Huffington Magazine Issue 51 | Page 32

THE THIRD METRIC ‘Somewhat’ Aspirational HOW I MOVED BEYOND THAT LABEL ONDA COUNTER STOOL/BERTOIA COUNTER STOOL, AVAILABLE AT DESIGN WITHIN REACH STUDIOS, WWW.DWR.COM BY MIKA BRZEZINSKI REMEMBER FOUR years ago, I was asked to fill in at the very last minute to host at an event full of cosmetics CEOs (Leeza Gibbons had cancelled). One powerful guest — a woman high up in the world of “beauty” — was surprised to see me. She hadn’t heard about the last-minute changes. “Ah well,” she shrugged, “you’ll do fine for us as a fill-in, because you are what we call ‘somewhat aspirational.’” That’s stuck with me for a long time. Somewhat aspirational. I loved it. Didn’t know what it meant. But I found it to be hilarious and cuttingly honest, which I ad- I HUFFINGTON 06.02.13