To go after the big WOWs in life, you’ll need to become comfortable standing up and standing out. Big WOWs often take you out of your comfort zone. I realized that my parents fostered my willingness to be different throughout my childhood.

When I was young, I thought my parents were typical. As I got older, however, I started noticing that they weren’t like my friends’ parents. Especially my mom. When she did anything, she did it with gusto.

For example, when my mom was a teenager, she was president of the Elvis fan club in her city. She danced on “American Bandstand,” and her nickname was “crazy legs.” She was known to have more than one suitor, and she’d purposefully book her dates back-to-back so that the guy bringing her home would pass the guy picking her up next on the sidewalk.

My mom put that same adventurous spirit into raising my sister and me. A story that illustrates her verve for life is when she entered me into a beauty pageant when I was six. I had to model two outfits, a party dress and playwear. While the other contestants wore cute little party dresses, my mom put me in a custom-made white dress with a matching parasol. For playwear, the other little girls wore shorts and a cute top. Not me. I came out on stage wearing riding gear with jodhpurs, a velvet blazer and hat, and a whip. WOW, right?

When I was about nine, my mom became a realtor. This was in the 1970s when few of the moms in our circle worked. She wasn’t just a realtor; she was a trailblazer. She set sales records in her office. She consistently made the million-dollar club, which back then was a feat since houses peaked at about $50,000. She eventually launched her real estate firm and was featured as a square on a Monopoly-style game based on our city.

Many other stories about my childhood could be called “WOW! Moments.” The biggest, though, is that my parents raised my sister and me to believe we could do anything we wanted—and we should dream big. My dad complimented my mom’s “go big or go home” attitude by challenging us with the question: “How hard can it be?” “You can figure out anything you set your mind to,” he’d say.

I’ll admit it wasn’t always easy to have parents who pushed me. Sometimes, I just wanted to blend in or settle. But having the confidence to go after what I want has helped me embrace a WOW-filled life.

You can be that for yourself if you didn’t have a mom or dad like mine. Or I’ll be that for you. Go after your big WOWs! The stories you’ll have to tell and the memories you make will be worth the time spent outside your comfort zone.