A provocative and inspiring work on overcoming the obstacles facing women on the path to leadership, from Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg.
Ask most women whether they have the right to equality at work and the answer will be a resounding yes, but ask the same women whether they'd feel confident asking for a raise, a promotion, or equal pay, and some reticence creeps in.
The statistics, although an improvement on previous decades, are certainly not in women's favour – of 197 heads of state, only twenty-two are women. Women hold just 20 percent of seats in parliaments globally, and in the world of big business, a meagre eighteen of the “Fortune” 500 CEOs are women.
In “Lean In”, Sheryl Sandberg – Facebook COO and one of “Fortune” magazine's Most Powerful Women in Business – looks at what women can do to help themselves, and make the small changes in their life that can effect change on a more universal scale. She draws on her own experiences working in some of the world's most successful businesses, as well as academic research, to find practical answers to the problems facing women in the workplace. Learning to ‘lean in’ is about tackling the anxieties and preconceptions that stop women reaching the top – taking a place at the table, and making yourself a part of the debate.
Reviews
“Lean In is an inauguration more than a last word, and an occasion for celebration…Many, many women, young and old, elite and otherwise, will find it prescriptive, refreshing, and perhaps even revolutionary.” —Anna Holmes, The New Yorker
“Sheryl Sandberg has done a tremendous service with this work. It offers a vital and sharp message, for women and men. We need great leaders in key seats spread throughout all sectors of society, and we simply cannot afford to lose 50 percent of the smartest, most capable people from competing for those seats. Provocative, practical, and inspired!”—Jim Collins, author of Good to Great
“Sandberg recounts her own experiences and dilemmas with great honesty, making it easy for women across cultures and geographies to identify with her. She spells out much that is well known about the problems working women face, but rarely articulated . . . In every word she writes, Sandberg’s authenticity shines through.” Business Today
“I approached it wearing two hats—one as CEO [and] the other as the parent of a nine-year-old daughter. In both capacities, I feel that Lean In is a must read.” —Mohamed El-Erian, CEO of PIMCO, in Fortune
“Inspirational . . . Sandberg offers concrete suggestions on how to make our work and home life more satisfying and successful.” —Forbes
“If you loved Sheryl Sandberg’s incredible TEDTalk on why we have too few women leaders, or simply believe as I do that we need equality in the boardroom, then this book is for you. As Facebook’s COO, Sheryl Sandberg has firsthand experience of why having more women in leadership roles is good for business as well as society. Lean In is essential reading for anyone interested in righting the injustice of this inequality.” —Sir Richard Branson, chairman, the Virgin Group
“I’ll bet most [women] will be thrilled by Lean In. I suspect at least a few men will read this book and think, Oh no, they’re starting to catch on.” —Michael Lewis, Vanity Fair
“A landmark manifesto… Fifty years after The Feminine Mystique . . . Sandberg addresses 21st-century issues that never entered Betty Friedan’s wildest dreams . . . Lean In will be an influential book. It will open the eyes of women who grew up thinking that feminism was ancient history, who recoil at the word but walk heedlessly through the doors it opened. And it will encourage those women to persevere in their professional lives.”—Janet Maslin, The New York Times
“Honest and brave . . . The new manifesto for women in the workplace.” —Oprah Winfrey
“Lively, entertaining, urgent, and yes, even courageous . . . Lean In is both a radical read and incredibly accessible . . . While it’s obvious that women have much to gain from reading Sandberg’s book, so do men—perhaps even more so . . .” —Michael Cohen, The Guardian
“Grade: A . . . a rallying cry to working women . . . Lean In is the most cogent piece of writing I’ve encountered that speaks to the internal and institutional forces that can trip up an ambitious woman, whether she has a baby on board or not . . . The wisdom she shares here is a gift that all women (and all partners who support them, in the workplace or at home) should give themselves.” Entertainment Weekly
“A muscular manifesto on the gender inequities of the professional world . . . Sandberg is making a disruptive, crucial observation that puts her very much in line with Friedan: All is not just in the gendered world, and we should be talking urgently about how to make it better.” Los Angeles Times
“Pivotal . . . It’s probably not an overstatement to say Sandberg is embarking on the most ambitious mission to reboot feminism and reframe discussions of gender since the launch of Ms. magazine in 1971. The thing is, she’s in a pretty good position to pull it off.” —Belinda Luscombe, TIME
“Important . . . This is a great moment for all of us—women and men—to acknowledge that the current male-dominated model of success isn’t working for women, and it’s not working for men, either . . . The world needs women to redefine success beyond money and power. We need a third metric, based on our well-being, our health, our ability to unplug and recharge and renew ourselves, and to find joy in both our job and the rest of our life.” —Arianna Huffington, Forbes
“A call to live fearlessly . . . Lean In is a memoir, a self-help book, a career management guide, and a feminist manifesto . . . Let’s hope this is a book that is read as much as talked about.” Marion Winik, Newsday
Author Biography
Sheryl Sandberg is Chief Operating Officer at Facebook. Prior to Facebook, Sandberg was Vice President of Global Online Sales and Operations at Google. She previously served as Chief of Staff for the United States Treasury Department under President Bill Clinton.