Maye Musk, at seventy-four is a fashionable, charming, jet-setting supermodel, registered dietitian-nutritionist, and worldwide speaker with a tight-knit circle of family and friends. But things were not always easy and glamorous — she became a single mom at thirty-one years old, struggling through poverty to provide for her three children; dealt with weight issues as a plus-size model and overcame ageism in the modeling industry; and established a lifelong career as a respected dietitian. She made her way through it all with an indomitable spirit and no-nonsense attitude to become a global success and an unexpected icon is what she calls the prime of her life.

Maye shares with us experiences from her life, hard-earned wisdom and frank, practical advice. She believes you can not control everything that happens, but you can live a happier, healthier, and fun-filled life at any age. “Be kind to others, listen to others, and be upbeat. Don’t start talking about your miserable life. Show confidence, respect, interest in others, and smile; that will make you fascinating.”

When Maye Musk enters the room, the conversation stops. She is graceful, confident, respectful and kind. She is looking you in the eyes and smiles. Yes. She always smiles. She is truly fascinating.

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“We need to be kind to people and

mix with kind people.”

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Tanja Beljanski: It is an honor to have you as our cover star. You’ve been in fashion for so many years. What does “timeless elegance” mean to you?

Maye Musk: People would tell me my mother had timeless elegance. No matter how old she got, she never complained and was always graceful, polite and kind. I am very honored for this title to be attached to my story. Thank you so much.

TB: Why do you still enjoy modeling? What makes it exciting for you? And what do you think about modeling today?

MM: I enjoy modeling because every job is different and challenging. This makes it very exciting. I love modeling today more than ever because high fashion is being worn by women of all ages, including 74.

TB: Did you ever feel pressure to change yourself to fit better into fashion life?

MM: I never felt this pressure, because I am a dietitian who had a private practice. My patients never said to me that I needed to make a change. In the modeling industry, I like to model my age because there is less competition. Also, nobody has said that I should make a change.

TB: What are your thoughts on Social media? And how does it work for you?

MM: I love social media. It lets me share my expertise as a dietitian and as a model, and the longevity of both professions. It works well for me as many of my jobs come from my social media posts.

TB: What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned when it comes to the fashion industry?

MM: The biggest lesson is that you need to be nice in the fashion industry, because then people will want to work with you.

TB: When did you know that you wanted to write a book?

MM: I didn’t think about writing a book until my literary agent convinced me to do that. When a publisher made me a great offer, I said yes. After it was published in English, it went worldwide and is now translated into 30 languages.

TB: There is a lot of self-reflection in your bestselling book “A Woman Makes a Plan”, but also life advice. Were you always planning to create it this way?

MM: When I started writing my book, I was told to dictate my life, and have it transcribed. I did that, not thinking I had a good story to tell. It seems that women, and some men, are relating to the struggles in my life. It gives them hope.

TB: With your book you empower millions of women around the globe to dream big, be brave and act. What are the best decisions in your life? Were they the result of rationality or intuition?

MM: The best decisions I made in my life was to get out of bad situations personally and in business. However, I hope other women move out of a miserable situation quicker than I did. I still thought I could change people, but I couldn’t, and suffered. I am a rational person, but many times I took a chance.

TB: What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your book?

MM: The most surprising things are that women are relating to my stories. They send me messages to say that it sounds like their life. And now they plan to make a change and find happiness.

TB: What’s the riskiest decision you’ve ever made?

MM: The riskiest decision I made was to run away from my abusive husband, because he had threatened harm to me and my family. I had to take that chance, but lived in fear until I moved from South Africa to Canada. My savings were blocked in South Africa, however, being poor and feeling safe is better than being comfortable and living in fear.

TB: All of your children are well-accomplished and highly respected globally. Have you noticed special gifts in them while they were growing up? How did you support them to help them achieve their goals?

MM: I was fortunate to have lovely children, who assisted me with my work, did their homework and were independent so didn’t put pressure on me. All my children were considerate, kind and hard-working. They all had special gifts and different gifts. They have pursued their passion and are happy with their decisions. They had different interests. I supported them with the little financial aid I had, or physically being present when they started their companies. For Elon and Kimbal, I gave them all my savings for their first company, Zip2, $10,000. They were sleeping in their small office. I would fly to Palo Alto, stay in an inexpensive hotel, do office work, buy them groceries, launder their clothes, supervise their interns, and pay for their printing. For Tosca, I partially financed her first movie after graduating, from a huge commercial I did. I go to Elon’s Spacex and Tesla launches, Kimbal’s restaurant and Big Green garden openings, and Tosca’s Passionflix premieres. I’m very proud of them.

TB: We would love to hear some advice for improving our wellbeing in general.

MM: When it comes to our well-being, we need to eat healthily. There is a chapter about that in my book. We need to be happy even when we are sad, sad people bring us all down. We need to do the best we can to be excellent at our profession, so that people appreciate our talents. We need to be kind to people and mix with kind people.

TB: What is the definition of “youth” and “beauty” for you?

MM: I still feel very young, and even younger than many of my years when I was in a bad situation. Miserable situations made me feel old. When it comes to beauty, when people have a lovely smile, and are interesting and pleasant, they become beautiful.

TB: How do you think you learn “a good taste”? Where does it come from? Do you think some people are just born more stylish?

MM: I am a scientist, and used to think I dressed well in my suits when I was seeing patients in the hospital or giving a lecture. Being in fashion, I realize I need a stylist who makes me just a little more interesting than I would choose for myself. So, people think I have great style even if I tell them I didn’t choose my outfit.

TB: Do you believe that style can be a powerful thing?

MM: When you have style, you can walk into a room and feel powerful. It’s a good feeling.

TB: How would you describe your own style?

MM: My own style is fashion forward. I like to be ahead of fashion. This means I take advice from someone who dresses very well, or stylists like those for this fashion shoot. They will dress me beautifully.

TB: Who was your style icon growing up?

MM: When I was growing up, my style icon was Twiggy. I would make mini skirts, do make up like hers, and also sew my own bell-bottoms.

TB: What do you wear on a daily basis?

MM: When I am at home, and not on a job, but doing paperwork, I wear a sweatsuit that is also stylish. When I walk my dog I like to wear jeans and a shirt.

TB: What do you do when you wake up? Take us through a morning in your life.

MM: When I wake up, I watch the news, read my emails, Twitter and Instagram while drinking coffee, then walk my dog.

TB: What words do you live by personally and professionally?

MM: Punctual, caring, considerate, pleasant, hardworking.

TB: If you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would it be?

MM: Get out of a bad situation quicker than I did.

TB: What do you think is the single most important change that needs to happen for women in the next 10 years?

MM: I think women have to show strength, and support each other. Also, women have to find men who support women, so that we can move ahead. We need more female presidents and more female CEOs. Let’s make that happen.

TB: Where are you most at peace?

MM: When I am with my family and my dog.

TB: What pushes you forward?

MM: I don’t like boredom, so I am always pushing myself. Life is full of adventure and I want to be part of it.

TB: What do you still want to achieve?

MM: I am very happy with my life now. I am traveling the world for talks, book launches and modeling. I am looking forward to seeing my children and grandchildren grow up, so we can do fun things together.

@mayemusk