But now I’m beginning to realize that maybe my brunette locks aren’t doing so much for me after all.  In a recent article it is stated that blonde women are paid 7% more than brunettes, red heads and even those people dabbling in the purples, pinks and blues. (OK, maybe those last few aren’t so surprising.) And if that isn’t enough bad news for those of us not blessed with Blake Lively’s luscious locks, it looks like blondes also tend to marry wealthier men.

WTF? Can’t you leave a little somethin’ somethin’ for the rest of us?

This better mean there are more people with blonde hair running around; that is the only explanation I can come up with. Or that it costs more to upkeep a blonde mane, so people can afford to dye their hair blonde after landing that amazing job. Or maybe blondes really do have more fun and land the successful business men who need a good time. Or maybe blondes never have fun and still make as much as everyone else does, and these statistics are about as authentic as The Hills.

So what do you have to say about all this? What is it about blondes? Is going blonde the key to every woman’s future success, or is this study just bananas?

I’m ‘dyeing’ to know (tee hee) what you think. I’m also making an appointment at the salon to bring back those golden highlights. With graduation looming, I’ll take any advantage I can get!

You know those “What I Want to Be When I Grow Up” essays you were assigned in sixth grade? Some kids wrote about wanting to be a rock star, a teacher, a mailman, a professional Sega Genesis player, an Olympic Pog champion…and you sat staring at your blank paper. How the heck are you supposed to know what you want to be at 11 years old?! And how the heck are we supposed to know now that we are in college?!

If you still find yourself lost and confused, don’t stress. Take a breath and open your school’s Courses Catalog. It’s time to pick a major. Having trouble finding your forte? Here are some tips and hints to finding your passion and turning it into a career (sorry, you can’t major in rock star):

Ask yourself: “What’s my favorite thing to do that makes me feel productive?” Could you see yourself doing this for the rest of your life? Would be willing to take a financially rewarding job at the cost of time with family? Or would you prefer a job that isn’t as lucrative, but is more fulfilling?

Make a trip to your Academic Advisor! They are trained to help you narrow down your favorite classes, enjoyable hobbies, and inner passions to pinpoint where you should study.

Don’t feel particularly passionate about just one thing? Choose a broad major that will allow you to find your own niche in that field. Psychology, Communications, and Business are all flexible career fields.

When choosing GE courses, pick ones from a variety of departments. Or pick a class that just seems fun. Knights of the Round Table 1A? Maybe it will spark an interest in the History major! Intro to Cinematography? You may just be a future Film major!

What are you good at? Take advantage of your natural talents and turn them into a career! Does your Myspace page look like it was pimped out by a pro? Take up Graphic Design! Do your friends compliment you on your feng shui abilities? Try Interior Decorating! Do you always succeed in your diet and fitness goals? Major in Nutrition or Exercise science!

Check out career and major fairs at your school! Booths are set up with brochures, professionals in the career, and professors and fellow students who know their stuff! Go to as many as you can find and don’t forget to bring a list of questions (and pick up free pencils and bookmarks. Score!).

Head to your local Barnes and Noble and pick up some helpful books like The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Choosing a College Major by Randall S. Hansen, Major in Success: Make College Easier, Beat the System, and Get a Very Cool Job by Patrick Combs, and The College Board Book of Majors.

We are 11 years old anymore, and now is definitely the time to choose which path we want our lives to take. Although you may not go down the path of mailman (and that’s a good thing! Ever heard of “going postal?” It isn’t pretty), you can take the time to find out exactly where you fit in.

Have you already chosen a major that you love? Tell us about it and help out the former rock star wannabes in need!

Success?

I was a huge Disney princess fan growing up; I had the Sleeping Beauty sleeping bag, I dressed up as Belle for Halloween…every year, and I even still know all the songs by heart. And can occasionally be heard singing them in the shower. Recently, as yet another way to procrastinate studying for my finals, my suitemates and I Netflixed the Disney version of Cinderella and spent a girls night enjoying one of the greatest classics of all time.

