Quotes from Pamela Redmond Satran

What would you attempt to do if you knew you couldn't fail?" When I got that, I thought, Of course, I would just go for it! And that's what you've got to do every single day of your thirties and beyond. Just go for it! Your life is now.

If the means to a well-lived life is to take the road less traveled, first you have to get on the road.

There's no such thing as telling someone a secret: It stops being a secret the minute it's told.

Dear Reader, that a sense of privacy is the best gift I ever gave myself.

When your crow's-feet begin to creep over your cheekbones, you are too old to be out after midnight more than twice a week. Also: If you love one man, don't flirt and drink with another. It's not rocket science

young women around the age of thirty who are concerned with things like finding a husband, starting a family, paying their bills, and succeeding in their careers, as well as with how they look. I think the most important thing for them to know is that it's really normal to be freaked out about where you are in life, but those things you want so badly will come in due time. Meanwhile, life will be a lot more joyful if you learn how to be comfortable

young women around the age of thirty who are concerned with things like finding a husband, starting a family, paying their bills, and succeeding in their careers, as well as with how they look. I think the most important thing for them to know is that it's really normal to be freaked out about where you are in life, but those things you want so badly will come in due time. Meanwhile, life will be a lot more joyful if you learn how to be comfortable in your own skin.

Nobody wants you to be an artist or a writer, Maggie said. Not only did the world not care if you ever painted a picture or wrote a book, the world kind of wished you wouldn't. Your challenge was to do it anyway.

It was like I had some special strain of Tourette's that made me say exactly the kind of things that would drive him away, even though my biggest fear was that he would leave. Because you know, they always left.

And believing in choice meant you supported it whether someone's choice conformed to your personal beliefs or not.

Follow your heart? Forgive me, but that's the myth of all myths. You should research the man you're with as thoroughly as you'd research which car to buy. What do other people say about him? What's his track record? Be aware of what your situation with

By thirty, I believe we should all focus more on feeling gratitude for the gifts we've been given. The more grateful we feel for our families, for our friends, for the good health we have, the more we will nourish those things for the future.

But by the time we're in our thirties, I believe we should strive to own and respect who we are, regardless of our struggles and difficulties. After all, even every little and big mistake, like every scar, can be a lesson in humility—one of the greatest gifts of all.

If the means to a well-lived life is to take the road less traveled, first you have to get

It's useless to obsess over one standard of beauty, since it can change as soon as you cross a border. My travels have taught me this: The world can't decide what's beautiful. So you decide, okay?

The ability to accept and adapt gracefully to life's twists and turns is one of the greatest skills you'll learn. Should you plan for the things you want? Absolutely. But if you're not exactly where you wanted to be, exactly when you wanted to be there, don't sweat it.

Another rule of thumb is that if it doesn't feel like love—if you're sad more than you're happy—that's a huge indicator that you need to walk. You need to know when to let go.

Alanis Morissette: "You live, you learn. You love, you learn. You cry, you learn. You lose, you learn." I think there's something pretty comforting in knowing that even the biggest mistakes I'm inevitably going to make will turn me into who I'll be at thirty.

Love, of course, is a wonderful thing, a grand adventure of the heart. But while it's thrilling to get caught up in its wake, don't forget to hold on to who you are—or that incredible person might get swept away.

All right, get out a bowl," I told her. "It has to be a beautiful bowl." "Why?" "Because then the whole experience will be more pleasurable. Pick one you like.

as Glamour editor Emma Rosenblum, who recently turned thirty, says: "We're all on different time lines and need to realize that life isn't a race. It's more like one of those huge celebrity walkathons, where everyone's ambling along at her own pace, wearing a really dorky hat and lots of sunblock." By thirty, you should be moving at your own speed.

every woman needs to stop sometimes at the great railway station of life—on the evening of her big birthday, or the end of a big love affair, or even an ordinary afternoon—and take stock of where she is, how she got there, where she's going, and why. That's what you're doing right this very minute. You've already started. And you're already there.

Saving up to buy things you want and deserve is a way of taking control of your life and your happiness, of recognizing that no one but you is responsible for getting you what you want in this world.

Life is not a fairy tale; it's a parade of events that help you accrue wisdom and courage and faith. You learn first that you can and, later, that you should.