Ladies Who Launch

Columnist and Author

Ever find yourself riveted by one of those Hollywood biography shows, wondering why you can’t tear yourself away and turn on CNBC? Because we LOOOVE a storyline that shows, ‘See, this leading lady used to be a regular gal. You, too, could hit it big, if you would get off your derriere and act on your dreams!’

The notion of ‘You can do it, too!’ is also the powerful appeal of Paula Froelich’s book, ‘It! Nine Secrets of the Rich and Famous that Will Take You to the Top,’ now available for the first time as a trade paperback from Miramax Books.

At Ladies Who Launch LIVE in New York on October 19th, you’ll meet Paula and discover what she has to say about how the rich and famous become rich and famous. She ought to know.

As a gossip columnist for the New York Post’s ‘Page Six’ and as a regular correspondent on ‘The Insider,’ she has a front row seat for this sort of thing. Here are some highlights from Paula:

Paula Reveals Whether the Famous Are Born Fabulous

Paula: “I ended up writing the book because I’m from Cincinnati, Ohio, and when I would go back there to visit people would say, ‘What do you do (for a living)?’ They didn’t understand. They thought, ‘JLo must have been born so fabulous… I could never do that.’ But if there’s one thing ‘Page Six’ teaches you, is that there are whole teams of people behind people.

“I thought, If so and so can make it and be a gazillionaire without any talent, why can’t someone who has talent do it?’ I’m all about people succeeding. Stars are made, not born. I found myself telling friends, ‘You could be doing so much better if you were just doing two or three things differently.’”

Tip Number One for Women Entrepreneurs: Know Thyself

“Number One, it’s really important to figure out what you’re really good at. If Martha Stewart had stayed a stockbroker, she probably would have been mildly successful. But she said, ‘I really like baking cookies and redoing my home.’ If she hadn’t done that, she probably wouldn’t be the gazillionaire that she is today.”

Tip Number Two for Women Entrepreneurs: Market Yourself

“What kills me is when people say, ‘I don’t want to self-promote.’ You have to learn to self-market and get yourself out there. A lot of people are happy to tell you about their favorite products or favorite things, but they won’t market themselves because they’re shy. That’s not going to get you anywhere. You have to market yourself as if you would market a product that wasn’t you.”

Tip Number Three for Women Entrepreneurs: Take Care of Yourself

“Look at pictures of Jennifer Aniston before she became Jennifer Aniston. No one would look twice at her on the street. It’s amazing what a good eyebrow wax and haircut will do. Take a shower. Do you know how many people out there don’t even take a shower? Believe me, we’ve got a lot of them in the newsroom I could point out right now.”

Good Places to Shop for “The Look” You Want

Vivre.com, Adampluseve.com and JCrew.com

Greatest Lesson Learned

“Oh my gosh, do not listen to the people who say ‘No’ or ‘Can’t.’ (To get over my self-doubts), I look at where I came from and where I am now, and I surround myself with very good friends who are very supportive.

“I grew up in a four-room house in Cincinnati, and that includes the bathroom. We didn’t have a lot of money. When I moved to England after college, I didn’t know anyone and I didn’t have any money. I got a job atThe Guardian and I started freelancing all over town. I was like, ‘I can do this! OK1′ It was through sheer force of will.”

Greatest Challenge

“Convincing people along the way to believe in your vision.”

What Motivates Her? What’s Next?

“My mother always said since Day One, ‘I’ll never give you a penny, but there’s always a plane ticket home, so you’ll never be homeless.’ Not working really, really hard just wasn’t an option. I’d like to write another book… I’d like to see where life takes me. I’m open. Every time I’m open something good happens, so…”

Favorite Way to De-Stress

“I hate all forms of whining, even my own. I take a deep breath and tell myself, ‘It will be over soon.’”

If She Could Spend One Day Doing Anything… What Would It Be?

‘I don’t know… what would I want to do? At this point, I think I would hang out with my dog Karl, my Dachshund.”