Study Smart:First Aid

Saying No and Staying Cool...

The Problem...

Dear Study Smart: Where I come from, there are a lot of people that smoke and do drugs, even at school. When I am asked to join in, what is the coolest way that I can tell them no without looking like a total goob?

Jennifer, 14

The Solution...

Dear Jennifer: just say, no thanks. Don't make a speech or a big deal out of it. Just say, no thanks like you mean it, and then talk about something else. Change the subject. You know what you want for you. You respect your body and you don't want to kill it, and that is totally cool.

Goobosity comes in when people try to tell other people what not to do. One girl at my school is a total nutcase because she's on a diet and she's eating no fat. Okay, but then she looks at everybody elses lunch and gives them a big talk about what not to eat and why. If she wants to be a poster-girl for diet and nutrition, she should just eat right and look good. Then the rest of us would go -- hey! How'd you do it and she'd be the coolest girl on earth.

Making good choices for yourself is the best way to change the world. You know, most teens don't smoke or do drugs. Like, nobody out there does documentaries and commercials about the fact that most teens make good choices for themselves, but it's true. Twenty out of a hundred means that eighty teens said "no thanks". They didn't let anybody pressure them into doing something they didn't want. I hope this helps!

--Tessa