In this episode, Valeria Teles interviews Romi Grossberg.
Romi is a social worker, writing therapist, and author who specializes in mental health and the emotional well-being of adults and teenagers. Author of ‘The 5-Minute Guide to Emotional Intelligence’ and more recently ‘The Key, A Social Emotional Toolkit for Teens,’ Romi has been published in numerous forums such as The Huffington Post and Griffith Review and has presented on the TEDx stage in Cambodia. Having lived in Cambodia for three and a half years as the Manager of a hip hop center working with street kids, Romi recently finished writing her memoir ‘Hip Hop & Hope, from the slums of Phnom Penh.’ She now lives in southern Thailand working as a holistic counselor and writing mentor for adults and teenagers both at a wellness resort and online. Romi also travels to conferences teaching ‘The Key, A Social-Emotional Toolkit for Teens’ to educators as well as in schools teaching directly to teenagers.
Teenagers are introduced to the ideas of emotional intelligence, self-awareness and self-understanding: To learning greater life skills and coping strategies to not merely survive school and home life but to thrive socially, emotionally and mentally.
“Your E.Q. (emotional intelligence) is based on self-awareness. It is understanding your emotions and why you react to people or situations the way you do.
Increasing your awareness is important for the very simple reason that it ultimately makes life easier! It is difficult to notice the good or acknowledge the ‘not so good’ in life if you aren’t aware in the first place. Understanding and increasing your awareness and learning some of the tools in this book can help you deal with pressure, anxiety, school life, friendships, relationships, arguments, family life and growing up.” She writes in her opening chapter.
‘The Key’ is a guidebook addressing mental, social, and emotional health. Romi believes that in today’s current climate of an elevating mental health crisis amongst adolescence worldwide, it is vital young people are adequately equipped to handle their thoughts and emotions as they move through this developmental stage of identity.
Teens can learn that even seemingly complex issues or problems can be taught and dealt with in very real terms with practical guidance, learning, activities, videos, and discussion.
Romi’s book ‘The Key’ is broken into three sections: 1. My Friendships, 2. Me and 3. My Family. She begins with friendships because friendship is the most important thing during adolescence and so the best way to engage. “It’s not exactly a lie when we say what we know other people want to hear, but it’s not always the truth either. It is us trying to fit in, not stand out, be cool. We all do it. But wouldn’t it be cooler if we didn’t have to always concentrate or try so hard? If we could be honest with ourselves and our friends and know that everything would just be okay?” – writes Romi Grossberg.
‘The Key’ includes over twenty topics including negative thought patterns, unconditional love, bullying, effective communication, anxiety, trusting yourself, and many more.
Romi’s books are available on her website. She also teaches ‘The Key’ as a full course or tailored workshops and is available for individual online teen or adult counseling.
