Learning to become fearless in today's world.(Arianna Huffington)(Interview)

If women are to achieve success--in higher education, politics, business or just plain life--we need to become fearless. That's the message from Arianna Huffington, the media and political dynamo who just published her 11th book, On Becoming Fearless ... in Love, Work and Life. While her other books have ranged from politics to history to art, this one is personal, detailing her life path and offering guidelines for achieving fearlessness in all aspects of life.

As co-founder and editor-in-chief of The Huffington Post, a widely-read news and blog site, Huffington is also a nationally syndicated columnist and a co-host of public radio's popular political round table "Left, Right & Center." She regularly appears on talk TV, has been on Time magazine's list of the 100 most influential people in the world and made headlines running for governor of California in 2004.

Huffington keynoted the ACE women's leadership dinner in San Diego in February sponsored by the American Council on Education's Office of Women in Higher Education (OWHE), which is celebrating its 35th year.

The early years

A native of Greece, Huffington moved to England at age 16, where she attended Cambridge University and earned a master's degree in economics. She also studied rhetoric and became president of the Cambridge Union, the famed debating society. People joked that to give herself an air and an edge, she deliberately emphasized the Greek accent that she retains today.

"Women have a different relationship with power than men do," she said. "Marlo Thomas said that for a man to be called ruthless, you have to be Joe McCarthy. For a woman, you just have to put someone on hold."

She started thinking about fear when she noticed her daughters turning from fearless girls into fearful teenagers, worrying "Am I pretty? Am I smart? Do people like me?" Their constant need for approval alarmed her.