"Okay, Mary, you have worn me down!" That's how an e-mail began that I received from Joanne. At first I was concerned. I didn't mean to wear her down. Really, I didn't! I kept reading.

"I didn't know if I was living my nail color. But then I went and looked at the name of every bottle I could find. And there it was: A True Ab-Original. I think that describes me so well, because I am different - my accent is different and my cultural background is different, but I am true to who I am! I am living like A True Ab-Original!"

Joanne really is a true original. She hails from South Africa and now lives in the southern United States. Her British-infused accent definitely stands out and her cultural background gives her a wonderful, fresh perspective as an image consultant.

But, before Joanne could be inspired by the nail color A True Ab-Original, she had to do two simple things. First, she had to take time out of her Wonder Woman busy schedule to consider which nail color really spoke to her. It only took a few minutes to find the perfect color that playfully reminded her of her true, authentic self. Second, she put aside any negative feelings about being different. In fact, thank goodness Joanne is different! What fun would it be if we were all the same? Clearly, no fun at all.

I absolutely love it when I hear from gals who were inspired by their nail polish to be themselves.  You gotta hear Deborah's story:

"I was interviewing for a promotion. I already had one interview and after sending the usual follow-up, thank you e-mail, I received a response that made me believe I did not get the job.

However, I was still scheduled for a second interview so I went.  It was the morning of the second interview, and while I thought it was pointless, I didn't get time to paint my nails the night before.  I was going to do it when I got into the office, but I forgot my polish. Ugh.  So I asked a buddy if she had any with her and she did.  It was a hot pink called Tutti Frutti.

I was dressed quite conservatively in a navy blue suit and thought, 'This color is a little too wild to wear for an interview, but, since the interview was pointless anyway, I decided why not!'  I painted my nails and remember thinking, 'Now this is a fun color!'

Because I didn't think I had the job, I was feeling a bit more Tutti Frutti and relaxed.  My answers came more naturally. I even said some things I probably wouldn't have said if I didn't think I was already out of the running for the new role.

A few days later, I got the job! The thing that impressed the interviewer was that I wasn't afraid to step out of the traditional answers.

My friend and I joke to this day about wearing Tutti Frutti to any big, important event, be it business or personal."

Don't you just love that story?!  I can just see Deborah sitting there during her interview glancing down at her hot pink fingertips smiling to herself.  Being her Tutti Frutti self was key to answering the interview questions that landed her a new job.  That's the power of being your true you!

Some nail color stories I hear are so good you'd think they were made up, like this one from my friend Carolyn. But, as the day is long and my favorite nail color is red, I swear the following story is completely true:

"The day before my wedding, my matron of honor, Dena, and I got French manicures for the big day.

Dena is a busy mother of two preschoolers and was working for a large technology and information company. I was working for a large financial services company. Dena is also my best friend since first grade. We've kept our friendship going through different colleges, living states apart, men, children, and stressful professions.

We were really enjoying this time together with just the two of us to catch up on each other's lives. As our fingernails dried, we noticed that we each chose a slightly different shade of white for our nail tips. When we turned over our nail polish bottles to read each name, we couldn't believe how perfectly they matched our lives in that moment.

Dena's color was Bubble Bath. She and her husband had left the kids in North Carolina with Grandma for a sorely needed get-away for the wedding weekend. My color? Ball N Chain! We were indeed living like our nail colors."