Every time I went on stage I was so terrified I almost threw up.

What you don’t know can be your greatest asset.

Everything in our society is so purposeful.

Everything about my journey to get Spanx off the ground entailed me having to be a salesperson - from going to the hosiery mills to get a prototype made to calling Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus. I had to position myself to get five minutes in the door with buyers.

Don't be intimidated by what you don't know.

Courage is doing something despite the fear, and I've worked hard on being a courageous person.

My dad encouraged us to fail. Growing up, he would ask us what we failed at that week. If we didn't have something, he would be disappointed. It changed my mindset at an early age that failure is not the outcome, failure is not trying. Don't be afraid to fail.