How to be Smarter: Breaking someone’s heart is not a war prize. Hurting someone you care about so badly, knowing in your heart they will be upset for a long while, is one of the saddest ways a relationship can end. It is not something to laugh about, or take lightly.

How to be Prettier: A very, very affordable jewelry site I just discovered: http://www.carlyscloset.com. I am already awaiting my arrival of the Amelia necklace in the mail.

How to be (less) Awkward: Why is your best friend your best friend? I don’t know her, but I’m guessing because she is a good listener, and cares about you, and makes you laugh, and you don’t doubt that you’re her best friend, either. Look for these characteristics–plus physical attraction–in a boyfriend, and you will be all set.

How to be Smarter: You can be funny without being smart. But I don’t think you can be truly smart without being funny.

How to be Prettier: Fur anything–faux or otherwise–should not be bought online. It needs to be tried on in a store.

How to be (less) Awkward: You must dress up for Halloween. Not an option not too. And not an option to date boys that don’t want to dress up.

How to be Smarter: Everyone is a little bit of trouble. Some people are trouble in obvious ways, like being too good looking. And some people are trouble in less obvious ways–they hold your heart in their hand and you haven’t realized it yet; they have no obvious flaws, instantly making them that much harder to break up with; or them in your life makes your life instantly so much better that you get so nervous they will leave you. Just know that everyone is trouble-you are trouble, too–but it doesn’t always have to be bad thing. People that are a little bit of trouble are the ones you need in your life the most.

How to be Prettier: Sometimes wearing an all-over patterned dress can be intimating. If you are nervous to dive right into an all over flashy pattern, try a beautiful patterned bag.

How to be (less) Awkward: A celebrity has a private life. If you are lucky enough to see a celebrity going about their private life, in a non-publicized setting, please be respectful and give them their space. You may, however, mass text your friends “Jimmy Fallon is next to me in line and I am geeking out” while looking cool and trying to figure out if you could ever have a shot with him.

How to be Smarter: Just show up to class. It is not that hard, and, most of the time, you don’t actually have anything more important to to do. Show up, ask a few questions, try to look interested. Once a week stay after class and chit chat with the teacher. This alone–and none of the things I mentioned have anything to do with studying more–can bring your grade up a lot.

How to be Prettier: Precious fall work dress. I would wear with textured tights and patent black heels.

How to be (less) Awkward: I always respect labels–in expensive clothes and in romantic pairings. But I also know that not every dress needs to have a designer label to be your favorite piece, and not every great love needs the boyfriend label to be your favorite relationship.

How to be Smarter: On Mondays, make an extra cup of coffee and dump it into your ice cube tray. Then, for the rest of the week, use the coffee ice cubes in your iced coffee so the drink gets less diluted once the ice cubes melt–or throw them in if you accidently make your coffee too hot.

How to be Prettier: I know lots of very beautiful girls. But the ones I tend to think are the prettiest, are the ones that are also the nicest. It is actually kind of easy to be seen as pretty if you are sweet and loving and generous and funny.

How to be (less) Awkward: Sometimes I wear things that nobody else likes, and I might get to the party and feel embarrassed. But I would feel a lot more embarrassed if I let someone talk me out of what I wanted to wear.

How to be Smarter: Fairy tales aren’t ambiguous. Prince Charming never made a list of things he liked and didn’t like about Cinderella. Sleeping Beauty never cheated on her man. If it really is a fairy tale, and it really is happily ever after, you will know. Until then, have fun and relax. When Mister Forever does comes along, you will not wonder, you will know.

How to be Prettier: One of my most loved songs is “Skeleton Key” by Margot & the Nuclear So and So’s; as soon as I saw this necklace, by one of my favorite designer’s (I have one of their Sweet Nothings necklaces looped around my wrist and never take it off), I knew I had to get it.

How to be (less) Awkward: You are not to wear a sequined dress to someone else’s birthday party.

How to be Smarter: You must think of your life as a music album. A few song flops doesn’t necessarily prevent your album from going platinum.

How to be Prettier: Mint green is a huge shade this fall for a nail color. Love it! Such a nice change from the normal fall nail colors lineup.

How to be (less) Awkward: Ladies don’t date men that walk and talk with them while they have an iPod earbud in one of their ears. Ladies ask for and deserve two ears from their beloved.

