Figuring out how to eat healthfully on your own without your parents' guidance is one of the hardest lessons you must learn when you leave home for college.

I have so many girlfriends in their twenties who live in a white box apartment, having mediocre meals with mediocre friends, waiting for the life they want to hit them in their forties or fifties. They are settling in the now - what's the point?

I was a good 30 pounds overweight throughout high school, and it wasn't until I was going away to college that I really wanted to make sure I was doing everything possible to feel as confident as I could.

Keeping stationary drains your brain, but moving around shows you new things, new inspiration, and keeps the blood moving.

Tell your kids they are perfect the way they are, but they shouldn't stay where they are forever because growing, testing the limits, and evolving make life better and more fulfilling.

You can tell your kids they are perfect and don't need to change - which could cause insecurity when they recognize their own shortcomings - or tell them they are terrible, which would undermine their sense of self-worth and confidence. There's a happy middle ground.

Exercise is important, but exercise in a gym is not important. Go and take a walk outside. Skip the umpteenth coffee date and go for a hike instead. Take the stairs. Walk your errands.