At a young age I was influenced and encouraged to follow belief systems and paradigms that turned out to be limiting and self-destructive. They came from many different sources including my parents, teachers, communities, and even society as a whole. The older I got the more I realized that I was not alone – many of my peers had been taught very similar beliefs and as a result we all began living a life that we thought we should be living. It wasn’t until I had a breakdown at the age of 19 and was faced with some very challenging circumstances that I started to realize the life I had been living was not truly my own. I had become a product of my conditioning and my surroundings and if I was going to survive, something had to change!
As I started to learn different strategies, tools, and new life philosophies I began to question many things. What if instead of living my life the way others were or the way I had been taught I should live, how would things change if I was empowered to live the life I had always desired deep within? I started to imagine what our world would look like if we all spread our wings and truly soared to our truest potential.
After spending many years learning to step into my own greatness and reclaiming my self-worth and self-esteem, I created the Youth Wellness Network so I could help inspire and empower youth all over the globe going through similar challenges that I faced. I thought to myself, if I can live a happy, healthy and positive life and still be considered successful by society’s standards, then others can too!
Today, my desire is to provide support, inspiration and resources for youth of all ages to become well-rounded individuals. When I was going through my transformation and breaking free from my own limiting belief systems, there was no accessible and relate-able resources I felt I could turn to that would support my process of finding and becoming my authentic self. Luckily for me, my father went through a huge transformation a year prior to my breakdown and became my one source of encouragement and support. But many others aren’t as privileged as I was.
Thus, the Youth Wellness Network is here to do just that; we provide youth, parents, educators and communities with the appropriate tools to assist them in the process of living healthier, more positive lives. We create and implement wellness programs within schools, and organizations all over North America. We work together with administration and educators to provide the most relevant program that meets their school’s / organization’s needs and the needs of their youth.
Some of the main issues we address with our programs are stress, anxiety, bullying, self-esteem, uncertainty of self and future, and emotional/mental health. Our goal is to help youth as well as adults understand the root of these pressing issues, so they can ultimately extinguish them instead of simply covering them up with a band aid solution.
Our hope is that once we teach and provide the tools, that the individuals will be able to 
create sustainable positive change in their own lives and the lives of those in their communities. We believe that by empowering our next generation to become confident, kind, and compassionate individuals who live with integrity and purpose, they will spark an even bigger change in our society creating a ripple effect of positive change all over the world!
In addition to working alongside youth, we also provide programs for parents, educators, and any adult who have youth in their lives. We offer workshops for teachers to help reduce their stress and better manage their energy levels, while providing appropriate techniques to reduce the stress levels in their classrooms. Our more extensive teacher training program is called Empowered Education, where we teach the teachers to infuse principles of empowerment instead of control into their educating process. Educators will then become a source of genuine support for their students, and be able to establish a secure environment for each student to thrive.
Our programs for parents are based around creating a more balanced and harmonious relationship with their children and teenagers. We emphasize on the importance of having conscious relationships surrounded by compassion and based on the principles of empowerment and understanding perspective. We offer presentations and training to give parents the tools to gain a better understanding of what their children are going through and how to communicate and interact from a foundation of mutual respect and understanding. As a part of our mission in educating parents, educators and anyone who works with youth, I have recently written a book, co-authored with my father Jeffrey Eisen. The book is entitled, Empowered YOUth: A Father and Son’s Journey to Conscious Living, which is published by Hay House and is now available anywhere books are sold. This book provides a more in-depth perspective on how parents and children, adults and youth can come together and build a stronger, longer-lasting relationship based on understanding, mutual respect and empowerment. It serves as blueprint for bridging the gap between adults and youth in our society.
If we are all going to come together to empower the next generation we ALL need to live the most empowered version of ourselves first. The days of “do as I say, not as I do” are completely over. If you are a parent, educator, or an adult who has children, teenagers, or young adults in your lives, you need to lead by example! The first step to making long lasting positive change in this world is to start with YOURSELF!
Michael Eisen’s Bio:
Michael Eisen is an inspirational speaker, author and the founder of the Youth Wellness
Network (YWN), an organization dedicated to inspiring and empowering youth across the globe to live happier and more positive lives. YWN specializes in creating and implementing wellness programs in schools and organizations, while providing additional programs and training online. After positively transforming his own life at the age of 19, Michael is now on a lifelong crusade to share with other young people the principles, strategies, and practices that gave him the strength to start living a more joyful and healthier life. He contributes a fresh, young, authentic voice to the field of wellness, and is rapidly becoming a youth-wellness expert. Michael’s first book, Empowered YOUth: A Father and Son’s Journey to Conscious Living, co-authored with his father Jeffrey Eisen and published by Hay House is now available for purchase online and everywhere books are sold. To learn more about Michael and the Youth Wellness Network, visit www.youthwellnessnetwork.ca.
their exposure to peer pressure and bullying. I feel extremely lucky that at age 7, my eldest has yet to seriously encounter these problems. I hope to prepare her and her five year old sister, best I can, for the bleak possibilities. There is only so much to be done on the home-front though.
I am a pacifist, and as much as I comprehend the importance of self-defense, I have a hard time teaching my kids to fight back at their tender ages. But I will because I must. My best approach thus far is to teach them about asserting themselves, an area where the elder falls short. It takes a pep talk for her to order her own ice cream; what happens when she may be faced with a bully taunting her or chiding her into making a bad choice?
