What advice would you give your teenage self?

A judge is in the news today saying that the divorce laws should be changed so that prenuptual and postnuptual agreements should be made legally binding so that it is less easy for the wife of a successful man to have such agreements set aside and claim a larger share of the family assets than originally agreed. Her reasoning seemed to be that the career ambition of marrying a rich man stops young women having clearer and better career aims.

Personally it strikes me as an example of a judge being out of touch with reality. Yes, of course their are women who set out to get a rich husband at all costs, but they are very few and the idea that a significant proportion of young women have seriously made finding a rich husband their main career aim is ludicrous.

Marry a very rich man.

I think my advice to my teenage self would be to have the courage of my convictions. I wish my morals weren't so bloody high - I might then have married the boy of my dreams.

None at all. I would not be the person I am if I had listened to my own, adult advice at 16.

I made mistakes, made wrong decisions and wrong choices at times but that is how I am whom I am today. If I had known at 16 what I know now, I would probably have been even more insufferable.

As far as you are able, choose to be cheerful. Negative people sap all the joy from everyone they meet.

I rarely, if ever, give advice and I doubt that my teenage self would have listened if I had.

I would advise my teenage self to forget all that rubbish learned at Sunday School about putting others first. I even got married the first time in order not to upset someone else.

When you want to follow a path that is harmless, follow it and don't be persuaded not to by those who think they know better. They may have your best interests at heart but sometimes that's not what is needed. What is needed is your own drive and your own decisions about what it is important for you to do.

I've struggled to put it into comprehensible words but I think it boils down to "follow your instincts" (or 'dream').

I would say to myself - be yourself, not what others want, or tell you, to be. Use your strengths to your best advantage, accept your weaknesses and work round them. Enjoy yourself without hurting yourself or others. Be glad you are the person you are. Do not worry about premature hair loss!

work at things - I was a very academic child & school came easy until my a levels & I coasted along- passed with lower grades than I wanted and ended up at a college I hated & left in my second year because my course was boring

My teenage self was a dick. Sorry for the language, but its true i was never great full to my parents i always acted out and i hated my father for no reason he was so sad because of that...He got sick and i didn't even go to the hospital to see him thats how bad i was...I just have to say that you shouldn't act like like a stupid kid, be kind to your parents, don't do stupid things...

I would try to stress that you don't need to be perfect at everything. Just do your best and enjoy it - and that everything will be OK!

Be braver
Believe in yourself
Make a decision and stick to it
Don't be so shy
You are not fat
Live for the moment not the future

Leave home asap. Leaving home at 18 to go to Uni was a life changer for our kids, worrying for us, but they had to stand on their own feet. Nearest thing they get to national service theses days.

My advice to my teenage self would be; concentrate on the lesson and stop looking out of the window in school.
Stop wishing you were taller,
ENJOY being attractive [and stop blushing.]
Listen to people more.
Be nicer to your Mother!

I would not want a pic of myself on a G'net calendar at any age thanks.

p.s. My advice - don't always do what you are told.

Seems slightly odd that Gransnet wants to produce a calendar of (mainly, I suspect) teenage girls.
I think contributors should put in any image that they feel represents themself, whether a photo of themself or anything else.

I wish that we had had good careers advice at school .I took a job in a bank as I was 17 and did not really know what I wanted or could do. At that time is was unusual to have stayed on at school until 17 and take that kind of job. My mother was not pleased she wanted me to go on to further education .However it turned out to be a good job to go back to part time once the children were older .In the job market to-day it would be looked on as a good job to get. I remember the exam sat I was quite offended by some of the questions they were so easy.

Nobody noticed the awful gaffe which will wake you up in the small hours. And stop wasting so much time daydreaming!

It would be: 'Trust your gut feeling' when making decisions and 'Feel the fear but do it anyway.'

I was too easily persuaded by others when making decisions and so shy that I often avoided social situations.

Not sure my teenage self would have taken a lot of notice! Are we supposed to put the pic on here?

Keep your feet warm and your head cool.

Phoenix.....of course it is......but I look at modern teens and 20 somethings and realise they are allowed to stay quite child-like and fancy free in some ways. I was brought up to almost 'grow-up' over night....I hit 16 and was expected to leave school get a proper job and decide what I was going to do......for the rest of my life!
Nowadays people can rethink their lives at almost any age.