As a female director at a marketing authority company, I am unquenchably curious, both professionally and personally, as to how women secure themselves a place at the table – how they distinguish themselves in their fields and become the go-to experts. It’s tempting to think that since its 2017, women do it the same way as their male counterparts, through a fierce work ethic, … [Read more...]
The Imbalance of Women in Business Leadership
The imbalance of women in business leadership positions persists despite the growing number of studies that consistently find the same thing---businesses with diverse leadership teams, which include women in executives roles, perform better than businesses that lack women at the top. The infographic at the end of this article includes a number of statistics that prove just … [Read more...]
5 Powerful Females to Model your Career After
Sponsored by Chandler Macleod: Innovative, educated and persistent; the world’s most powerful women stand as inspirational role models, encouraging females from all backgrounds to believe that they can achieve anything with the right attitude. From glass ceilings to gender pay gaps and juggled roles to societal pressures and expectations, there are many issues unique to the … [Read more...]
3 Ways For Women To Sound Like Leaders
I have been a voice expert helping professionals sound like leaders for 19 years. During that time, I have seen many well-intentioned articles, blog posts, books, television commentators, and radio hosts tackle the issue of the best way women should speak in the workplace. Let us stop for a moment of silence in praise of the women who have tried to follow all this advice. … [Read more...]
Is the Boardroom Your Career North Star?
If your career goals include a public company board seat, make the three lists discussed below to keep focused on your goal of becoming a director. This is a quick, easy way to keep your “North Star” priorities. Make time to update them monthly and stay on track. Win List This list includes new people you have met who are also on the journey to the boardroom. Maybe you shared … [Read more...]
Business the Carmelo Anthony Way
Carmelo Anthony is supposedly toying with the idea of being a free agent, definitely a gutsy move for a Knicks player. Here’s why I think it’s the right move and how his thinking can help move your business to the next level. You have to assess your worth Carmelo likened his choice to an evaluation exercise. While this may not make sense to some, for me it’s a brilliant … [Read more...]
Play Ball!
There is a theory out in the world of baseball that everything you need to know about life, you learn in the outfield. I think there is some truth to that. Baseball is a game of knowing when to swing, learning about the other team and waiting for the right time to steal the bases. Sounds an awful lot like business right? We all know that we have to be strategic and … [Read more...]
The Small Business Owner Blues
In the silence of the night when everyone else has shut down and you are left with your decisions, that’s when you become an entrepreneur. Someone said to me once that to be an entrepreneur you have to have a spouse with a full-time job and while that anecdote is funny it’s also a bit sad. The very essence of an entrepreneur is a risk-taker, however unfair that risk is to the … [Read more...]
Marketing Your Company, Not You
As I stumble through this minefield of entrepreneurship, I have learned that there has to be a significant switch in your thinking. We start businesses for a variety of reasons, mostly because we are really good at something specific. What happens is that you quickly realize that you cannot be the person that runs the business and the person who does the work. There has to be … [Read more...]
The Tone of Business
I recently got some feedback that I have to say, took me aback a bit. The feedback came from two very different source with very different interest. And while the feedback certainly has merit, I have to say it took me a few days to process it. ‘Leona, you are animated and that’s great. It’s why people love you, but some people don’t know how to take it. It can come off as … [Read more...]