How to be Smarter: Before you sign something legally-binding, read it the whole thing. Start at page 1, and go until the end. If you have a question or something looks fishy, ask for clarification–because your credit score or potential extra fees are more important than your landlord looking at you funny while you read the whole thing.

How to be Prettier: Drinking iced green tea can help improve a red or blotchy complexion (Source).

How to be (less) Awkward: Literally any stuffed animal you want can be bought off this site. This huge seal is adorable, but it’s this giraffe that I own and is sitting on my end of my bed looking at me as I write this post.

How to be Smarter: You can’t be a person who yells. Boys don’t like to date girls that yell; girls don’t like to be friends with other girls who yell; family members don’t like to talk to other family members who yell; co-workers don’t want people on their team that yell. Nobody, nobody, nobody likes the ones that yell.

How to be Prettier: I just received in the mail my large, dangly butterfly earrings I ordered from this shop; they are lovely. I’m going to wear them with a streamlined dress so they really stand out.

How to be (less) Awkward: Amazing soaps for breakfast-lovers.

How to be Smarter: When buying new furniture from a specific brand, find a set of drawers from the desired label, pull the drawer out, and try to wiggle it. In general, the more it wiggles, the less sturdy and less well-made the brand’s furniture is built.

How to be Prettier: Clothes that make you wish you looked differently do not belong in your closet. Give negative-energy pieces away; when you open your closet doors you should see wonderful possibilities for outfits that make you feel confident and happy, not numbers on a scale from 3 years ago.

How to be (less) Awkward:  In general, call people by the name they introduce themselves as. If Harry’s mom says “Hi, I’m Emily,” you can call Harry’s mom Emily. But if she says “Hi, I’m Mrs. Allen,” then call her Mrs. Allen.

How to be Smarter: We reach back to boys from our past when boys in our present aren’t working for us. Seriously thinking (not just fondly reminiscing) about past relationships means something big needs to change in your current one.

How to be Prettier: I just love everything–everything–about this dress. I’d wear it with a black collarless blazer and tip-toe tall heels.

How to be (less) Awkward: If you’re having a bad day, and you find yourself getting cranky at someone who doesn’t deserve it, don’t lash out–just think of them as a pampered poodle. It’s pretty hard to say something mean to someone while you’re busy imagining them as a cute, spoiled cuddly little pup.

How to be Smarter: When printing less-important documents (essay outlines, coupons, etc.) at home, configure the printer settings so the computer uses the least amount of ink (usually called ‘Fast Draft’ or something similar) when printing. This easy switch (it is almost impossible to detect in printouts) is both environmentally and economically savvy.

How to be Prettier: I don’t think clothes need to be 3 sizes too big to be considered loungewear–fitted sweatpants can do the trick just fine, and keep you from looking (and feeling) super-lazy.

How to be (less) Awkward: A really clever, well-done, funny blog.

How to be Smarter: When you feel overwhelmed, sit down and make a list of what needs to accomplished. Once the list is finished, label each item with the approximate time needed to complete it, and then number from highest to lowest priority. Now go grab a coffee, and start tackling the list. Sometimes just stopping and creating a plan makes everything easier.

How to be Prettier: Just the smallest amount of leopard in this dress (it is still work-appropriate). And many more leopard-printed items here.

How to be (less) Awkward: Just because you live in a big city doesn’t mean you should forget your small-town manners. You can still wave ‘thank you’ when cars let you cross in front of them; you can still let the mom with the screaming baby go in front of you in the drugstore line; you can still make small talk with the person making your coffee. When you start thinking you need to adopt the negative characteristics of the place you live, and forget the positive ones you grew up with, you are in trouble.

How to be Smarter: 10 Words to Stop Misspelling.

How to be Prettier: Hair-ties that you can wear on your wrist without looking tacky. I especially like the pearl collection for the holiday season.

How to be (less) Awkward: If you don’t want to attend an event you have been invited to on Facebook, just hit ‘decline’ and move on. If you are not planning on attending anyways, there is no need to comment negatively on the event’s wall.

How to be Smarter: You practice doing things you want to get better at. If you want to do well on an upcoming math test, you practice math problems. If you want to become sweeter, you need to practice acting patiently and generously towards others. You probably don’t always feel like doing math problems, but sometimes you need to force yourself to do them to do better in school. You probably don’t always feel like acting kind-hearted, but sometimes you need to force yourself to work on improving your personality to do better in life.

