Bobbi Brown wasn't always a household name in the beauty business.
"I didn't always know that I would be successful in the makeup world," Brown told "Good Morning America." "I'm so glad that I didn't know what was going to be the story of my career because that's how you learn."
The 62-year-old makeup mogul has taken the industry by storm with her line of natural-toned beauty and skincare products, a passion she first pursued at Emerson College.
"I asked if I could major in makeup and they said yes," Brown said.
From being behind the brush at fashion shows and award ceremonies to launching her own cosmetic companies, Brown joined "GMA" to take a look back at some of the most pivotal moments of her life.
1. Everything that you go through, there's a reason.
Although Brown graduated high school six months early, she said she wasn't the greatest student.
"I didn't get great grades and was a pretty average student," said Brown. "I was very social."
Brown said she struggled to find her path in college and, much to her mother's dismay, she wanted to drop out.
"My mom said, 'Forget about what you want to do with your life. If today was your birthday, what would you want to do?' I said I want to play with makeup."
Brown didn't attend beauty school but she majored in makeup at Boston's Emerson College in a program that now bears her name.
"Everything that you go through, there's a reason," said Brown. "Why it's so difficult you don't understand at the time, but that's how you learn."
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2. Don’t be afraid to make your own path.
Getting ahead in the beauty biz was certainly a challenge for Brown in the '80s.
"The makeup industry, when I first entered it, was really different," she said. "There were not a whole lot of freelance makeup artists and there were not a lot of well-known makeup artists."
Enter Brown, who, by the time she was in her mid-30s, launched what would become one of the most successful cosmetic companies in the world.
She credits her success to not being afraid to blaze her own trail.
"I never had a job, I just started knocking on doors and building a portfolio," she said. "I learned how to be an entrepreneur without even knowing it at the time."
3. Marriage takes work.
Brown has been happily married to her husband Steven Plofker for 30 years.
"This picture makes my heart sing," she said. "I still love my husband as much if not more today then the day I met him."
Brown had a whirlwind romance. She said she fell in love with her husband the day they met and the lovebirds were married six months later.
Her advice to a successful marriage isn't such a secret: It takes work.
"If you love who you're with, even if it's difficult, you've got to figure out a way to work with someone who is completely different than you are."
4. Life is all about choices.
"Those boys are everything to me," gushed Brown.
Not only is Brown a professional makeup artist, the founder of two cosmetic companies and a New York Times best-selling author, but she is also a mother to three.
"I really think the secret to doing it all -- which doesn't exist by the way -- just means making choices of what is important to you," said Brown.
Brown said staying ahead of her kids' schedules has always been key to maintaining a sense of organization in her crazy, chaotic life.
"There were many a sleepless night about, 'Do I do this one's fashion show or go to this one's spring break?'" She said. "I never chose the fashion show."
5. Always be a go-getter.
Brown has a few honorary degrees under her belt. The one she received in the photo was from Montclair State University.
"What I remember about that moment was looking out at the kids and seeing myself when I was that age, and realizing how exciting it is that you have this whole world in front of you," said Brown.
She remembers being anxious about the future at that age and would tell her younger self to put those nerves at rest.
"All these great things are going to happen to you if you just go out and get them."
6. Beauty is from the inside out.