About the Book
The skills that truly predict success aren't what we think--this book reveals how to develop them. For too long, we've believed that stellar grades, high test scores, and prestigious college acceptance guarantee a successful life. But the data tells a different story: the skills that predict long-term achievement, job satisfaction, and well-being have been hiding in plain sight all along.
What if the key to thriving in our rapidly changing world isn't about checking boxes on a college application, but about developing the foundational abilities that help young people adapt, connect, and flourish?
Academic advisor and early career development expert Ana Homayoun has spent over twenty-five years discovering what truly makes the difference. In Getting In Is Not Enough, she reveals the research-backed skills that predict everything from college graduation rates to life satisfaction--and how to develop them.
With her refreshing, solutions-oriented approach, Homayoun provides a practical blueprint for helping students build the capabilities employers now prioritize, and researchers have proven make the difference, including how to:
- Master executive functioning skills that research shows predict academic achievement and life satisfaction years later
- Build authentic social capital through genuine connections that open doors and expand perspectives
- Identify personal energy patterns and create sustainable systems for success
- Develop adaptability and resilience that can turn setbacks into growth opportunities
- Cultivate the skills employers now prioritize over technical credentials
Through compelling storytelling, current research, and proven strategies, Homayoun's empowering approach offers a complete reimagining of what preparation for adulthood really looks like. Getting In Is Not Enough is essential reading for parents, educators, and anyone invested in helping young people create their own paths to meaningful success.
About the Author :
Ana Homayoun is the founder of Silicon Valley-based Green Ivy Educational Consulting and executive director of Luminaria Learning Solutions, which develops student programs focused on executive functioning and well-being. She is the author of four books: That Crumpled Paper Was Due Last Week, The Myth of the Perfect Girl, and Social Media Wellness and Getting in is Not Enough: The New Blueprint for Success Beyond Grades, Test Scores and College Admission. Her work has been featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, Fast Company, and NPR, and on Good Morning America and NBC News. She lives in San Francisco.
Review :
"Getting In Is Not Enough is the book I will recommend over and over in the coming years, a gift to parents, educators, and adolescents confused by the conflicting demands of achievement and fulfillment."--Jessica Lahey, New York Times bestselling author of The Gift of Failure and The Addiction Inoculation
"A fresh framework for supporting young people's well-being, purpose, and resilience in a rapidly changing world." --Meg Josephson, LCSW, New York Times bestselling author of Are You Mad at Me?
"Getting into college has become an endless series of jumping through hoops for teenagers, yet when they get to campus they don't often know their purpose for being there. . . . In this timely and important book, Ana Homayoun gives students and families the blueprint they need to launch into a fulfilling life and engaging career. At a time when the skills needed to keep up in any job are churning at an ever faster pace, Homayoun provides us with a guide to the foundational skills that will help us succeed no matter what."--Jeffrey Selingo, New York Times bestselling author of Who Gets In and Why and There Is Life After College
"In an exponentially changing world, Getting In Is Not Enough gives us new perspectives and frameworks for redefining success. Recognizing the range of barriers every individual faces and the scope of talent each [young adult] brings, this brilliant book helps students and parents prepare for a fulfilling future in which one can run [their] own race."--Sanyin Siang, Executive director at Duke University's Coach K Center on Leadership and Ethics (COLE), CEO Advisor, and author of The Launch Book
"In her thought-provoking book, Ana Homayoun fearlessly questions the prevailing mindset that a good life is simply a linear path from good grades to a good school and ultimately a good job. . . . With unflinching conviction, Homayoun gives readers the insight and encouragement needed to dismantle this harmful fallacy. Getting In Is Not Enough will resonate deeply with caring adults who believe that young people deserve the opportunity to self-define success and chart their own authentic path."--Kyle Schwartz, Author of I Wish My Teacher Knew and I Wish for Change
"There is a 'door's always open' sensibility to Getting In Is Not Enough. Ana Homayoun seemed to be writing just to me, as if I were one of the thousands of parents who've walked into her office looking for sage guidance for my kids from that advisor to whom everyone wants to talk. She answers your questions yet, more importantly, encourages you to ask better questions about what your kids genuinely want and need. This book offers smart [and] practical advice that will help every parent reset household expectations for what success really means."--Gregg Behr, Coauthor, When You Wonder, You're Learning: Mister Rogers' Enduring Lessons for Raising Creative, Curious, Caring Kids
"Ana Homayoun has given parents a blueprint for guiding all kids--not just the most advantaged--in the "how," not the "what," of authentic, lifelong success. . . . What matters most are the skills our kids use to make sense of [things to] take on life's challenges. . . . This book will come as a relief for every parent who wants to help strengthen the bones of the building [and] not just its façade."--Rachel Simmons, Author of Odd Girl Out and Enough As She Is
"Eye-opening and compelling, this book has the answers that parents and educators need right now. We've been mismeasuring achievement and pushing kids toward the wrong goals. Homayoun shows us how to shift our mindsets and nurture the real skills children need to identify and fulfill their own aspirations."--Jordan Shapiro, Author of Father Figure and The New Childhood
"Goodbye to the false finish line! Ana Homayoun is stoking important conversations, and we can only hope parents, teachers, and counselors are listening. I love her empowering, open-minded approach to guiding young adults on their varied paths to adulthood."--Mary Laura Philpott, Author of Bomb Shelter: Love, Time, and Other Explosives
"What's more important than any acceptance letter? Self-acceptance. . . . This book is practical, extraordinarily empathetic, and a breath of fresh air, and it's just what the doctor ordered for anxious parents and anxious teens alike."--Anya Kamenetz, Author of The Stolen Year and The Art of Screen Time
