The girls in Mean Girls wear pink on Wednesdays. Though we think we leave drama and teenage angst behind when we graduate high school, the world continues to hand us lemons. We still struggle with maintaining a firm foundation of our values, discovering our identity, pursuing our purpose, developing relationships and more. The teenage angst lives on; therefore, we can still learn from women as they come of age. Let’s take a look at some ladies as they’ve forged their way into or through adulthood.

In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, the second Harry Potter installment, Harry’s best friend Ron notices Hermione’s habit to seek knowledge from a trustworthy, reliable resource when she doesn’t already possess the information she seeks. He says, “When in doubt, go to the library.” This exemplifies Hermione’s thirst for knowledge and her firm grounding in pursuing it rather than basing her decisions on guesswork or assumptions. An intelligent girl already ahead of her peers, she still ensures she uses the right information. We can all benefit from that mindset as we go about taking care of our health, pursuing our careers and connecting with one another. Rather than guess from what we know and potentially miss what we really meant to do, we can consult the proper resources to make informed decisions. While Ron and Harry find themselves in troublesome situations on a regular basis, Hermione typically succeeds at her pursuits. Smart women applying their knowledge win the day.