How to be Smarter: I like to end every work email with a one sentence action item: “Please respond back with appropriate times for the face to face meeting,” “After you have read this, please confirm its receipt,” “Think about this proposal and report back to me with your thoughts.”

How to be Prettier: Don’t straighten the last 1/2 inch of your hair. That hair is probably already very fragile, because it is at the end of your hair, and it will only fry it more. Also, the very end of your hair rarely needs straightening.

How to be (less) Awkward: When handing someone toilet paper under the stall door because their stall has none, always hand over way too much rather than too little. This minimizes awkwardness by preventing them from needing to ask you for more.

How to be Smarter: The “In Case of Emergency” Campaign is working to make more people safer. The idea is to put an entry into your cell phone entitled “ICE” (“In Case of Emergency”) that lists the numbers of someone the paramedics can call if you are an accident. In my entry, I put the usual suspects (parents, siblings) but because none of those people live in the same city as me, I also included two numbers of friends who live in the same city as me, with the rationale that if there was a real emergency, they could come get me faster.

How to be Prettier: I don’t think it matters if your socks match under your boots.

How to be (less) Awkward: Over reliance on boyfriends is a problem. The only person responsible for making sure you have a nice day is you. Why would you want to delegate that responsibility to anyone else, including a cute boy? He can certainly make your day better, but he shouldn’t be responsible for your day’s happiness.

How to be Smarter: This site is one of the best budgeting sites I’ve seen. It’s also free, and extremely easy to use. And I’m a sucker for a nice pie graph telling me how much I can afford to spend on dry cleaning a month.

How to be Prettier: Textured tights are everywhere this fall. I’m envisioning these paired with a short black mini, black flats, pale pink nails, and a snug fitted tee with a scarf to ward off the fall chills.

How to be (less) Awkward: One of the great things about the internet age is that more or less everyone is on Facebook. Sometimes, before I have to make an important call at work to someone I don’t know, I facebook them. Just seeing that they are a real person–who has a silly picture and deals with friend requests and event invitations and stalks their ex-lovers on facebook, too, makes making a phone call to them much easier.

How to be Smarter: I am a big fan of fitting in learning where I can get it. I recently moved into an apartment that has a map of the world for a shower curtain. Not only do I let the conditioner sit in my hair longer because I’m quizzing myself on the names of the five Great Lakes, but I also like it when people I love go on trips and I can see how far they are away from me (only physical distance, of course).

How to be Prettier: Sometimes, if my toenail polish is chipping but I don’t have time to go get a pedicure, I just paint my toenails black over the previous color. This doesn’t work on fingers, because people can examine your fingernails too easily and see the previous color you painted over, but for toenails, it is fine.

How to be (less) Awkward: One of the worst things is when a relationship ends, and you were close to the other person’s family. Unfortunately, you must give them (and you) space to grieve. Eventually, you can be friends with your ex-boyfriend’s mom/sister/cousin again, but, in the beginning, give them space as well. After some time has passed (the length of time varies depending on the amount of time the relationship was), it is okay to email or call them and to check in.

How to be Smarter: When you are sick, you don’t take your temperature every five minutes because the tiny movements of degrees don’t matter as much as the overall picture. Similarly, sometimes, you will be 92.3% happy, and sometimes, you will be 92.9% happy. Do these tiny differences of degree mean anything? No, its the happiness level over time that matters. Look at the big picture instead of thinking that one disagreement with a friend or a bad couple days at work is a reason to rethink everything.

How to be Prettier: Leather jackets are hot this fall. I like them in the classic black with details like studding, and the less traditional shade of brown.

How to be (less) Awkward: Good or bad, new feelings can be scary. “I think I might love this person”; “For the first time, I am lonely”; “Everything is changing after being the same for so long.” Gently remind yourself that maybe the fact that it is a new feeling is scarier than the feeling itself.

How to be Smarter: I have some lovely people I look up to in real life, that I can chat with and email whenever I want. But I also have some lovely people I look up that I will never meet, for they are either far too famous or have been dead far too long. It’s a mix of both of these type of mentors that really inspire me.

How to be Prettier: Wearing jeans with big back pockets makes your butt look smaller; wearing jeans with small back pockets makes your butt look bigger.

How to be (less) Awkward: Sometimes, days are just bad and it’s nobody’s fault. You don’t need to blame anyone–including yourself. Just head to bed early and tomorrow will be better.