The Most Inspiring Woman of the Year: Kelly Clarkson

Self Magazine's Most Inspiring Women of 2009

Pop star Kelly Clarkson is in charge of her career, her body and her life, proving that happiness is something you create for yourself. (AP Photo/ Matt Sayles)

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The Most Inspiri... Pop star Kelly Clarkson is in charge of her career, her body and her life, proving that happiness is something you create for yourself. (AP Photo/ Matt Sayles)
The Best Friend:... The 44-year-old star and producer of "Sex and the City" proves that women only get sexier and more powerful after age 40. Through her work as a UNICEF ambassador Parker helps children around the world receive basic life necessities.(AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
The Resilient An... Couric is the first woman to anchor the evening news solo. The 52-year-old co-founded the National Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance in honor of her late husband, Jay Monahan, who died of the disease in 1998 at age 42. (AP Photo/Evan Agostini)
The Comback Kid:... The 2009 USA Indoor Track Champion made a ferocious return after a heartbreaking stumble in the 2008 Olympics. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
The Innovator: D... The creator of the iconic wrap dress (thank you!) makes clothing designed to flatter one and all. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, FILE)
The Lifesaver: N... Founder of Susan G. Komen for the Cure and Race for the Cure, Brinker turned her grief over her sister’s untimely death from breast cancer at 36 into a mission to create the world’s largest grassroots network of breast cancer activists. She has raised nearly a billion dollars to fight the disease. (AP Photo/Lauren Victoria Burke)
The Children's A... The global star has sold more than 50 million albums (her latest, "She-Wolf," hits stores next month). On top of passion for music, Shakira has launched a foundation, Pies Descalzos, which feeds and educates children in her native Colombia. (Photo by Joe Kohen/Getty Images)
The Good Cop: Ma... The TV cop proves that women don't have to feel like victims. She's created the Joyful Heart Foundation, which helps survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence and child abuse. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
The CEO with a C... As co-founder of Working Assets, a phone and credit card company that gives a portion of every transaction to charity, 50-year-old Laura Scher has built a new business model that shows making a difference is as important as making a profit. (Photo by Working Assets)
The Opinion Make... The host of MSNBC's "The Rachel Maddow Show" has demonstrated a huge amount of courage by being the first openly gay host of a prime-time news show. (Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
The Earth Crusad... Actress and environmentalist Trudie Styler has co-founded The Rainforest Foundation Fund to protect endangered land and indigenous people and combat global warming. The organization has raised more than $25 million through benefit concerts. (Photo by Getty Images For Philips/Getty Images For Philips)
Record-Breaking ... Click here to find out which stars have shattered shocking world records.