WWC Spotlight Series: Lauren Weisberger
Updated: Nov 2, 2021
Through the Wise Women Collective, we spotlight women whom we admire and who inspire.
Our first spotlight is all about Lauren Weisberger, the best-selling author of The Devil Wears Prada and Where the Grass is Green and the Girls are Pretty, which is the first book within our #BoozyBookClub.
OB: Proudest accomplishment?
LW: This is not where I write “vanquishing my paralyzing fear of spiders,” or “learning how to use one of those automated curling irons without ripping out all my hair,” right? Because both of those would be up there. But all kidding aside, of course it’s my kids! I have a 9-year-old son and a 10-year-old daughter, and they’re becoming two humans that I not only love but also like—most of the time.
OB: What was a recent challenge you overcame?
LW: Remembering how to take risks again. At a certain age, once life sort of shakes out and settles down, it can sometimes feel easy just to go with the flow of whatever is happening around you. And there’s nothing wrong with that! But COVID kind of imploded that for me—someone who typically plans her days, weeks, and years well in advance—and forced me to get comfortable with not knowing. Actually, “comfortable” is a bit of a stretch, but I’m learning how not to panic when I look ahead and am not exactly sure what will happen, or when.
OB: Your novel is about two sisters who are living very different lives but are faced with similar challenges. Peyton is a television anchor while Skye, her sister, is a suburban mother. Being a good wife, good mother and successful career woman isn’t easy. Women make choices in terms of what they prioritize and often struggle with the delicate balance of ‘having it all’. How have Peyton and Skye been able to manage things?
LW: They haven’t! You describe these two women perfectly, and they’ve both been lucky enough to have determined their own paths, but it doesn’t mean either one feels like they’ve figured it out. Peyton is at the top of her industry, and she’s aware that she has missed large swaths of her daughter’s childhood. Skye is grateful she can stay home with her daughter, but she missed the intellectual challenge of working. I wrote it this way because I truly believe the “having it all” construct is a myth—pure fiction. We all do our best with the circumstances at hand, but I have yet to meet a woman who claims she’s satisfied with her work/life/parenthood balance, myself included! I think the sooner we recognize that it’s not possible, or even desirable, to have some sort of mythical “balance," the happier we’ll all be.