Much like the Golden Girls and The Simpsons, looking at one of my favorite childhood movies from a slightly more mature perspective was a completely new experience. I was alarmed by some of the things I saw. No, there weren’t any dirty jokes that once went over my head, but there were some seriously flawed messages being conveyed to the young and impressionable viewers. One, that evil people all have really big butts. The other, Disney’s very jaded, very antiquated definition of success for a woman.

At the end of any princess movie (or romantic comedy, for that matter) the girl is successful because she gets the guy. It doesn’t matter how awesome her life was before (Hello, Ariel was a princess and got to live under da sea!), she isn’t successful unless someone’s put a ring on it.

I hate the idea that success for women is defined simply by meeting the man who can make everything better. And I hate that I spent a good chunk of my life buying into that crap. As a single lady in the 21st century, I very much believe that before you can fall in love with someone else, you have to know and be confident in who you are. That’s what a healthy relationship develops from. And that confidence is what ultimately leads to a woman’ success, married or not.

So while Cinderella may not be successful until she finds the man that makes her a princess, I know that in real life there are so many more options to define success for us girls. Like dominating your university’s academics. Or making a name for yourself in student groups. Or surrounding yourself with some pretty kick-ass people. Because, yes, the people around us are important, but that doesn’t have to include some dude.

We all spend so much time getting dolled up to go out and meet guys at parties, in class and in student groups. And when we’re not primping, we’re analyzing. And talking. And sometimes stalking. But for what? If we spent half as much time trying to woo some guy, we could focus our attention on more important things. Things that truly make us successful. Things that make us feel good on our own.

Because independent success feels good.

Eventually our Prince Charming might show up, but until then, I am just fine being a successfully single Cinderella twirling at the ball with my girlfriends.

Everyone struggles with motivational issues at some point. With so many stressors and distractions constantly vying for our mind’s attention (alcohol, TV, alcohol again), feeling motivated to complete tasks can be REALLY difficult. However, it is important that goal-setting be a regularly-used skill in our daily lives. Being a serious procrastinator myself (hey, America’s Next Top Model reruns can be a little distracting, OK?), I have found that setting goals have made my thoughts and actions more organized, efficient, and clear-cut.

So how do you maximize the ability of your goals to motivate you?

Dr. Edwin Locke, a pioneer in the research of motivation and goal-setting (and probably a guest star in one of your PSY101 lectures), provides five characteristics of goals that each contribute to the goal’s effectiveness of promoting motivation. You wanna be successful (uh, duh!), take these into consideration:

Clarity
Goals that are clear are ones that are straightforward, able to be measured, and cause you to take action! Being specific is key—adopting a definite time set for a goal and an detailed description of what you want to achieve allows for a better understanding of potential rewards. Vague goals such as “Lose weight” or “Get ahead on schoolwork” are unlikely to motivate. However, goals such as “Lose 30 pounds by September 1st,” or  “Finish 3 assignments for next week before going out to the keg race,” are more likely to create a more tangible ending, therefore boosting motivation.

Challenge
It has been proven that more challenging goals are more motivating. We are often driven by things that challenge us (it’s true–despite how much you argue that sitting on the couch eating PB&J is better), so a more challenging goal equates to a higher level of satisfaction when completed. Also, the difficulty of the goal goes hand-in-hand with the level of reward on the other side, leading to increased potential rewards, as well (yay!). However, keep in mind that challenging goals also have to be realistic. Setting the bar too high (“Fit into a size 4 by tomorrow morning”) can lead to disappointment and, understandably, a decrease in motivation. However, setting the bar high enough to require extra effort and investment into the outcome will encourage commitment and passion for success.

Commitment
Commitment to personal goals can be difficult because most of the time we tend to be our worst managers (to put it lightly–we suck–way too many excuses!). However, by making the goal challenging, telling others about the goal (“I have to get my paper done by Thursday, so do NOT let me go out tonight!”), and setting checkpoints at which you assess your progress (use that pretty paper you bought at Barnes & Noble for a to-do list), the accountability and commitment will increase the likelihood of success.

