“I THINK ANOTHER WOMAN NEEDS TO HEAR IT WHEN ANOTHER WOMAN PAYS HER A COMPLIMENT.”

As I splashed all over the interwebs : ) on Friday and Saturday, I attended events on Kentucky Derby last weekend in Louisville.

That outfit is EPIC, right? I don’t know what I’m going to do next year to one-up myself, but I always come through!

Anyway, the day after this, my friend Cheri called me to share a conversation she had with another woman. The woman asked her if she’d gone to Churchill Downs the day before and if she had fun, and so on.

And then she said, “Were you there with Laura Wagner? Oh my God — she is like the “it girl” — that hair, that dress, that hat, that confidence, and effortlessness. I follow her work and love her.”

I had no idea who this woman was – lol — and I was REALLY flattered to hear such generous and genuine compliments.

Now, I feel very confident and comfortable with myself — in my mind, I am my own “it girl” (and I want other women to channel this and feel that way about themselves, too); and I was a little taken aback, too, because a lot of times, I’m in yoga pants, no makeup, drinking coffee in my neighborhood shop, and writing until my fingers fall off.

That’s my usual “it girl” vibe.

But we can be all of those things — the glamour and the day-to-day —  and feel like we’ve got it goin’ on.

What I loved most about this, though, aside from the flattering compliment, was what my friend Cheri told me:

“I wanted you to know this. It’s important for us to accept and acknowledge the compliments — but it was important to me to let you know about something someone said about you that you might never have been aware of. I wanted you to know this.”

Isn’t that great? She got a phone call where someone shared a compliment about me and she paid it forward by calling me to compliment me with that compliment.

She didn’t text it to me — she made a point to tell me with her real-life voice. That’s important, too.

Talk about paying it forward and women uplifting other women.

I love this.

So today, when you’re out and about in the world, offer up a compliment to another woman.

It doesn’t have to be about her physical appearance — in fact, it would be great if it was about her energy, the way she pays attention to detail, a great idea she had, how the sound of her laughter makes you happy, or how her confidence inspires you.

Let her know you really see her.

Because that’s what so many of us want in this life — to be seen and heard.

So here are some compliments I’d like to give to you — because I see and hear you:

– You’re good at what you do.

– I always learn so much from you.

– You have a way of putting people at ease.

– You’re a great leader.

– You look amazing today.

– Your energy is infectious / you light up a room.

Most importantly, offer yourself a compliment today.

Remind yourself that you are your own “it girl.”