|
||||||||||||||||||
| HOME | BIO | BOOKS | ARTICLES | PRESS | EVENTS | BLOG | RESOURCES | CONTACT | ||||||||||
|
Endorsements for The Naked Truth: A Working Woman's Manifesto on Business and What Really Matters.
Network of Executive Women Online - New Book Club
For those women who think "you can have it all," comes this contrarian view from business journalist and former technology CEO Margaret Heffernan. Heffernan interviewed more than fifty mostly female executives for this book and it delivers, as the title promises, some hard truths about the work and lives of women executives. Some women think even less of their own capabilities than their male counterparts do and often aim low from the very beginning. Many male executives continue to stereotype women ("geisha," "bitch") and try to hold them down. Toxic bosses and hostile work environments still abound. Sexual harassment, pay discrimination and hostility to the "mommy track" are not everywhere a thing of the past. But Heffernan and her interview subjects (many identified only by pseudonyms) aren't just doom and gloom. They offer real solutions to the challenges women executives face on and off the job. How to increase confidence, build relationships and reputation, create alliances and networks, mentor and be mentored, and avoid the familiar trap, "I'll do it myself." There are chapters on how and when to exit a dead-end job, how to become an entrepreneur, and how to balance work, family and an inner life. It's important stuff. Because one thing most women know that many men don't, is that your job is part of life – it's not your life.
Author shares winning tactics - Leslie Whitaker
Dear Readers,
An English woman who has done everything from secretarial work to trading gas futures, this 45-year-old mother of two offers tips on how to acquire power, navigate toxic environments and strike out on your own, among other challenges. Q: You urge women to avoid male-oriented organizations where we have to blend in if we want to be accepted. Are there enough female-friendly employers to hire us all? A: There are more good companies than people imagine. I'm struck by how many women make compromises before they do their research. Not every company requires women to bury their personalities. If they started with bolder assumptions, women would realize they are assets wherever they work. Keep your standards high. Q: That is an example of negotiating with yourself, isn't it? A: Yes, women shouldn't give up before they start because that becomes self-fulfilling. Don't make concessions too early. Q: You moved to the U.S. for your husband's career. Wasn't that a huge concession on your part? A recent study found that far more women move to accommodate their husbands' careers than the reverse. Is there a way to even the playing field? A: When we moved to Boston for my husband's job, I said the next move is mine. I was very explicit. We both believe in fairness, so it wasn't a problem. When I was ready to move back to England, I knew the timing might not be perfect for everybody else, but the moment was mine. Q: You say it's essential to have a career plan, yet many women don't. Why? A: Women often don't make career plans because they think having a plan will cut them off from opportunities. But I think a plan illuminates opportunities that they wouldn't have seen before. I learned this the hard way. Whenever I've made a plan, I'm staggered at what it achieves. Q: What do you mean by "portable power"? A: Sometimes we are looking for dependency at work. When we agonize over things like face-time (with superiors), those are symbols of dependency. The only power is "portable power," which is inside of you. You are safe because you are capable. That's the only safety there is. Q: Many women who have stayed home to raise their families have trouble getting back into the workplace once their children are grown. Can you offer any advice for them? A: Sometimes women don't see how their skills map onto business. Women negotiate all the time, for instance. We figure out who is going to pick up the kids, we handle Thanksgiving. If you can negotiate with your kids, you can negotiate world peace. My daughter is a great example. I bought her a pair of boots when I was travelling. They didn't fit, and she said I owed her a pair of boots, so I bought her a new pair. Then she realized that the original pair fit, but she wanted to keep both pairs. I was a little peeved because of the money, but I was dazzled. I said, "I take my hat off to you. I'd like to have you working for me because you know how to negotiate for resources." And she's only 6. I regard it as part of my job to make sure that's something she never loses. Leslie Whitaker is co-author of "The Good Girl's Guide to Negotiating."
Paul Tulenko's Small Business E-News - Friday November 19, 2004
Well, I don't know what to tell you...this book has a lot of 'thought material' for men in high places along with some 'valid complaints with possible solutions' for women. There's also a bunch of surprises included. Let's start with the men's side of things: I like the way Chapter 5 begins. "Power is the ability to do things. With power we can achieve goals. With power we can make choices. WIth power, we can do things for ourselves, we can do things for other people. With power we can change the game." Men understand that, act on it, and do everything in their power to make it happen. The acquisition of power and the resultant perks are facts that men know, work to acquire, and understand. I also like the way Chapter 2 outlines the typical way women try to 'fit-in'. "In my experience, there are four main stereotypes women tend to fall into: geisha, invisible woman, bitch, and guy."...All over the world are women who've fought their way through this nonsense and emerged whole. It can be done." This chapter is empowering for women and enlightning for men. Read it with that thought in mind. Chapter 11 ends this way. "When I started thinking about the lives of women in business, I used to think in terms of catching up with men. But now I see that that is irrelevant, because it is women who are the trailblazers. Our career patterns, which companies see as so eccentric and challenging, are the shape of things to come" Women, pay attention! Throughout the book are vignettes of women, some you will hate, some you will love, some you will awe; but overall you will end up digesting their experiences, contemplating their journeys, and making decisions on your own life. Men, pay attention! The world of business is changing, and unless we decide to actively participate in those changes, we stand the absolutely unthinkable and seemingly unbelievable chance of being marginalized. Think of that while you are putting on the 10th. The 'between' chapters tell the story of Margaret's learnings from her point of view, and if enough women buy-into, read, and act-on what she writes, we may be in for a major change in the way business in America is conducted. For you men out there, you need to read this book. Whether you decide to go along with Margaret's ideas or not is irrelevant, the changes are coming. What we (men) need to decide is whether we will participate and possibly help guide and benefit from participating in the changes. I give this book 4 1/2 stars. (Only the Bible and the Constitution receive 6 stars.)
The Guardian - Monday November 8, 2004
Click here to read on a guardian.co.uk From The Times, 2nd November 2004 "Even in these supposedly emancipated times, women in the office are frequently stereotyped. But it can be avoided. Margaret Heffernan, a former CEO, knows how..." Click here to read on at timesonline.co.uk.
"The Naked Truth" was reviewed in the Daily Telegraph on 12th August 2004:
Click here to read on at telegraph.co.uk.
Other online reviews/comments:
From Tom Peters
From Shoshana Zuboff, Charles Edward Wilson Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School and author of The Support Economy:
From Alan Webber, Founder and Editor of Fast Company magazine:
From Allison Pearson, author of I Don't Know Women on Top"
From Joyce K. Fletcher, Professor of Management, Simmons School of Management, Boston, MA:
|
|||||||||||||||
| Copyright 2006-2010. All Rights Reserved. |
 |
