Stephenie Meyer, Twilight author, at charity event - and 2 ideas for women in business

First, let me tell you about the event. It started with an announcement that one of the authors, Frank Beddor, would not be there. Then Shannon Hale, author of Princess Academy and the Emcee of the event, announced that they had other bad news. She slowly said that Stephenie Meyer would not attend… in her bunny suit. She went on to say that there had been a mix-up at the dry cleaners so she couldn’t wear it. For a moment, the audience expected the worst, but we laughed in relief when we got the joke. We quickly realized we were in for an unusual afternoon when one of the male authors, Dean Lorey – author of Nightmare Academy Monster Hunters, put on Stephenie Meyer’s prom dress to show it off and several authors including Stephenie danced across the stage.

Before the program even started, there were some terrific comic book artists drawing pictures - obviously Twilight characters were the most popular. There were also some wonderful musicians that started the afternoon: Adam Kump and the Adam Watts Band.

Of course the real draw was the author panel and it was way too short. I could have listened to them for hours. There was so much joking around that when Shannon Hale introduced all the authors, she actually forgot to introduce the most famous author until someone reminded her. All the authors were funny and personable. My favorite part was when the panel members were asked when they really felt like they were authors. Stephenie Meyer admitted that she still doesn’t feel like an author. J. S. Lewis, author of the Grey Griffins series, interrupted her and asked the audience if we thought she was an author. We applauded and cheered our agreement.

And that reminded me of a key concept that I share in my workshops for women in business, the imposter syndrome. Many successful women feel that they are actually frauds and that someone will find out that they are not as good as everyone thinks they are. This is a common feeling in business especially as you move up in your career. You need to recognize when you’re thinking that and realize that everyone else has insecurities and no one is perfect at their job. Focus on your strong points and don’t confess your insecurities.

It’s astounding to me that Stephenie Meyer, who has sold more than 42 million books, said that she still doesn’t feel like an author. I’m going to think about that the next time I feel insecure and remember that we all feel that way some times no matter what the facts show. That will help me to put it into perspective.

The second key concept is to follow your dreams and take chances. Stephenie Meyer actually dreamt about a vampire and that became the inspiration for her books. She was a housewife and was reluctant to write but fortunately she took a chance. Most of us don’t actually wake up with inspirations but we do have dreams. Often we dismiss those dreams or listen to other people that tell us we can’t do something we really want to do. I tell people you never know unless you try. Sure you may fail, but you’ll definitely fail if you don’t take any action.

So start today, think about one idea that you’ve been putting off and take a small action on it. Maybe in a few years, we’ll be seeing you on a panel or reading about your successes.

 

 For more info about Laura Browne: go to www.RaiseLady.com. Laura Browne trains women from Fortune 1000 companies to be more successful through WOMEN Unlimited, a national resource for cultivating leadership excellence. She is the author of 2 books for women in business, Why Can’t You Communicate Like Me? How Smart Women Get Results At Work and Raise Rules for Women: How To Make More Money At Work. She is also the author of a new fiction book for tween girls, Annie Clark and the Pearls of Wisdom. It was a semi-finalist in the 2008 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award competition and a Publisher’s Weekly reviewer said it is, “reminiscent of pop fantasies like Ella Enchanted and Harry Potter”. Go to www.LauraCBrowne.com for more information.