Family and friendships are two of the most influential axes that help kids define themselves and act as an umbrella for them. Even so, they are not determining axes and we must keep in mind that the degree of importance they have for each person is very diverse and changes over time.

One of the elements that I think is most influential in their process of empowerment is the fact that young people need to feel accepted by a group of peers. Self-acceptance, i.e. “accepting yourself as you are”, is something that comes with maturity and is not typical of younger ages. This is why young people, who are still building their personalities, tend to place great importance on the external acceptance they receive from their peer groups (class, sports team,

extracurricular activities, etc.).

If we detect a social acceptance issue with one of the kids, the situation is complicated because often times we cannot reach the group, we can only reach the person in particular. In order to solve it, we can work on very personal factors linked to ideas like “you’re good at this”, “you are worthy”, “you can do this” … However, in many cases this can be counterproductive and end up turning the kid into a selfish being who is not critical of the situation, and where the need to be accepted by others still prevails.

If we only build an individual bond between us, it doesn’t help them to be an empowered person at a social level, it only helps them be an empowered person at an individual level. 

It is crucial to try to influence the environment and the context in some way, and sometimes we tend to disengage ourselves to focus only on the young person who does not feel accepted. I believe that education goes far beyond working with one person; it is a task for people as a whole.