POSH Icon: DVF
The Caroline Doll, CEO of POSH PR®, on Diane von Furstenberg and why there's value to "locking yourself in the dark!"
An icon, to me, is someone who is regarded as a representative symbol of something. To me, Diane von Furstenberg is an icon of independence.
First off, she married a prince and became a real life princess. What I love most? She didn’t settle for only the title. She stepped up to the position and became a princess over her own life, a woman of high standing in the design world. As soon as she got married, she realized she wanted to create a career for herself, to leave her own mark on the world. So, she did!
My favorite quote of Diane von Furstenberg is, “I didn’t always know what I wanted to do, but I knew the kind of woman I wanted to be.” Those words hold SO much value to them, especially if you’re a sweet doll just setting out into the career world! It goes to show that if you listen to the things you love, the things that speak to you — those things will bring you to the career, the life of your dreams.
Diane was born in Belgium to Jewish parents. Her mother was a Nazi concentration camp survivor. “My mother,” says Diane, “gave me a present in life…[she] taught me one thing…She never let me be scared. If I was scared of the dark, she put me in a wardrobe. I cried at first, but after 20 minutes, I realized there was no reason to be scared. It was a great gift, never letting me be scared.” While I’m not encouraging you to lock yourself in the closet, there is SO much wisdom behind this idea.
You can’t wait until you’re not scared anymore. You have to move forward in fear, to walk through it. In fact, I’d dare to even say you should follow fear. I think the things we want most in life are the scariest because there’s so much at stake! They involve commitment, vulnerability, uncertainty — those things are SO scary! But they’re nothing compared to the freedom and the life found on the other side.
Diane didn’t start out with a specific career in mind. She started out with a mission. She loves being a woman! She celebrates femininity. She created a dress that met the needs of everything she knew a woman could be in the 70s: career-driven, empowered, and independent. “I design for the woman who loves being a woman!”
The best way to follow your fear? Surround yourself with other women who are doing the same thing! We have just a few seats left for “The PR Behind the Pretty” business intensive in January, dolls. Does taking that next step to build your brand scare you? Then sign up!