How to be Prettier: During your morning routine, have blow-drying your hair be the very last thing you do. The more your hair can air-dry while you are brushing your teeth, eating breakfast, checking your email, etc., the shorter amount of time it will be under blow-dryer heat (which both saves time and limits heat damage to your hair).  

How to be (less) Awkward: Interesting dinner choice…

How to be Smarter:  If you want more friends, be friendly to more. Invite a new girl out to dinner with your crew, start stopping by the desk of a co-worker you’d like to get to know better, buy a big thing of Halloween candy and bring it around your dorm floor to share.

How to be Prettier: Glitter nail polish is the most  low- maintenance of all nail polishes. Chipping is harder to see, and another coat or two of glitter can be added whenever it starts to dull. Perfect as we enter into the holiday season.

How to be (less) Awkward: If you’re going to buy a drink for someone else, try not to do it in the middle of the night, when it can get awkward as you fumble for cash mid-meal and/or they might already have a tab open. Try to do it at a transition part of the night (for example, when you first arrive or when you leave the table to start dancing).

How to be Smarter: Easy way to clean up your work computer after you accidentally eat a cookie or something crumbly over it: grab a post-it-note, and rub the sticky side in between the keys (Source, with more good tips).

How to be Prettier: It reminds me of a clog, yet is more of a shoe bootie. Either way, I think it’s interesting and on-trend for this fall. It also becomes 30% cheaper when you put it in your cart to check out, as I just discovered.

How to be (less) Awkward: There is nothing worse than waking up cold, so next time one of your roommates falls asleep on the couch, cover her over with a blanket, and don’t forget her toes.

How to be Smarter: If you’re walking with someone, holding hands, and they trip a little, you tighten your grip to prevent them from falling. If you would let go of someone’s hand and just let them fall, you shouldn’t have agreed to hold their hand in the first place. So if someone you love starts to trip a little in life, you need to tighten your grip, your friendship, your relationship with them, to help prevent them from falling. If you didn’t want the responsibility of having to take extra-good care of someone when they are going through a hard time, you shouldn’t have agreed to love them in the first place. But please only let yourself love the right type of stand-up, honorable, kind people, that would do the same right back for you in an instance.

How to be Prettier: If you poke around in my bag at this very moment, you will find a well-loved travel-size bottle of this lovely hand sanitizer that does not dry out your hands.

How to be (less) Awkward: If your roommate (or sibling if you live at home) has friends over, even if they aren’t your friends, it is still nice to poke your head out from your room and say hello.

How to be Smarter: There are a handful of people I know who I rarely see or speak to, but regularly consult in my mind–I wonder how they would handle a situation or what choice they would make in my shoes. These are people who I am positive rarely think about me, and who will probably never know how much I try to emulate them in my own life. This can only lead me to believe that each of us are much, much more important to many, many more people than we know.

How to be Prettier: I bought a bluebird print dress recently, and wearing it has made me so happy I’ve gone on a bluebird kick: in necklaces, in coin purses, and in skirts.

How to be (less) Awkward: Nobody needs to know how many parties you get invited to each weekend–whether you average 0 or 7. Your social calendar doesn’t need to be public, and you shouldn’t feel like it needs to be.

How to be Smarter: Don’t think of it as baggage; think of it as perspective.

How to be Prettier: But if you do have baggage, try to limit it to strictly carry-on.

How to be (less) Awkward: Carrying baggage from past relationships is never an excuse for poor, unkind, or jealous behavior in your current one.

How to be Smarter: When writing a paper or document on a foreign computer, write it as an email draft to yourself. That way, when you log into any other computer, it will be there waiting for you, even if you forgot to save or send it to yourself.

How to be Prettier: Fall basic: cable-knit tights.  Adding these warm tights to any dress takes the look from August to October, and they look equally appropriate with boots and heels. An easy investment to a transitioning-season wardrobe.

How to be (less) Awkward: If you know ahead of time you are not going to leave a voicemail, be sure to hang-up as soon as you hear the message machine click on to avoid accidentally leaving a blank message. Everyone hates getting the voicemail icon on their phone and then going through the process of checking it to find the message was just a hang-up.