MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski is a busy woman, the three-time New York Times bestselling author and Morning Joe co-host has a new book coming out tomorrow. Grow Your Value uses Brzezinski’s own life experiences to demonstrate how things can seem perfect in one aspect, but be totally out of balance in another.
Through this project, Brzezinski encourages women to pursue a life of honesty and authenticity, where career and home life can co-exist. Brzezinski found time to catch up with us for 5 questions on the eve of her latest book’s debut.
TVNewser: Your new book Grow Your Value is geared toward women, but what would a man get out of reading it?
Brzezinski: He would understand so much more about the woman in his life and he would probably be able to connect with her a lot better. Whether its his mom, daughter, sister, or wife, he would gain insight into the different “pot holes” she might be facing.
TVNewser: When you first started on Morning Joe, you famously protested reporting on TMZ-like “news” such as Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan. Why do you think Americans are so fascinated with celebrities?
Brzezinski: I don’t know… because I am not.
TVNewser: That said, what’s the most ridiculous story you’ve had to cover in recent memory?
Brzezinski: I did a CBS Evening News report on plastic surgeries for pets, including fake testicles for dogs that were neutered.
TVNewser: You’re now multi-platform: TV anchor, author of numerous books, and host of the Know Your Value conferences. How do you manage all of these commitments simultaneously?
Brzezinski: I have absolutely no idea. As you will read in Grow Your Value, there is a price to success and I am very honest about it. No easy answers here and especially no answers with a bow tied up, all prettily at the end. I am a woman in motion, still trying to figure out how to get to the other side in one piece.
TVNewser: What’s the one piece of advice you’d give to a woman starting out in this business?
Brzezinski: I wish I had known I had time to enjoy myself and my success and that I hadn’t always felt like it had a shelf life. I think young women today can honestly feel very certain that their careers will be long with many twists and turns. There is no shelf life so stop and enjoy once in a while because it is really fun!