Feedback
Feedback provides opportunities to do a “check-up” on how realistic our expectations are, adjust the difficulty of the goal, and gain recognition. As mentioned in the commitment section, it is important to create checkpoints for self-assessment and feedback. This helps to define progress and mark specific success along the way, making intermediate milestones within close reach (1 page, 2 pages, 3 pages– wait, is this supposed to be double or single-spaced?!). For example, if you are trying to lose weight, take pictures or weigh yourself every week!

Task Complexity
Goals need to be broken into specific expectations. Building your own expectations at the beginning of the process is helpful in carrying out and completing the tasks involved. Make sure that, if the task is difficult, to give yourself enough time to carry out all areas needing to be completed (“getting into a size 4, and getting Chris Pine to marry me by tomorrow” is not a suitable option). Also, give yourself enough time to learn any new skills that are required to achieve your goals. Learning to run properly, for example, is important to accomplish before being able to accomplish a goal of running a marathon.

By reviewing these factors while goal-setting, you are able to better create goals that improve motivation and, in turn, increase the chance of success. A helpful website for setting goals is Goalforit.com— you can set goals and sub-goals, add friends for accountability (ouch, embarrassment is a good motivator for me), and create your own personal profile. Also, if you are more adventurous, StickK.com allows you to wager bets with friends or “pay up” to a charity or “anti-charity” (an organization you despise) every time you do not meet a checkpoint on the way to your goal.

Here’s to going for the “goal-d”!

The word just rolls of your tongue ever so smoothly. What does the combination of the two words, women and economics, get you? Well, a working economy for one.

According to at least half a dozen studies, including those from Columbia University, Goldman Sachs, and Ernst & Young, “women can make the difference between economic success and failure in the developing world, between good and bad decision-making in the industrialized world, and between profit and loss in the corporate world.”

WHAT NOW, boys of AskMen.com? You want to go up against some of the biggest firms in the world on this one? Want to argue with the handy charts and graphs Ernst & Young whipped up proving that “companies with more women in senior management roles make more money”?

Not that anyone (well, anyone who really knows women) was surprised by these results. Diversity of any kind strengthens society and business. Obviously men and women think differently, so it’s important that there are always a variety of viewpoints to achieve a successful outcome. A business meeting with 100 % testosterone isn’t going to achieve the same effect as one with the voice of females present. (And will also probably involve some sort of push up contest…)  We’re not saying a whole table of women is the greatest idea either, but the female presence clearly does make a difference. In fact, McKinsey & Co’s study produced results that found that “great diversity in management led to higher-than-average stock performance.”

So to all those people who think women can’t be leaders, take THAT. It looks like it’s the boys who got us into the giant pickle we’re in now. A pickle that we’d never be chewing if, according to economists, women had a bit more control of the financial world: “The presence of more women on Wall Street might have averted the downturn.”

Looks like the boys need us a bit more than they’d like to admit.

Maybe it’s time we got some more estrogen in the office; it may be our only chance at economic recovery.  We’re here to clean up this mess – and, no, we’re not referring to the dirty sloppy mess you left in the sink over the weekend -  we’re talkin’ business now.

Ladies, let’s get to work.

There’s a great many things to do and places to see in this world of ours.  As humans, our lives are pretty short (and if you party like I do, it’s probably going to be even shorter).  So we have to prioritize!  We have brains for a reason and that reason is…reasoning (well, at least some of us use them for that purpose: see comment about partying above).  Let me be your voice of reason as I show you all the things you should be doing right here, right now.

From as early as I can remember, I have been told to smile more.  It’s not as if I skulked around family events and school functions all goth-like, it was just a reflex statement of my mother.  Now that I’m older, I can still hear my mother’s voice in my head whenever I’m at a social function (and that’s the only voice I hear in my head…I promise).  Apparently, there are reasons for smiling…more than just because your mom says so.

It’s Contagious – When you smile, people around you are more inclined to smile.  So that gorgeous French guy that sits next to you on the bus?  Try cracking a smile and see if it catches on.  French guy + smiling = excellent bus ride.

