The Story Behind Tell Her She Can't by Kelly Lewis

TELL HER SHE CAN'T

By Kelly Lewis

Chances are that someone, somewhere, has tried to tell you that you can’t. 

Maybe you had a dream to be an astronaut, and everyone around you poo-pooed it, saying you didn’t have the brain for that much math and science. Maybe you wanted to run a marathon, and your aunt told you that was a ridiculous idea for someone who could barely walk around the block. Maybe you thought of a business idea but your mom said it would never make any money. Whatever your ambitions or dreams, baby, the naysayers are everywhere. 

I’ve encountered them my whole life, and I bet you have too. I’m pretty much the poster child for “anything you can do, I can do better”—and I don’t take kindly to being told I can’t. 

Throughout my book, I talk about these naysayers—the ones I call the blockmakers. The people who stand in our way, get in our heads, and fill us with all kinds of self-doubt. If left unchecked, their limiting voices can become our own. I have made it my mission to not let this happen to others.

Society has been telling women what they can and can’t do, who they can and can’t be, and what they can and can’t look like, ever since Eve took a bite out of what I’m sure was a delicious apple. With that, women have been punished for eternity for their choices. 

Can’t focus too long on your career, you’ll never have a family. Can’t start a family, you’ll ruin your career. Can’t be too sure of yourself or you’ll scare men away, can’t be too accomplished or you’ll be too intimidating—can’t, can’t, can’t. Where does it end? 

Trying to live your life by someone else’s standards is a losing game, so I propose we change the rules.

I want Tell Her She Can’t to become the mantra for women to do exactly that thing. I want to inspire more people to live their lives exactly the way they want to, authentically and unapologetically.

I deeply believe that this is possible, and that we can take all the hater-ade around us and turn it into a propellant that pushes you toward success.

Because this is my story, too.

I grew up in an environment in which I felt constantly on edge, always on defense for the next attack. I’ve been drowned, smothered, and kicked in the stomach more times than I care to recall. I’ve experienced the effects of alcoholism, narcissism, and corruption. I’ve been devastatingly, heartbreakingly, betrayed.

            The cards felt very much stacked against me for much of the first 17 years of my life, and no one would have judged me had I chosen to just accept this and live a muted life, never really reaching for the potential I knew I had within me. But I decided early on that I wasn’t going to be a victim to my circumstances. I became determined to live a happy and successful life, and knew that one day, I would become even more successful than the people who had tried to tear me down. 

No one else was going to determine my future—and no one can determine yours, either. 

That’s the mission behind Tell Her She Can’t, and the why that phrase is so important to me. I’ve heard it as an internal chant that helped me get through childhood, into entrepreneurship, and on my solo travels around the globe. It’s the same chant I hear when I do really scary, hard things; when I tell myself that I’m not enough, when I doubt that I have what it takes, that I can’t.

Working on ourselves is a forever job. I hope this book, my story, and the stories of 35 incredibly strong women who have overcome adversity and proved everyone wrong, reminds readers that they too, are powerful.

Who says you can’t?

Tell Her She Can’t is the manifesto for every woman who has been told she isn’t strong enough, smart enough, or capable enough to excel-and the motivational anthem for those who have succeeded despite doubt.

Entrepreneur Kelly Lewis shares the true stories of 35 inspirational women who overcame the naysayers to achieve “impossible” dreams.

Tell Her She Can’t is packed with motivational stories of adventurers, changemakers, and prevailers who have taken on the world to become pioneers in their fields or challenged gender stereotypes to build million-dollar businesses. These inspiring women transformed adversity into a springboard for empowerment and success-and you can too.

A powerhouse guide for every modern woman and girl, Tell Her She Can’t invites you to blast past the gatekeepers of “can’t” and become unstoppable.

ORDER YOUR COPY

Amazon → https://amzn.to/3uuMdE4

Barnes & Noble → https://bit.ly/3qgWK5f

Apple Books → https://apple.co/3d4jQXg

Kelly Lewis is a women’s travel industry maven, passionate about helping women tap into their personal power through travel. She’s the founder of Go! Girl Guides, the world’s first series of travel guidebooks for women; founder of the annual Women’s Travel Fest, and creator of Damesly, a boutique women’s tour company. Born in Arizona but raised in Hawaii, she now lives in Portland, Oregon.

Kelly has been called a “dame disruptor” by Adventure.com, a “travel veteran” by Brit + Co, a “badass female founder” by Huffington Post, and “The woman making travel better – and safer – for all women” by The Muse. Lewis and her work have also been featured in the New York Times, Forbes, Shape Magazine, Elle, AFAR, Culture Trip, CNN, Travel + Leisure, and more.

WEBSITE & SOCIAL LINKS:

Website: www.tellhershecant.com

Twitter: www.twitter.com/gokellylewis & www.twitter.com/tellhershecant

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/gokellylewis  & http://www.facebook.com/tellhershecant