Category Archives: Job Advancement
Life Lessons from NFL Official #53 (the Only One Who Wears Mascara)
Many female firsts are lifetime dreams come true. But some are more a matter of chance, the happenstance of finding something you’re good at when barriers are coming down. The latter was the case for Sarah Thomas, the first woman to be an NFL official. “I was working as a paralegal when my older brother said one day that he was going to a football officials’ meeting,” she recalls. “I … [ more ]
Office Politics: When Bosses Behave Badly
Power may not always corrupt, but it sure can bring out the egomaniac in some managers. That’s what industrial and organizational psychologist Amy Cooper Hakim found while doing research to update her book (which was originally written by her grandmother), Working with Difficult People: Handling the Ten Types of Problem People Without Losing Your Mind. Of the 10 kinds of bad bosses you might encounter (yes, there are that many!), … [ more ]
Use Social Media to Raise Your Value at Work
You have your reasons if you don’t post on social media for work. Maybe you’re too busy. Or you wouldn’t know which platform to use—or what to post. Perhaps no one in your industry who is important is following you. Or you’re a private person and you want to keep it that way. Whatever your rationale, personal branding expert Jennefer Witter wants you to know that you’re missing out on … [ more ]
Stand Out as Manager Material
Pop quiz: What separates the smart and hardworking from the smart and hardworking in leadership roles? Answer: Executive presence, which entails exuding confidence, more so for women than for men, the Center for Talent Innovation has found. Of course, the lack of executive presence, and so confidence, perceived or otherwise, isn’t the only reason there are so few women at the C-level of corporations. “Company policies and practices and gender … [ more ]
Oscar Nods for Hidden Figures Are a Win for Women, Diversity and STEM
By Lindsay-Rae McIntyre, Chief Diversity Officer, IBM Riding a number of successful weeks at the box office, Hidden Figures was up for three Oscars last week: for best picture, best supporting actress and best adapted screenplay. Though the movie didn’t snag any golden statuettes, the nominations are a win for the film’s director, actors, producers, writers and crew —and for women, diversity and STEM.
How Women Can Get Ahead in Technology
What’s really holding women back in technology? You may have read about the “pipeline problem”—girls don’t study science, technology, engineering or math in equal numbers to boys—but that’s a red herring, says Gina Helfrich, founder and organizer of Feminist Hack ATX. “The biggest obstacle, in my opinion, is poor retention numbers,” Helfrich says. “Research shows that more than half of women in technology leave the field by mid-career.”
‘Teach Yourself and Figure It Out’
By Nicole Story, Vice President of Creative, Poo~Pourri Seven years ago, I was living in my parents’ garage. With an advertising degree from the University of Texas and no job prospects, I was the quintessential definition of a millennial who graduated at the height of the recession. But this wasn’t the first time I’d faced a setback in my young life, and I had developed a mantra to help me … [ more ]
In Praise of First Jobs
Even mindless first jobs can prove to be invaluable experiences. How else would some of us know how to carry six plates at a time or fold sweaters so neatly? On a more serious note, starter stints can teach useful lessons about people and the nature of work as well as our chosen fields. Check out what initiated some of our 2016 speakers into the world of gainful employment—and what … [ more ]
Must-Have Career Advice from Nina Tassler, the Woman Who Helped CBS Become #1
Thirty years in the entertainment business, starting as a receptionist at a talent agency and ending last year as the chairman of the entertainment division at CBS, Nina Tassler is known for having great instincts and making spot-on decisions. After all, it was on her watch that CBS returned to being America’s most-watched network (for 12 out of the 13 years she was in charge). Tassler is also the TV executive … [ more ]
Three Ways Women Hold Themselves Back
Fifteen years ago, Trudy Bourgeois resigned from her vice president job managing a $3 billion business unit—and walked away from a healthy six-figure salary, country club memberships, first class plane tickets to everywhere for her husband and herself and much, much more. “When I told my mom about my decision, she started to cry,” Bourgeois recalls. “She asked if she needed to get the sisters together to pray. I was … [ more ]
Podcast | What Got You Here Won’t Get You There: How to Become More Successful
The corporate world is filled with managers who are intelligent, skilled and even charismatic. But only a handful of them will ever reach the pinnacle. In this 30-minute talk, you’ll learn from executive coach Marshall Goldsmith how “transactional flaws” (something as simple as not saying thank you enough) can hold you back. He’ll then teach you how to change your behavior—it’s amazingly easy—so your career can soar. Click Play below … [ more ]
What’s Really Holding Women Back from the C-Suite
Certainly there are many factors contributing to the absence of women at the top of companies—sex discrimination, gender bias, the fact that people promote those who remind them of themselves, to name a few. But to Marshall Goldsmith, who has been coaching executives for 35 years, there is one simple—but not so easy—way to help close the leadership gap. “Fix childcare in this country,” says the author of Triggers: Creating … [ more ]
Three Things Every Career Woman Needs to Know
If you ever feel like an imposter at work—or felt like one in school—you stand in good company. “It’s common to feel this way, and women tend to feel the imposter syndrome more intensely than do men,” says Marianne Cooper, a sociologist at Stanford’s Clayman Institute for Gender Research and author of Cut Adrift: Families in Insecure Times.
The Very Best Career Advice
Over the past year, we asked past and future speakers at our conferences in Austin, Boston, Philadelphia and Silicon Valley for the best work or life advice they’ve ever received or given. Here’s the best of their best answers.
Gloria Steinem’s 100 Words of Inspiration
Don’t tell Gloria Steinem that part of the reason for the pay gap is that women don’t negotiate. “That’s utter bulls***,” says the activist and author most recently of My Life on the Road. “It’s true that we should insist more than we do. But the reason we don’t insist is because inequality has been normalized.” Rather than blaming ourselves, we should be blaming the system—and sharing salary information and … [ more ]
Conquer Your Worst Work Habits
Even if you’ve been doing your writing at the 11th hour since college or you can’t stop checking your email to save your life, your bad habits are breakable. The key is not focusing on one fix and giving up when it doesn’t stick (for the proverbial 30 days). “We think there’s a one-size-fits-all solution, but different things work for different people,” says Gretchen Rubin, New York Times bestselling author … [ more ]
Special Pre-Conference Teleclass: Easy, Effective Strategies of a Super-Networker
Easy, Effective Strategies of a Super-Networker Tuesday, October 13, 2015 12:00-12:30pm If you do only one thing to prepare for the Conference this week, catch this free teleclass led by Judy Robinett, a business thought leader and author of How to Be a Power Connector: The 5+50+150 Rule, brought to you by the folks at Cisco.
Handling Emotions at the Office
Crying or otherwise showing your disappointment, frustration, anger or stress at work can seem incredibly embarrassing. “You feel like a loser for losing control, but there’s nothing to be ashamed about the occasional display of feeling,” says Anne Kreamer, serial entrepreneur and author of It’s Always Personal: Navigating Emotion in the New Workplace. “Emotions are not criminal elements.” Still, knowing how to comport yourself will help in the moment and … [ more ]
CFW SURVEY: ‘I Care’ and the Other Reasons You Do ‘Office Housework’
Editing a colleague’s report, taking meeting notes, refilling the printer paper tray—the non-job-description stuff you do at work to help someone, your team or the company at large has a name. “Office housework”—and as at home, the bulk of it falls to women, who mostly do it to little acknowledgment, let alone acclaim, reported Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant in a recent New York Times article. What’s more, they say, … [ more ]