Blonde, blue-eyed 18-year-old teenager Miss USA Alexandria Mills was crowned the 60th Miss World 2010 on Saturday evening, defeating more than 100 other hopefuls at a glittering ceremony held at the 2,000-capacity Beauty Crown Theatre in the resort city of Sanya on Hainan Island in southern China.

Miss USA Alexandria Mills in tears when crowned Miss World 2010

The 1.75-metre (5’9″)  Mills, a professional model listed with the Elite Models agency, looked stunning in her snow white gown with some delicate sequins stitched beautifully which fitted her to a perfect ‘T’. She wowed the crowd and the judges with her winning smile and her confident and witty answers.

An ecstatic Miss USA Alexandria Mills

Mills, dressed in a crisp white evening gown, was crowned by Kaiane Aldorino of Gibraltar, the title holder of 2009.

Mills crowned Miss World 2010 by Miss World 2009 Kaiane Aldorino of Gibraltar

Miss Botswana Emma Wareus, dressed in a yellow gown, was named the first runner-up while Miss Venezuela Adriana Vasini was placed third in the pageant.

Miss World 2010 flanked by Miss Botswana Emma Wareus and Miss Venezuela Adriana Vasini

The pageant kicked off with a performance by dancers and drummers from China’s Li ethnic minority group, who mainly live on Hainan island, which was hosting the event for the fifth time in eight years.

Before the contestants whirled in national costumes for the “Dances of the World” segment, viewers were treated to a video montage of the women’s whirlwind tour of China — from the Great Wall to the shopping malls.

This was followed by the introduction of the contestants from around the globe. The contestants set the stage on fire with an aptly titled act “Dances of the World”.

The glittering evening saw an opera performance, melodious symphony of saxophone and group performances by the contestants.

Miss World 2010 contestants

The jury included former Miss World winners Denise Perrier Lanfranchi (1953), Ann Sidney (1964), Mary Stävin (1977), Agbani Darego (2001) and Maria Julia Mantilla (2004).

During the two-hour competition, which annually draws a global television audience of about one billion, Mills said her month spent touring China with the other 114 Miss World hopefuls had made a “big impact” on her life.

Early favorite Mariann Birkedal of Norway, listed by British bookmaker William Hill as the woman to beat ahead of Mills, finished in the top seven.

A win for Norway could have caused a stir in Beijing, where the government is furious that the Oslo-based Nobel committee awarded this year’s Nobel Peace Prize to jailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo.

The outgoing Miss World Kaiane Aldorino, 24, said she had enjoyed her year as Miss World, saying that in all the countries she had visited, one thing had remained the same: “The smile on a child’s face, and that’s what has captured the moment”.

The competition emphasises the importance of charity work.

Miss Kenya Natasha Metto, who has worked on combatting an epidemic of parasitic Jigger fleas in her country — earned a “fast-track” spot in the final group of 25, but was then eliminated. She was awarded the Miss Beauty With A Purpose.

Miss Kenya Natasha Metto

Ireland’s violin-playing Emma Britt Waldron, who won Miss World Talent subsidiary title  and finished in the top five, wowed the audience by greeting them in Chinese, while Miss China, Xiao Tang, spoke mostly in English.

Miss Ireland Emma Britt Waldron

Miss China Xiao Tang

Other subsidiary titles were awarded to the followings:

Miss Puerto Rico Yara Lasanta is Miss World Beach Beauty held at Mandarin Oriental, Sanya on October 19, 2010.

Miss Puerto Rico Yara Lasanta

Miss Northern Ireland Lori Moore is Miss World Sports held at Sheraton Sanya Resort on October 22, 2010.

Miss Northern Ireland Lori Moore

Miss French Polynesia Mihilani Teixeira became Miss World Dress Designer held on October 23, 2010.

Miss French Polynesia Mihilani Teixeira

Miss Norway Mariann Birkedal became Miss World Top Model held at Crowne Plaza Sanya on October 23, 2010.

