I Shouldn't Be Telling You This

by Kate White
4/5 stars
HarperBusiness, 2013
345 pages
Non-Fiction Business Women

Source: Library

I found myself intrigued by White's previous title Why Good Girls Don't Get Ahead...But Gutsy Girls Do but my library didn't have a copy of that so I settled for her newer release, assuming that it would also feature interesting information that was still applicable for a young woman at the beginning of career.

That it does as the writing is very chatty and personal. White used to be editor-in-chief at Cosmopolitan magazine and loved writing the copy for the cover. The chapters are short and snappy, reflecting this background. I think some women will not click with this kind of writing but I found it easily digestible and even though I told myself I would just read one more chapter, I inevitably found myself reading several until I finished.

The book is divided into three sections: Getting Success, Going Big with Success, and Savoring Success. I found the last one the least relevant as it assumes a level of success that I have not yet attained though it does hammer home that the success won't be worth it if I'm burned out and unable to enjoy myself. I preferred the first two, finding more that related to me where I am now.

One of the things I valued most about this book was White sharing about her successes. Initially it annoyed me as I found it braggy. That might be the point though as I've read that women aren't necessarily very good at sharing their accomplishments even though they have accomplished amazing things. This led to me reflecting on what my major achievements were this year and how I could frame them in more casual atmospheres outside of my formal performance review. I want people to know how fantastic I am at my job and I don't want to automatically bristle when I hear about other people's excellent work. Another point I valued was shared early on, being "Go big or go home." Certainly I've heard this before, as have you I'm sure, but this time it really struck me. I think of myself as a generally pretty passionate person; when I'm in, I'm all in and I want to reflect that at work.

Overall: A fun conversational read that left me feeling very cheered on and all fired up to tackle big projects and do awesome work as I scale the career ladder!

Women Who Don't Wait in Line

by Reshma Saujani
4/5 stars
New Harvest, 2013
123 pages
Non-Fiction Women's Business

Source: Received an ARC through Amazon Vine in exchange for an honest review.

As I've repeatedly mentioned on my blog, I have found myself drawn to books about women in business, seeking guidance on my fledgling career. The title for this book immediately caught my eye as I've read about women being more likely to hold back and not go after what they want in comparison to bolder men. I thought it would be an interesting read as I aspire to dare and take big strides in my career progression.

In general I found this a pretty absorbing albeit light read. The specifics of Saujani's path were fascinating (she ran for Congress unsuccessfully in 2010) and I appreciated the enthusiasm she has about women aspiring to ever higher levels in their career. However I'm not sure how much I can concretely apply to my own career and most of the ideas provided are ones I've read about elsewhere. Also this book is quite short so it does not allow Saujani to flesh out everything that she might at a longer length.

Of most interest to me was her pushing women to pursue STEM careers. I kind of wish I had taken the opportunity to explore that path especially if I had taken a computer science class. I will certainly encourage the young women in my life to consider such work and hope that others will be encouraged, whether through encountering this book or possibly through the Girls Who Code foundation begun by Saujani. I love the idea of people being supported as they try something new that could end up being a lifelong passion.

Overall: Not a must-read but if you like the genre, worth reading.

Dare

by Becky Blalock
5/5 stars
Jossey-Bass, 2013
216 pages
Adult Non-Fiction Leadership

Source: Received an ARC through Amazon Vine in exchange for an honest review.

As I've previously mentioned on my blog, one of my goals for 2014 was to read more business/leadership books and to see how I could implement them in my own career for my professional development. Well, no time like the present so I grabbed this book when I saw it and eagerly ate it up.

The title really grabbed me as it brought to mind Brene Brown's Daring Greatly and its allusion to that excellent Theodore Roosevelt quote "Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.” I want to be a leader in the business world and I was very inspired by the insight shared in this book.

On the one hand, I don't normally think of myself as a big daredevil (and I work in compliance so that's not really the most desirable trait anyway in my opinion). On the other hand, I'm at the beginning of my career, I want to lean in, and I want to really grow and nurture my career. I definitely need advice and as a reader, books are an important component of that for me. After reading this, I felt that I have made some good decisions so far but am also reminded of my weak spots. There are a couple of points I intend to try out and explore in real life to see what impact I can make.

Besides Blalock's advice, there are additional words from other powerful businesswomen. All of this combines to produce an incredibly uplifting and inspirational book. It made me think about the women who have paved the path for me, making my own journey just that much easier in addition to reminding me that there are people who will root for me (sometimes I struggle with knowing that.) It's a very generous book; Blalock recognizes her blessings and wants to give back and she encourages the reader to do the same.

One thing I would have liked would have been a clearer picture of Blalock's career trajectory (as well as that for some of the other women who so graciously shared). She shares about several key positions and what she learned from them but I'm still a bit confused on how she exactly made each move to reach where she is now and how long that took.

Overall: Incredibly inspiring-definitely a fave read of the year and one I plan to go through at least one more time this year as I make plans and goals for 2014.