There Are Health Benefits – Numerous studies show that smiling can do amazing things for your body, like boost your immune system, lower your blood pressure, relieve stress, and release happy chemicals (among other things).

Things Seem Funnier – Expressions increase the intensity of emotions, so if you’re reading or listening to something amusing, try smiling.  Chances are that you’ll end up enjoying the joke (and the moment) more.  This also works the other way – if you’re sad or angry, take a breath and try on a smile.  Usually, you can’t smile and be upset at the same time.

You Become More Beautiful – Smiling people are attractive, plain and simple.  People are naturally attracted to those that seem happy, relaxed, and confident.  Nothing brings those traits across quite as effectively as a smile.  Hey, you paid for those teeth-whitening treatments and that kickin’ lip gloss – why not put them to good use?

You’ll Be Successful – Smiling more often increases dopamine, seratonin and other fun brain chemicals.  This leads to an increase in optimism and general happiness.  Those who are more optimistic end up being more successful – they have better jobs, they get married sooner (and participate in healthier relationships), and even live longer.  Sign me up!

[Photo (which totally makes me smile) courtesy of Milltitus on Flickr.]

I know it’s hard to stay on track, especially when you’re only thinking about the months of freedom, days at the beach and (finally!) reading for pleasure, but snap out of it! You’ve worked too hard all year to eff it all up now.

If you want to spend the summer lounging by a pool (or in your front yard with the roomies) and not re-taking that Econ class, heed my advice:

1. STAY Organized: I don’t know about you all, but my room has certainly gotten messy. However, the minute I took the time to organize it the way I did when I got back from winter break, I immediately felt less stressed out. Having an organized work space makes you focus better, so take the time to reorganize if you’re room has gotten out of hand.

2. Calendar EVERYTHING: I have this big dry erase wall calendar that I write everything down on. Hopefully you have one of these, and if you didn’t get one at the beginning of this semester, I suggest you invest in one NOW. When you write things down it helps you remember them. It’s a very easy way to keep track of tests and quizzes that are on your syllabus. Also make sure to put birthdays on there, especially your roommates. Forgetting a roommate’s birthday could be fatal. (They do know where you live…)

3. Communicate With Your Professors: You probably skipped a few classes by now just because you didn’t want to go (or you feared barfing on your desk), but this shouldn’t worry you. A lot of professors will be more lenient if you send them an email notifying them you won’t be there, and if you want to claim you have food poisoning from that take-out you had last night it usually works. The more you communicate with your professors, the more they notice you and show respect for you. They are there to help you, so don’t be afraid to ask them questions before or after class. If you’re too intimidated to talk to them in person, send them an email. You’ll be surprised how helpful they can be.

4. Read: A lot of times, we just look at our notes from class before the test and then are surprised when we don’t do so hot. READ the chapters. You will encounter the occasional professor that only puts things on the test from their power points and study guide, but there are also professors who ask questions from the book. Even if you just skim the chapters, it not only reinforces the notes, but you will do a lot better on your tests.

5. Get Ahead: If you find yourself with a little extra free time, do some homework that’s not due for a few days. Start outlining an upcoming paper. Read another chapter. As the end of the year approaches lots of little things (drinking outside!) pop up. Working ahead when you have the time is the best way to stay stress-free and open up some time to do the things you want to do.

6. Save Time for YOU: Set aside an hour or so a day just for you, whether you want to go work out, take a nap or read a book. Don’t study or do homework, just relax. It will keep you stress-free and content. And if your “you time” involves margaritas or a glass of wine, so be it.

Do you have any tips for staying on top of it? Let us know!

However, if you play your cards right, you can find great success after college. Sure, some of us will spend years after college struggling to pay off student loans and going on interview after interview, sometimes for entry-level jobs we are overqualified for but still can’t seem to nab. But some of us are on the brink of making headlines, like these uber-successful post-grad powerhouses have done in recent years.

