and values fuel motivation
Ways to encourage voice and self-advocacy without adding pressure
3
Self-Compassion
INNER COACH, EMOTIONAL RESILIENCE & EMOTIONAL AWARENESS
The most powerful thing a grown-up can do is help a girl find a kinder inner voice. In this workshop, you'll learn:
How girls experience emotions in their bodies
The difference between an inner critic and an inner coach
How to help girls trust their gut and their feelings
Language and practices that build resilience and emotional safety
WHAT CHANGES WHEN A GROWN-UP COMPLETES GIRLS&
Small, intentional moments make a lifelong difference.
✨ She names her strengths.
She moves from vague self-doubt to specific, grounded understanding of what she does well.
🔄 She bounces back.
Girls recover from mistakes without harsh self-judgment - and keep going.
🗣️She speaks up.
She advocates for herself in age-appropriate, confident, values-aligned ways.
🤝You become her steady champion.
You gain the language and tools to reinforce confidence in everyday moments - at home, in the car, on the field.
🎯Confidence becomes a shared language.
You and the girl in your life build a shared vocabulary and practice that grows over time.
💪 She trusts herself.
Girls learn that confidence is a skill - built through practice, not personality.
BUILT IN COMMUNITY
Look What Happens When We Invest in Girls
Confidence grows when girls are surrounded by people who believe in them. Girls & is built on the idea that confidence, ambition and self-compassion aren’t developed alone-it’s reinforced through community, encouragement, and real-life role models.
When girls see women who have pursued their goals, navigated challenges, and trusted their voice, it expands what feels possible for them.
-
Ali Truwit
Paralympian Medalist • Nike Athlete • Founder, Stronger Than You Think Foundation
"This is the time to be the friend to other people that you want someone to be to you. I had a lot of amazing friends who taught me how I wanted to show up for the people in my life and that was solidified at that young age.”
-
Chloe Humphrey
#1 Women's Lacrosse Player • Tewaaraton Award Winner • Honda Sport Award Winner
“Imagine in this incredible room that we all believe in each other. If we all believe in ourselves, all of this is possible."
YOU’RE DOING THIS FOR HER
Confidence in motion looks different for every girl.
If you're here, you know a girl who is growing into herself. This series is for you to help meet her exactly where she is.
Recovering from a hard moment without being harsh on herself
Trying something new without waiting to feel ready
Speaking up - even once, even quietly
Dreaming out loud - and going for it
Supporting a friend with her own strengths
Expressing her ambition without apology
You don't need to do this perfectly. You just need to show up with intention.
Joan Kuhl
MEET YOUR GUIDE
Joan Kuhl has spent over a decade designing and facilitating leadership and confidence programs for women and girls around the world - working with schools, families, communities, and global organizations.
Her approach brings together leadership research, real-life practice, and family dynamics in a way that is developmentally appropriate and deeply human. She is also the parent of two daughters in this exact age range.
Joan's books include Girls &: The Ultimate Guide for Empowering a Girl in Your Life and Dig Your Heels In. Her facilitation work has reached thousands of women and girls globally.
Global Leadership Facilitator • Mother of 2 Daughters • Founder of Girls &
“Grown-ups don’t need to have all the answers, just the right awareness and language at the right moments.”
TRUSTED BY
Joan's work has reached schools, organizations, and communities worldwide.
THE GIRL IN YOUR LIFE IS GROWING RIGHT NOW
You don't need to wait for the perfect moment.
This is the moment.
Confidence is something she can practice - and it grows fastest when a trusted adult is alongside her.