Dr. Robyn Blair's son Corey just completed the intensive first part of the Ivy League Challenge.  I interviewed him about his inspiring impact project a few weeks ago.

Robyn shares why she was interested in the Ivy League Challenge in the first place, and why she says this program changed her son's life forever.


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To register for the Ivy League Challenge, visit our website.
To follow on Instagram:  @TheIvyLeagueChallenge
To join us on our Facebook group for parents:
Or schedule a meeting with Steve here

The world needs every teen to reach their full potential, and college prep, should not hold them back.

College prep and education should be the vehicle that gives teens the self-efficacy and other skills they need to know they can solve problems that matter to them in the real world.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is already showing us how disruptive it can be. Education will need to adjust quickly, because knowledge alone will soon be unimportant. Problem solving and humanity will become more important as well.

Teens have tremendous advantages (like a sense of curiosity and adventure, a willingness to try new things, a desire to become great, etc.) that are mostly wasted in the education industry, and especially in the common approach to college prep.

We need to stop missing out on this incredible opportunity to empower our teens. College prep is the best way to empower them, and the approach we take in the Ivy League Challenge (find core values, begin working to solve real problems that violate those core values, etc) is the best way to give them the skills they actually need.

This podcast is based on Simon Sinek's book "Start with Why"

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To register for the Ivy League Challenge, visit our website.
To follow on Instagram:  @TheIvyLeagueChallenge
To join us on our Facebook group for parents:
Or schedule a meeting with Steve here

One of the keys to getting into selective colleges, and earning scholarships is a wise use of summer.
Well, May is now here, and many people are asking the question "what is the best use of my summer this year?"
Be sure to use some of the summer to recover from burnout. The episode I referenced in the podcast is found here.

This is the episode about how summer camps impact college admissions.

But the MOST effective thing you can do is to clarify your core values, and begin making your community better as you align your daily choices with your core values.
Listen in to learn more about how to do that, and how I can help you.

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To register for the Ivy League Challenge, visit our website.
To follow on Instagram:  @TheIvyLeagueChallenge
To join us on our Facebook group for parents:
Or schedule a meeting with Steve here

Asfi has been on the show before when we spoke about her impact project and how she figured out her core values. Today she is a senior and has been admitted to a number of amazing colleges.
She shares how she got into Cornell and why she chose Cornell over her other great options.

Here is a link to the "meet the students" page we referenced throughout the conversation: https://www.theivyleaguechallenge.com/Asfi

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To register for the Ivy League Challenge, visit our website.
To follow on Instagram:  @TheIvyLeagueChallenge
To join us on our Facebook group for parents:
Or schedule a meeting with Steve here

Many among us want to become great.

Others wonder what we can do to help the teens we work with.

When your circumstances are difficult, many around you will complain and struggle. It will seem like the world is full mediocrity.

How do you become an island of excellence in the middle of this sea of mediocrity?

1. self-awareness
2. discipline
3. meaning
4. collaboration

Listen in to learn what you can do today to become great.

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To register for the Ivy League Challenge, visit our website.
To follow on Instagram:  @TheIvyLeagueChallenge
To join us on our Facebook group for parents:
Or schedule a meeting with Steve here

Corey Fischer is only a few weeks into the Ivy League Challenge, and I've invited him to speak about how he decided on his impact project, and what steps he has taken so far.


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To register for the Ivy League Challenge, visit our website.
To follow on Instagram:  @TheIvyLeagueChallenge
To join us on our Facebook group for parents:
Or schedule a meeting with Steve here

If you've been thinking about what you can do today to increase your chances of getting into a GREAT college (like Harvard), I can give you some practical advice that will work today.

You have the power to increase your chances of getting into your dream college.

To do this, learn to truly love learning.

Love school.

Become unusually resourceful due to your unusual love of school and of learning.

By the way, learning to love learning will continue to pay off long after you've finished high school...


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To register for the Ivy League Challenge, visit our website.
To follow on Instagram:  @TheIvyLeagueChallenge
To join us on our Facebook group for parents:
Or schedule a meeting with Steve here

How do we take students who are struggling in school-- teens who are so disengaged that they are actively sabotaging classroom learning, into cheerful collaborators or curios creators?

We have to stop thinking that we can create this kind of transformation by focusing on marginal improvements in classroom performance.

Instead, we need to shift our perspective completely.

Effective education should be creating problem solvers and bridge-builders.

But most of the hours teens spend in the classroom do not lead to greater critical thinking or problem-solving.

Just like the best way to learn something is to teach it, the best way to train for problem solving is to begin working to solve problems.

Listen in to learn more about how to begin this process with your teen.

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To register for the Ivy League Challenge, visit our website.
To follow on Instagram:  @TheIvyLeagueChallenge
To join us on our Facebook group for parents:
Or schedule a meeting with Steve here

I ran for my middle school cross country team.
I learned some surprising things.
Because I never ran a single race where I didn't desperately look for a rock to trip on, or a bump to roll my ankle on, so that I can fake an injury and wouldn't have to finish the race.
But I never faked an injury.
And I never quit.
In fact I learned to lean in when my leg muscles started screaming at me to find a way to quit, I could lean my body forward, and just keep one foot in front of the other to keep upright.

I learned that my body can handle more than it first appears to be able to handle.

During middle school, I lived in Billings, Montana. My home was surrounded by cows (literally-- they grazed in my back yard), and I was a short drive from Yellowstone, where I regularly saw buffalo.

Interestingly, cows and buffalo respond to storms in opposite ways.
A cow will look for dry ground and will lay down until the storm has passed. But a buffalo is different. When the winds are strong enough, buffalo face the wind and begin walking into it. They lean in.

This week, join me.

I want to be the buffalo.

I want to walk straight into the storm rather than lying down or faking an injury.

Storms come when I try new things, or do things that really matter to me.

And so I'm okay with storms coming my way. I just want to make sure I treat them like a buffalo.

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To register for the Ivy League Challenge, visit our website.
To follow on Instagram:  @TheIvyLeagueChallenge
To join us on our Facebook group for parents:
Or schedule a meeting with Steve here

I recently overheard a conversation that inspired me to set the record straight.

This conversation was about how difficult it is to lead new employees in the workplace, because these young adults are too selfish, too self-absorbed, too lazy, too... whatever.

But I have worked with teens all day, every day, for a loooong time.

And the longer I work with these amazing humans, the more optimistic I am for the future of this planet. Tomorrow's leaders are in high school right now, and I am privileged to be able to work with them full time.

This generation is exceptionally diligent, focused on equity and fairness, and is going to lead the planet to a better future.

Listen in to learn where my confidence comes from.

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To register for the Ivy League Challenge, visit our website.
To follow on Instagram:  @TheIvyLeagueChallenge
To join us on our Facebook group for parents:
Or schedule a meeting with Steve here