Author Sheryl Sandberg
Country United States
Genre Non Fiction: Management
Publication Date 2013
Pages 387
If you have been reading the other book reviews on my blog, you would know that I rarely read non fiction or management books. I mostly find some awesome company in fiction; both contemporary and classics.
However, in keeping with my decision to read different books this year, I ended up with this book 'Lean In' and I am so glad I did. Being on a sabbatical from work has helped me absorb the book somewhat better since it allowed me to reflect on my own personal and professional ethics from a distance. And I have surely ended with a list of aspects I wish to change about how I manage my professional life.
While the book has received its fair share of criticism, I would suffice by saying that Sheryl has done an awesome job in sharing her views on how women should manage their professional lives. And like any other author, these are her personal views and while many have struck a chord with me, there are some that haven't. But those that have are here to stay.
Sheryl's reflections on how most women face insecurity or "feel like a fraud", how even today ambitious and successful women are not liked, how being able "to do it all" is really a myth and how all of us (men & women) together need to embrace changes at home and at the workplace to make it an equal society are relevant and thought provoking.
What has personally stayed with me is that it's important for the women to speak up and acknowledge differences in order that they are treated the same. While this may sound counter intuitive, the essence is that instead of trying hard to "fit in", women should openly talk about their specific needs and demand that they be met. Men and women are not the same in their emotional build up, in the societal expectations and thus, instead of trying to prove that we are the same, we should acknowledge uniqueness and he treated fairly for that.
Exploring the topic of "choices" (between having a career or being a homemaker); Sheryl rightly points that feminism was not supposed to make us feel guilty. It was supposed to make us free by giving us choices and making us comfortable with the choices we make. Unfortunately, that is far from true today. There is hardly a woman who does not feel guilty (mostly, a career woman of not spending time with her kids) and this need for constant validation of our choices is truly an affront to feminism. Let's all start by respecting our choices and those of others.
And finally what has really convinced me that it's critical we all play mixed roles (of bread winning and care giving) is that we owe this to our next generation. As Sheryl says, the more our kids see us playing mixed roles, the more comfortably they will envision choices for themselves. And finally there will be a society where expectations will not be set by gender but by interest, passion and talent.
Before I wrap up, here are two of my favorite quotes from the book:
"Guilt management is almost as important as time management"
"Every job needs some sacrifice. The key is to avoid unnecessary sacrifice"
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