1. Lin-Manuel Miranda

Lin-Manuel Miranda went to Wesleyan University in Connecticut, a school where tuition runs at over $38 grand a year, plus $10-12,000 for room and board expenses. While attending Wesleyan, Miranda, a native of Inwood, New York City, turned his life experience into a theatrical production that has exploded since his graduation from the University in 2002. Miranda is the composer and lyricist behind the smash hit musical In the Heights, which was produced at Wesleyan, picked up for off-Broadway, and transferred to the Great White Way in 2008. Miranda, an actor-slash-rapper who originated the lead role, Usnavi, in his own show, picked up a Tony award last spring and is currently slated to reprise the role when it hits the silver screen.

2. Mark Zuckerberg

Love Facebook today, hate it tomorrow. Either way, Mark Zuckerberg is rolling in dough. Zuckerberg actually dropped out of Harvard to focus on the social networking site that changed the face of the internet forever (saving over $30,000 a year in tuition). This May, Zuckerberg will celebrate a milestone birthday- the quarter-century mark, and with an estimated networth of about $1.5 billion, it’s bound to be one kick-ass party. Check your mini-feed for event details.

3. Fred De Luca

Fred De Luca didn’t become an entrepreneur in college; he opened his own sandwich shop at 17 to raise money to pay for college. When De Luca graduated from the University of Bridgeport with his Bachelor’s degree, his Subway sandwich shops were already taking over Connecticut, and today the chaine consists of over 30,000 stores worldwide. Today, the University of Bridgeport isn’t too daunting, with the relatively low tuition rate of about $23,000 per year- a mere fraction of the $1.5 billion De Luca has netted through his enterprise.

4. Alice Sebold

Alice Sebold didn’t find financial success as quickly as Lin-Manuel Miranda, Mark Zuckerberg, or Fred De Luca, but after being violently raped at Syracuse University as a freshman, she made several amazing accomplishments that have led her down the path of a bestselling author. Not only did Sebold finish her degree from $45,000-a-year Syracuse, but she faced down her attacker in court and later developed the real-life story into her acclaimed memoir, Lucky. Sebold’s next book, and most well-known work, is The Lovely Bones, a film version of which will be released later this year.

5. Stephanie Joanne Angelina Germanotta

This former student at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts now goes by the stage name Lady Gaga. Before she could legally drink, Gaga was working as a songwriter at Interscope Records, penning hits for the Pussycat Dolls. Gaga studied music at Tisch, but showed off her smarts in several classes (hey she was paying like $40 g’s in tuition, might as well take advantage), writing research papers on topics such as art, religion, and socio-political order. Now a mega popstar, Steph is also quite the philanthropist, who has made donations to help raise money for schools in Los Angeles affected by educational budget cuts.

These are just a few major names who hit big before, during, or after college by combining their education and talent to explode into household names. Think you have what it takes to start up your own business? Check out the top most profitable businesses for college entrepreneurs. Relying on your talents to pay the rent? Use your time in college to work on your skills– as Norah Jones did. “In college I had a weekend gig at a restaurant, a solo thing that was the best practice I could have ever had. That’s where I learned to coordinate my singing and my piano playing,” the Grammy-award winning singer has stated.

President Obama lamented on the huge rates of both high school and college dropouts in his speech last night. You’re already winning the battle – you’re enrolled! – SSo take advantage of your higher education and maybe we’ll see you on the cover of Forbes in a few years.

I have made quite a few mistakes over the course of my college career, which have taught me quite a few things. Learn from my mistakes and this semester will be easy breasy. (I bet you expected me to say CoverGirl, right?)

Tip 1: Procrastination will kill your grades:

Trust me, writing a 10 page paper at 3am the day it’s due is never the best way to get your assignment done. Yes, you like to work under pressure, and, yes, at least you actually did the paper, but doing it in a hurry means you rarely have time to spell-check, let alone stay awake long enough to turn it in.

Tip 2: Try To Take Shorter Classes.

