For whatever reason, I didn't succumb to the stereotype that science wasn't for girls. I got encouragement from my parents. I never ran into a teacher or a counselor who told me that science was for boys. A lot of my friends did.

So most astronauts are astronauts for a couple of years before they are assigned to a flight.

You know, I go around the country a lot.

The fact that I was going to be the first American woman to go into space carried huge expectations along with it.

Three Secrets to Success: Be willing to learn new things. Be able to assimilate new information quickly. Be able to get along with and work with other people.

But even in elementary school and junior high, I was very interested in space and in the space program.

The best advice I can give anybody is to try to understand who you are and what you want to do, and don't be afraid to go down that road and do whatever it takes and work as hard as you have to work to achieve that.