Playing the Gender Card in Business and Politics
On the rare occasion that I am offered a seat on a crowded subway car because I’m a woman, I accept. When I’m standing in the aisle of an airplane struggling to get my too large carry-on in the already crowded overhead and a man offers to help me lift it and place it,...
Intuition Is An Essential Leadership Tool
My experience coaching executives as well as my own career journey have convinced me that one of the biggest challenges facing leaders in business today is decision-making. Bombarded with the pressure to make decisions quickly and wisely, leaders often seek the...
Empowered Women Don’t Need A Power Suit
In the 1980’s, the power suit was an essential item in a professional woman’s wardrobe. The power suit, equipped with shoulder pads to increase stature, paired with high heels for the extra power lift, was a symbol of women’s new prominence in the workplace. Remember...
The Lack of Diversity is a Cultural Issue
On August 4th, the first ever White House Demo day was organized to showcase women and minority founders in technology. The event, along with President Obama’s call for action, sparked some major tech companies to announce new diversity initiatives. Facebook, Google,...
Female Roles Models Are Important For Ambitious Women
I had no female role models at the first company where I worked. The executives were all male, and I didn’t have a great relationship with my male boss who was neither supportive nor invested in my professional development. I left after four years. Looking back now, I...
Ambitious Women Deserve Our Praise, Not Our Disdain
No one with ambition has come under fire more than Hillary Clinton. As early as 2006, a survey by The New York Observer found a “virtual cottage industry” of anti-Clinton literature. Her political career, especially her bid for the 2016 presidency, has only increased...
Political Savvy: The Missing Link To Women’s Advancement
Every year Forbes publishes its list of the world’s most powerful women. Many such lists honor women who have made it to the top of their field. Yet currently, women hold only 5.3 percent of Fortune 500 CEO positions and 5.4 percent of Fortune 1,000 positions. The...
Career Curveballs: Hey Boss, Are Those Cement Shoes You’re Handing Me?
This is a guest post from Whitney Johnson. It’s 1996. I work in investment banking at Smith Barney Shearson. My boss, who hired and mentored me, has been given the boot. Because I’m on the wrong side of the political aisle, I'm also in peril. Realizing that I can’t...
What Misty Copeland Teaches Us About Ambition
At 19, Misty Copeland imagined herself not as a member of the corps, but as a principal dancer. In her memoir, Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina, Misty writes that “It felt right. It felt like a promise. Someday, somehow, it was going to happen for me.” And so it...