Generation WTF: From “What the #%$&” to a Wise, Tenacious, and Fearless You
February 2011
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We all know what “WTF” usually stands for: it’s an exclamation of frustration and anger, and it’s an understandable reaction to the tough new economic realities that have hit young adults harder than any other group. WTF happened to promises of a bright future? What happened to the jobs? Rather than focusing on the frustration that “WTF” usually stands for, In Generation WTF, Christine Whelan leads the charge to reclaim the acronym as a battle cry for a positive future for young adults: Generation WTF will be a wise, tenacious, and fearless generation, strengthened by purpose and hope. This optimistic, introspective, and technologically savvy generation already possesses many of the tools they need to thrive—if only they learn to harness the necessary skills for success. And in this practical new guide, Dr. Whelan does just that, showing WTFers the way to success and instilling lasting habits that will serve them well in both good times and bad.
Dr. Whelan, one of the foremost authorities on the history of the self-help genre, worked with more than one hundred young people to remix the very best classic advice for a modern audience. After a decade of researching the industry—and years advising “WTFers” as they struggle to make their way in the “real world”—Dr. Whelan knows firsthand what advice works and what Generation WTF has to offer.
Marry Smart: The Intelligent Woman’s Guide to True Love
Simon and Schuster, 2008, 304 Pages
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Any woman who’s dreamed of complementing her solo achievements with an equally rewarding partnership will find in Marry Smart the step-by-step instructions for success. Expanding on the groundbreaking research from her first book, Why Smart Men Marry Smart Women, Dr. Christine B. Whelan offers practical tips for finding personal happiness, plus a marriage calculator that accurately predicts a woman’s chances of marriage.
Why Smart Men Marry Smart Women
Simon and Schuster, 2006, 304 Pages
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For years, it’s been “common knowledge” that once a woman hits thirty, her chances of finding a husband diminish to the point of despair. That men are intimidated by a woman’s career success, preferring docile helpmates to ambitious achievers. That women are biologically driven to seek a strong provider. That the higher a woman’s IQ, the less likely she is to marry, let alone have babies . . . leaving single, successful women to ask themselves: Are men intimidated by smart women?
In Why Smart Men Marry Smart Women, Christine B. Whelan shatters the myth that high-achieving women are at a disadvantage in the marriage market. There’s good news for the millions of American SWANS (Strong Women Achievers, No Spouse): that today’s smart, successful women marry at the same rates as all other women-and that more income and education may in fact increase a woman’s chances of marriage.
What’s more, as Dr. Whelan shows through newly released U.S. Census data, a large-scale Harris Interactive survey commissioned especially for this book, plus extended interviews conducted in cities nationwide, this profound demographic shift shows every sign of progressing. That means that the “success penalty” that has endured for generations is, as soon as 2010, destined for the history books.
Accomplished daughters, sisters, and friends (not to mention their mothers) can finally stop worrying that the twin pinnacles of personal and professional happiness are inherently unattainable. In fact, smart men do marry SWANS. Ninety percent of high-achieving men surveyed want a woman who is as intelligent or more intelligent than they are. And two-thirds of men said they believed smart women make better mothers. Pairing cutting-edge research with sound advice, Dr. Whelan brings to mind what smart women everywhere have long known in their hearts: that the goal is not just to get married, but to have a good marriage, and to lead a fulfilled life.
