Elizabeth Perlman
Testimonials
"You have done SO much for my daughter’s confidence and self discovery through your appreciation of her writing and encouraging her to speak from her true self and her true voice. Thank you for providing her and all your young writers a safe place to be their real self without judgment. It makes me happy to see her thriving as a writer and connecting with other girls who share a similar gift and experience through you!”
— Parent, Lamorinda, CA
“You are the best. You are such a positive and inspiring light for these kids. I love reading my daughter's stories. They actually make my eyes water for a host of reasons, mostly for gratitude that she has this time and space each week because it brings her so much joy. Thank you for helping all the girls see their strength and learn how to put it into words and stories. Thank you for all your gifts!”
— Parent, Lafayette, CA
"I can't thank you enough! The amount of joy, confidence and creativity you bring to this world is immeasurable. We are so happy that you are part of this world and a part of our daughter's life.”
— Parent, Orinda, CA
“You are such a blessing to so, so many young girls who struggle with the challenges of these difficult, self doubting, teenage years. Thank you for helping my daughter discover her strengths and learn to trust herself through writing.”
— Parent, Walnut Creek, CA
"Thank you for working with my daughter. Your talents at helping young women feel confident and find their way are unmatched. You are a superhero!"
— Parent, Orinda, CA
Every week for the past eleven years, I have had the great honor and happiness of writing with teenage girls,* listening to their stories, supporting their voices and affirming their wisdom. That is how I know—in my heart and in my bones—that teenage girls are the most intuitive, insightful, creative, courageous, and emotionally intelligent people on earth.
*Every use of the word girl or young women is meant to include gender-expansive youth including trans girls, non-binary youth, gender non-conforming youth and gender queer youth.
Unfortunately, every girl I've ever met has struggled with a difficult period of lost confidence, starting in middle school. Because of my own struggles with self-confidence, first as a teen and then a young women, I know how painful it is, and also what it takes to heal and recover your voice. In fact, I believe that this is what I was born for, to be an empowerment coach for young women, mirroring back their unique brilliance so they can discover their strengths and reclaim their magic—as the authors, leaders, and creators of their own lives.
e.e. cummings once wrote,“We do not believe in ourselves until someone reveals that deep inside us something is valuable, worth listening to, worthy of our trust, sacred to our touch." This is my purpose and my life's work, to help each girl see just how uniquely amazing she is.
As I often tell my teens, I am not here to teach them or tell them what to do. I believe we are all the experts of our own heart and that my job is just to support each girl in re-connecting to what she already knows—her own intuitive wisdom—and then to help her build the resilience to stay connected, to develop the inner-authority and self-trust she'll need to grow and thrive for the rest of her life. This intuitive self-connection is developing through both talking and writing.
Self-trust is a relationship with one's self, a relationship that must be built over time. In the beginning, we need a lot of encouragement. But the more we learn to trust ourselves, the more confident we become. With teenage girls, the transformation can be astoundingly fast. Again and again, I have watched girls come to me discouraged and depressed, only to watch them roar back to life within the space of an hour: first through the introspective process of writing and then through the empowering experience of positive mirroring, feeling validated and affirmed, knowing that their thoughts and feelings contain their wisdom, and their wisdom matters.
I particularly love working with girls who self-identify as Highly Sensitive. It took me over 40 years to understand my sensitivity, so I want to do whatever I can to make it easier for Highly Sensitive young women.
To talk in more depth about your daughter's unique interests and needs and how I can best support her, contact me here.
Latest Writing Class
Your Heart is a Map:
Write to Find Your Own Answers & Create the Life You Want
In this bi-monthly writing program, the focus is on both creative and professional empowerment, supporting each writer in reflecting upon their interests, values, and strengths along with their their own definition "success" in the design of a truly authentic, fulfilling life. Through the magic of the creative process, writers discover their own wisdom, solve their own problems and find their own answers. This class is for "elder Gen-Z" women, ages 20 and up.
As with all our programs, we use the Amherst Writing Method, a methodology rooted in the belief that everyone is a writer, that all feedback be positive, and that our writing voice will continually grow clearer and stronger, the more it is validated and encouraged.
This class meets on the 1st and 3rd Sundays of every month, from 4-5:15pm on Zoom. Cost is $25, paid in advance via Venmo @IntuitiveWritingProject. To register for the next class, contact Elizabeth.
