If you set out to do something and you give it your all and it doesn't work out, be willing to modify your goal slightly. Have the ability to look in another direction. A small shift could guide you to the real purposes of your life.

During really difficult times in my life when I start questioning why I am struggling with something, I often turn to books to understand myself better.

I no longer scramble blindly through hardship. I no longer emerge from a bad time feeling relieved just to have survived. Instead of despairing, I try to find the lesson within the experience.

When I was younger, living in an all-black neighborhood the other kids thought I was better than them because of my light skin and straight hair. Then we moved to an all-white neighborhood and that was a culture shock ... I'd been used to being around all black kids.

Sexuality is part of being a woman, it's part of what empowers us when we're smart enough to know how to use it.

To make lips look naturally pink, I put on red lipstick, wipe it off, and then apply clear gloss.

I know I'm only one human being and I'm only making one tiny contribution and it's nothing more than that.