I think girls feel like they`re not cool unless they have a boyfriend or they don`t feel comfortable or happy with themselves--that`s not true! You gotta be independent! You gotta show the power!

Every week I read about myself in a magazine, about something that I haven`t done or some place that I`ve never been or don`t even know. It`s just gossip, rumors, egos, and politics.

We raise so much money for hospitals, but it`s not just about that. Anybody can come up with a bunch of money to give to somebody. It`s about going to a hospital and hanging out with the kids and dancing and singing with them or giving underprivileged kids a chance to go to a theme park for a day or rebuilding a playground. I love it so much. It`s really gratifying. - on her work for the charity Kids With a Cause.

My life is very crazy and busy, but I love it that way.

My sister (Haylie Duff) and I are best friends and we get along so well. She is so talented and inspiring to me. She`s my role model.

I love my mom. I totally look up to her, and she just doesn`t let anybody take advantage of me. People might call that a stage mom.

It is heartbreaking to see the devastation on TV. People are missing family members and they have absolutely nothing left, not even food or water. I want to do everything I can to help those who have survived to help rebuild their lives. [On helping the victims of Hurricane Katrina]

As a child I was shy. Haylie would be the one to go up and talk to people.

I love doing emotional scenes. As I`ve had a perfect life I don`t really have much to pull from. But it`s really fun and not that challenging. It`s almost pretty easy. The hardest thing is to try and make people laugh. That`s a really hard thing.

In high school, kids deal with such harsh things that people don`t realize can really affect their entire lives. They are so interested in getting the boyfriends and wearing low cut shirts so the boys will like them. That shouldn`t be their goal. They shouldn`t do things for other people, they should do things if they have dreams of their own and really work hard for that.

(On her short relationship and break up with Aaron Carter) "He was my first real boyfriend and we really were in love, but we were, like, fourteen! Who cares?!"

I think ambition can be having something that you`re good at and love to do.

We`re still a very tight-knit family, even though we live apart a lot. And now Haylie and I get to work together more and more. We`re really close.

It sounds cheesy but I think my life`s kinda like a fairy tale. I worked really hard, but I`m very, very lucky too. I`m just 16 and I`ve done so many amazing things. I travel the world, I have fans who support me and I get to do what I love - make movies, sing and really be myself. I have a beautiful family, a great support system and wonderful friends - and I go shopping every week! I`m so lucky, but it`s not necessarily like A Cinderella Story.

I don`t think the Disney Channel gives us enough credit for the age range Lizzie McGuire actually has. College students come up to me, grandparents, famous people. It`s really funny.

[Dealing with mean girls in school] "I switched schools in the middle of second grade, and it was tough because I had to go right into a new school where I didn`t know anybody. I made friends eventually, but then when I started acting in California, a lot of those people were really mean to me. I`d come home, and they`d be like `Well, haven`t you booked anything yet?` It was embarrassing. They just didn`t understand how hard it was and that things don`t just happen overnight."

It`s crazy and so surreal. I feel like such a normal person, yet everybody around the world knows my music, my movie, my name and my face. It`s crazy sometimes, but I`m so flattered. It`s a good feeling. - on her life and career.

I love clothes. I can`t control myself. I have a huge fetish for shoes and clothes and make-up. I`m the kind of person who doesn`t like to wear things over and over again.

Mom always tells me to celebrate everyone`s uniqueness. I like the way that sounds.

"I love clothes. I can`t control myself. I have a huge fetish for shoes and clothes and makeup. I`m the kind of person who doesn`t like to wear things over and over again."

"You can be edgy without showing off your boobs."

stand for something or you`ll fall for anything-susan duff