An Open Letter To Cosmopolitan’s Editor-in-Chief Joanna Coles From the fun,fearless girl with the Cosmo pink lip bag.

I remember being young, er, and sneak reading the Cosmopolitan sex tips in the grocery store line and flipping through the magazine to see how to get rid of belly fat. Back then Cosmo was just a magazine so to speak for me. It was a guideline or pamphlet on how to be a fabulous woman who had it together in all aspects of life, or at least trying. After this weekend’s FunFearlessLife event, my view of Cosmo and the ladies and gentlemen who run the amazing brand has changed completely as I felt a shift in own view of life.

Events like these are just the kind of “conferences” that I always wanted to be apart of. I use the word conference in quotes in that I really didn’t feel like I was at a conference or a networking event. The energy upon walking into The Hearst Tower felt all too familiar. Like I’ve been there before or was in the exact spot I was always meant to be in. The welcoming “Fearless” greeters, also known as the editors and assistants apart of the Cosmo family, made every guest feel like apart of the team. They were eager to get to know us as much as they could and about our stories in a brief amount of time. I honestly felt I was at a new job orientation because of the warm energy that filled the room.

Coming alone to events like this is always scary for me. I get crazy anxious that I will have to rely on my cell phone as a nervous clutch, or that my constant hair play will give off a vain vibe versus an ‘I’m screaming internally at how nercited -nervous and excited- I am to be here,’ but none of those came into play as I found it easy to speak with women, and one man, about what they do and make some promising connections. Being in a room with like-minded women who are eager to seek help in elevating their careers is nothing short of extraordinary and inspiring.

Outside of the amazing attendees, the guest speakers were also heart-pounding goodness giving chicken soup to this 27-year-old’s soul. Every speaker offered practical and beneficial insight no matter what field of choice. In those moments we could all relate to being that stressed out girl at work, that girl who wanted to get the guy, that girl who wants to lose those extra pounds, and that girl who wanted to power up her voice. It felt as if these speakers knew exactly where I was coming from and were speaking directly to me. The doubt I was having in myself and in my career cease to exist in that moment. My power pose was coming into form and the voice that meekly resounded in my head left that space to vocally say my career purpose to anyone who would hear. A phoenix was born on November 14, 2015.

So I want to send my sincerest thank you to Joanna Coles. Thank you for bringing this event to life. Thank you for realizing there was a gap in the industry for events like this. Thank you being the ball of energy that you are encouraging women to demand more in their careers, love lives, and in themselves. And thank you for inspiring women everywhere to live a #FunFearlessLife.

With Gratitude,
Amber Dover
aka the girl with the Cosmo pink lip bag.