You may think it’s worth it to take that 3 hour class on Wednesdays so you get that full 4 day weekend, but sometimes longer classes are worse for your GPA. Let’s be honest: when was the last time you could pay attention to anything for longer than an hour? Whenever possible, try taking a 50 minute class three times a week (or whatever shorter options you have at your school), instead of a longer class that meets only once. You will be able to focus more in a 50 min class, not to mention be more on top of things when you have to prove yourself to your prof 3 days a week instead of one.

Tip 3: Don’t skip class.

Seriously. Unless you are dying from some rare and contagious disease, go to class. Some profs only take a couple points off your final grade for absences, but when you think about it, 2.5 points added to an 88% score could mean the difference between an A and a B. Oh, and the whole point of college is going to class and learning, so it might be a good idea. Professors often make it worth your while by, I don’t know, teaching you things and making it all easier to understand.

Tip 4: Don’t drop a class unless you absolutely have to!

I am the kind of person that drops a class when it gets boring, if the teacher annoys me, or if the homework is too much. I always say,”I’ll take it next semester with a better Prof.” Bad idea. Putting off classes that I need to graduate only sets me back and could mean more money spent on tuition or, gasp, summer classes.

Got any other lessons you’ve learned? Share ‘em with the class, ladies!

However, my mother – who let me get my tongue pierced at 14 – thought that Bubblicious-colored locks were just too radical for my upper-middle class suburban town. So I reluctantly settled for a bright, Ronald McDonald shade of red and completely embarrassed myself for the rest of 8th grade.

But my obsession with pink hair – and every girl I ever encountered sporting it – never ended.

So when I stumbled upon this website, created by a tattooed beauty who at the time of my discovery donned the exact shade of pink hair I so longed for in my wannabe punk rocker days, I developed my first-ever girl crush. Not to mention the fact that I was insanely jealous of not only her looks, but her success.

Gala Darling, the writer and sole creator of iCiNG, deemed “a tattooed Miss Manners with pink hair” here and “a local yet globehopping fashion genius” here is exactly what I would be today….if my mother hadn’t crushed my poor little teenage heart almost 7 years ago.

Except Miss Darling is from New Zealand, is much more insightful, and probably has better hair than I could have ever dreamed of pulling off with some Manic Panic and my 8th grade friends’ “kewl hair skillz.”

iCiNG started as a fashion blog back in December 2006 with Gala’s first article, the aptly titled, Fashion Help for Recovering Goths. However, since then the site has grown and Gala blogs about everything from How To Deal With The End of a Relationship, to How To Dress Like Edie Sedgwick to 50 Ways To Rescue The Worst Day Ever. Plus, she takes amazing pictures of her daily outfits.

Her stuff is essential reading for college women everywhere – and doesn’t make you feel like a complete waste of life, the way you do after spending, say, three hours looking at scribbled-on photos.

Two years later, iCiNG is Miss Darling’s full-time job, and I, as a girl who recently switched her major to English (which pretty much has “I’m-never-going-to-find-a-job-besides-teaching-

annoying-high-school-kids” written all over it), find it pretty damn comforting to know that it’s possible to make a living being hot, wearing sweet clothes and telling other people how to live their lives.

Oh yeah, and baking cupcakes. Seriously.

Basically, what I’m trying to get at here is that this girl is freakin’ awesome. And that anybody, even people with crazy, ridiculously-colored hair, can turn out okay. Hell, more than okay. They can become successful, well-adjusted adults and maybe even make a nice wad of change in the process. Check out some of the pictures of Darling’s pad -the iCiNG bowl as she calls it – breathtaking!

Hear that, Ma?

I think it’s important that we all remember that success can be achieved in many different ways. Even though we are spending 4+ years slaving away in college to earn a degree to get us a job, we can be happy with or without the traditional 9-to-5 desk job. We have it so drilled into our little brains that we have to work on someone else’s time clock, in someone else’s office, for someone else, that I think we lose some of that adventurous, rebellious 8th grade part of ourselves. And Miss Darling is the perfect reminder that you don’t have to fit into a certain mold to be successful, glamorous and make lots and lots of cash.

Just remember that anything is possible with a little determination, self-confidence and impeccable style.

Oh, and seriously….the pink hair couldn’t hurt.