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Mission Possible
Famed Female Astronauts Helping Gifted Girls Reach for the Stars By Kim Byrum Skinner
"Tell them, 'I've assigned Mary to lead, and here's the real lesson of teamwork,'" she says. "'If she's a real leader this will be natural and easy and fast. If she's learning to lead, this is what that's about, too, and you guys are going to learn to follow. Both lessons [are valuable]."
Ride's and Sullivan's straight-up advice to young girls isolated by outside-the-box interests? View life through a wide-angle lens.
"Look around, because there are a lot of women now who have successfully pursued nontraditional careers and who love it," Ride says. "They're becoming more and more visible, and you can find them in just about any age range. Look around, because there's a little bit of security in numbers."
"Recognize that the people who are hanging around and bugging and bothering you or taunting you or challenging you as to whether you fit well enough, the answer may well be, you don't fit perfectly there," Sullivan says. "And the reason is because someday you're going to know, as I do now, Neil Armstrong. You're going to know Sally Ride. You're going to know people who've walked on the moon. You're going to know people who have built and designed airplanes. You're going to know people who've explored the bottom of the ocean. This is not the end-group of friends in your life."