Tanya Hennessy - Help Self: Learn from my mistakes so you can make different ones!

THIS IS NOT YOUR AVERAGE

SELF-HELP BOOK.

There are no filters, no frittatas and no fake. In HELP SELF , Tanya gets real as she discusses food, love, friendship, careers and mental health, and (of course) she gets real hilarious too.

From being mistaken for a pregnant woman when youve just had too many Cheezels, to understanding whatever alien language your friends child is speaking, to overcoming an unexpected breakup with your best friend, Tanya Hennessy has all the life-hack, pro-tips for getting through this chaos we call life.

This isnt my favourite book.

Tanyas dad

Cover design: Karen Wallis, Taloula Press

Cover photography: www.sherbetbirdie.com

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

So here it is... my second book.

Honestly how did I manage to write a second bloody book?! With a lot of caramel slice and a lot of holidays under the guise of Im going to write, not Im here to day drink and take regular naps. I obviously did more of the latter.

But somehow, I finished it.

I gotta say this book has more of me in it than I thought I would share. I wrote this book not because I wanted to, but because I HAD to. I also needed money jokes. But kinda.

I wrote this book from a different place than my first. I wrote it when I felt it, as opposed to going Shit, the deadline is tomorrow... type bitch type! I also gave up on the idea that to be an author you had to write in a traditional way; I decided that the way I write and come up with ideas is what works for me and I leant into that hard. Most of this was written on a plane, a bed or a toilet.

But from the toilet, I wrote from my heart and soul, which is why its a bit deeper and maybe darker. I have written this book in my heights of happy and the depths of pain.

Ultimately, that is what this book is about. The duality of self.

You can be neat, clean and organised and also a messy feral. You can be super logical at work and lose it irrationally when your partner eats your BBQ Shapes. You can look put together and be falling apart. You can be smiling on the outside and crying inside.

This book is full of honest, real and sometimes stupid advice from someone who has failed a lot and learnt even more. Its got tips and tricks, some for lols, some sincere. Its got stories, monologues and dot-point lists because everyone is lazy and reading is hard.

This book has a bit of everything its a guide to relationships, beauty and fashion, mind body spirit, career and mental health.

I found it hard to speak as the voice of authority on some topics that I really should have just spoken about with confidence. It took me some convincing to write as a specialist when my impostor syndrome told me I couldnt. But I told the voice in my head to fuck off because I do know a lot about how to stay motivated and focused, creative processes, making content and overcoming/conquering your mental health battles. So those parts have slightly more gravitas than others.

Heres the thing no book can fix anything you think is broken about you. But what I think a book can do is make you laugh, make you think about something differently and inspire you. Thats what this is... hopefully.

This book is obviously filtered through my own experience, so you might disagree and youre allowed to. Just dont tweet about it because I need to sell books to pay rent.

I hope you enjoy, relate, feel something and come out the other side the same but maybe slightly more okay. This book wont change the world, but maybe it will change your outlook. Oh, also, this book has pictures because getting to a word count is hard and pictures are easy and I am lazy (but also not).

Enjoy, lovers,

Tanya x

PS Please forgive the excessive number of photos of me. There are a lot. Youre welcome/sorry in advance.

HOW GREAT IS FOOD?

I am obsessed with food. OBSESSED . Im that person who is eating lunch and wondering whats for dinner. I would take a bullet for a good pancake. I would rather have my liver taken than go without Cadbury, and once I open-mouth kissed a Big Mac. Im not proud of it, but its true.

I guess what Im trying to say is, if all of my clothes were on fire Id be sad, but if I saw a freshly baked bagel drop to the ground, I would require some time alone to mourn and cry. Its not super rational, but if you expected rational from this book, you got the wrong author. Food is both my passion and obsession. It is both cute and somewhat problematic and needs to be discussed in therapy.

The thing is food will never let you down. It just wont.

WHATEVER
YOU ARE,
ALWAYS BE
BE YOURSELF.

Unless
you can
be a
sausage roll.

COOKING DOES NOT SPARK JOY

I hate cooking. Love to eat. Hate to cook. HATE it. I wish I liked it when I see people making food, they look like they love it. I have tried to like it but its just not for me. My dad likes to cook; what he makes is literally inedible, but hes so happy doing it. He has all the confidence of a chef on TV and none of the ability. I have eaten his food, cause me love food, but its offensive to the senses. Dad, stop cooking, for the love of god. I digress.

Truth is, when people talk about how much they like cooking, my brain just shuts down. Its like when people retell you their dreams in extreme detail. All I hear is, So I made this amazing paell... (Cue the Benny Hill Show theme song and hot dogs dancing in my mind.)

Also. Cooking means... cleaning up. Cooking just makes mess. I feel like the better cook you are, the more tools you have to use, the more mess you make. Its a trap. Id rather just eat cereal and sandwiches for the rest of my life. I honestly have as much passion for a sandwich as I do my career.

Also, Im just not that fussy. I love the simple things like cheese you can buy in a non-refrigerated aisle. I like food that looks mediocre and tastes good. I dont need a home-cook interpretation of a seven-course degustation. I just need something to eat before I get too hungry and say something I regret.

The trick is to find a few recipes you can do and then cook them on rotation. Here are mine:

THINGS I KNOW

HOW TO MAKE

TANYA TIP

HIGHLY RECOMMEND DATING A CHEF