Paula Abdul was the luncheon keynote speaker at this year’s Business Women’s Forum in Hartford, CT attended by more than 700 professional women. Feeling “vertically challenged” against the tall podium on the stage, Paula filled the room with her powerful life story and personal success philosophy.
What was most surprising was to learn that Paula started life with physical disabilities. She was born 3 months premature at 2.8 pounds, with a broken windpipe and ill-formed lungs. Her hips were misaligned and one leg was a few inches shorter than the other. Logically, she should never have been able to dance or sing. But she did…
Inspired at the age of 4 by Gene Kelly in the musical “Singing in the Rain,” Paula decided at that moment “I’m going to be a star.” Her family tried not to encourage her, knowing that it was highly unlikely given her fragile state.
Paula learned to “get comfortable with the uncomfortable” at a very early age. Her determination was her driving quality. She had a love for dance and performance and nothing was going to stop her.
She began to audition for everything, including the Gong Show, but with no luck. They often would reject her just looking at her. Standing at 5 feet 2 inches tall on a good day, she didn’t look much like a dancer.
Rejection became the norm for Paula Abdul, audition after audition after audition. She tried a strategy of changing her appearance, changing her name, lying about her age, and getting back in line to re-audition under a false name. Finally it worked. She was selected to be a Laker Girl, a cheerleader for the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team. Now, being a cheerleader was not her life ambition, but it was a place to start.
Within a very short period of time, she had infused her choreographic brilliance and redefined the dance style of the Laker Girls team. The pom-poms were dropped and they adopted a more engaging performance style. The audience responded and Paula was quickly promoted to the #1 Laker Girl – head of the team.
The Jackson 5 family were season ticket holders for the LA Lakers. When they saw the dance moves of the new Laker Girls team, they had to know who was behind it. They asked to be introduced to the choreographer. That is when Paula got her next break. The Jackson 5 family asked her to choreograph their upcoming tour. She was 18 years old at the time.
Shortly after that, I had the good fortune of meeting and working with Paula Abdul. We were both instructors for the USA – the United Spirit Association – an organization that teaches summer camps to high school and college cheerleaders and songleaders throughout the country. Paula and I were the two shortest girls on the team, standing at each end of the line. Paula’s choreography for our team was fantastic. I had no idea of who she really was and what she was going to create in her life. Good for you, Paula. You make all of us former cheerleaders PROUD! (photo: left to right: Elaine, Paula and me)
One day during summer camp, Jackie Jackson of the Jackson 5 came to visit Paula. She kindly introduced us to Jackie. I vividly remember his dark black Mercedes Benz luxury car with the decorated emblems on the front bumper. His fragrant cologne filled the air and we were in a state of momentary hypnotic trance. That was in 1982 and I still remember that intoxicating smell!
In 1988 Paula went on to debut her singing talent with the hit single “Straight Up” written and produced by Elliot Wolff. She invested her own money to produce her first music video (click below to view). Notice the tap dance similarities to the Gene Kelly “Singing in the Rain” number in the opening seconds of Paula’s music video. Perhaps a childhood inspiration?
In her keynote talk at the 2010 BWF Business Women’s Forum, Paula left us with several words of wisdom:
“Talent has no boundaries, no prejudices.”
“Be a perpetual student. This way you always stay relevant and then you can be a great teacher.”
“Seek out awe-inspiring competition that inspires you to be better.”
“When you find your purpose, the magic will happen.”
“The two most vulnerable places to be are: 1) behind a microphone; and 2) in front of the mirror when you have to face yourself.”
“Take bold, daring hard steps. Put yourself out there. So what if you fall? So what if it’s uncomfortable. Get comfortable with the uncomfortable!.”