Miss Norway Mariann Birkedal

Miss India Manasvi Mamgai, who was amongst the top contenders, failed to make the top 20. Dressed in traditional Indian attire, she was astounding when she danced to the classical number ‘Dhai shyam rok lai’ from the 2002 film ‘Devdas’  in the ‘Dance of the World’ round, winning her great reviews.

Miss India Manasvi Mamgai

The event rivals the Miss Universe pageant owned by US tycoon Donald Trump, which was won by Mexico’s Jimena Navarrete in August.

Miss Universe 2010 Jimena Navarrete of Mexico

In 1951, Sweden’s Kiki Hakansson became the first Miss World. Oscar-winning American actress Halle Berry was a finalist in 1986.

The first Miss World Kiki Hakansson of Sweden

Halle Berry

Venezuela and India have produced the most Miss Worlds, with five titleholders each. Bollywood star Aishwarya Rai took the crown in 1994.

Aishwarya Rai

Enjoy the following YouTube video featuring the 2010 Miss World Alexandria Mills:

Whenever we hear of deal making, one of the first name that pops into our head is none other than Donald Trump. His name has become synonymous with deal making. He authored the book “Trump: The Art of the Deal”.

Donald Trump.....The Deal Maker

I am very sure you have never heard of Kyle MacDonald….oh no, he has nothing to do with the fastfood chain McDonald’s. This guy is a great example of successful deal making in action.

Kyle MacDonald

Kyle traded his way from one single red paperclip to a house in the space of about one year. His project stirred up a great deal of publicity. This is what he did:

1. He started his website offering to swap his one red paper clip for anything.

This red paper clip started it all.

2. He swapped it for a fish-shape pen.

The fish-shaped pen

3. He swapped the pen for a hand-sculpted doorknob.

The hand-sculpted doorknob

4. He swapped the doorknob for a Coleman camp stove.

The Coleman camp stove

5. He swapped the barbecue for a portable Honda generator.

The Honda Generator

6. He swapped the generator for a keg of beer and a neon Budweiser sign.

The empty keg, an IOU for filling the keg with the beer of the holder's choice, and a neon Budweiser sign

7. He swapped these for a Ski-doo snowmoblie.

The Ski-doo Snowmobile

8. He swapped the snowmobile for a two-person trip to Yahk  British Columbia.

Two-Person Trip to Yahk

9. He swapped the trip to Yahk for a cube van.

The Cube Van

10. He swapped this for a recording contract with Metal Works in Toronto.

The Recording Contract

11. He swapped this for a year’s rent in Phoenix, Arizona.

The One Year House Lease

12. He swapped this lease for an afternoon with the rocker Alice Cooper.

An Afternoon With Alice Cooper

13. He swapped this for a KISS motorized snow globe.

KISS motorized snow globe

14. He swapped this for a role in the film “Donna On Demand”.

Role in movie

15. He swapped the movie role for a two-storey farmhouse in Kipling, Saskatchewan, Canada.

House in Kipling, Sakatchewan, Canada

Kyle is now looking to trade the house for anything. He is looking for nothing in particular. He just wants to make a trade and sees where that will lead him to. So if you have anything you’d like to offer in exchange for the house, and I mean anything, be sure to send in your offer to Kyle at oneredpaperclip@gmail.com.

Details about the red paperclip house:
Located at 503 Main Street in Kipling, Saskatchewan, Canada.
Fully furnished.
Two floors + basement
Three bedrooms
Two bathrooms
Refinished hardwood floors.
Fridge, stove, sinks, drawers, shelves…all the regular kitchen stuff.
Electricity!
Large grass front yard + large grass backyard.
Gas hot water tank + gas furnace.
Close proximity to schools, restaurants, grocery stores, hospital, etc. Kipling has most services in town.
World’s largest red paperclip on the front lawn.

So what lessons can we learn from Kyle? Well, for starters, these are some of the lessons:

1. Never give the excuse that you do not have anything to start with.

2. Have a goal.

3. Make use of free publicity.

4. Be open to opportunities.

5. Be flexible.

6. Network, network and network!

Ask yourself this question: What do I have that others might want? And think broadly here. What you have includes not only physical possessions but also your skills and your knowledge. Trade your way to success!