Liz Funk

Today’s girls have been raised to be perfect, and it is evident in the rise of impeccably well-groomed, charming, hyper-ambitious 16-year-olds across the US. However, overachieving amongst girls isn’t always a good thing, and it has one especially damaging consequence: bullying.

When girls are raised to be perfect, their peers are the standard to which they’re compared. Girls don’t get credit from their communities or peer groups for just being “smart” or “pretty” or “nice” – they need to be “the smartest girl in the grade” or “the nicest girl in the social circle” or “one of the prettiest girls in the school.” As such, for girls who want recognition, all other girls are seen as competition, and this is met with resentment. A girl who is doing particularly well (or worse, a girl who is struggling in her attempts to dress nicely or impress a popular crush) is a target for gossip, sarcastic compliments, and anonymous cyber bullying.

Not only is this cruel – some girls’ talent for malicious gossip is jaw-dropping – but it’s also counterproductive. A lot of girls decry the pressure on them to be perfect, but the only way that girls are going to reverse these high expectations is to confront them collectively. Girls must dress casually when they feel like it, not finish extra credit homework when they’re tired and need to go to bed, and not strive for all A+’s even in classes that they’re not naturally good at.

Available in lecture or workshop format, this program can be tailored to middle school students, high school students, college students, or the Greek community.

This lecture discusses the pressure on young women to be perfect and how today’s limiting and demanding “female ideal” has taught young women to place high value on being in AP classes, on their looks, and on what others think of them, instead of embracing who they are inside. This lecture is largely based on the research presented in Funk’s first book, Supergirls Speak Out: Inside the Secret Crisis of Overachieving Girls.

This lecture discusses eating disorders, body image issues, how today’s young women manifest their need for control and attention in food issues, and how the media teaches body loathing to both genders. Funk talks about her personal experience with anorexia, exercise addiction, and overeating, and how aspiring medical professionals can better understand the secret selves of eating disorder sufferers.

Notice a recent surge in girls on campus screaming into their cell phones in public places, dancing on top of bars, posting outrageous personal photos on Facebook, and dressing outlandishly to get attention? Don’t judge them before you know about how today’s girls have been taught to get attention in all the wrong ways. This lecture discusses why the rise of young women posting photos of themselves on the internet doing scandalous things and the rise of girls “going wild” is closely intertwined with how today’s young women have been raised to be “supergirls.” Today’s young women need to jump through hoops to get attention for doing positive things, which gives girls major confusion about their roles in society and their purpose! Many of today’s girls have a diminished sense of self and diminished pride in their identities, which leaves them vulnerable to craving approval from others and desperate for attention because they can’t find satisfaction inside.

This lecture discusses the portrayal of women in the media: how marketers try to sell young women on “empowerment,” how consuming and trying to use clothes and style to feel good is a big part of the “supergirl” issue, the rise of media that glamorizes privilege, and how to master “media and news literacy.”

This lecture discusses the who, what, where, when, how and why of getting involved in student activism. Exploring the most popular—and important—activist issues among young people, and why they matter, this keynote gives a run-down of how to get involved with youth organizations, and how to throw parties, protests, and events to help change the world.

This lecture gives a 101 on freelance writing, pitching articles, writing book proposals, writing books, networking, and other ways to forge a successful career in writing and publishing (even before graduating from high school or college!). This keynote also discusses writing for social change and how journalism can be used to spur positive change in society.