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The cover of Lean In

Lean In

Sheryl Sandberg, 2013

Sheryl Sandberg draws on her Google and Facebook career to argue women hold themselves back as much as any barrier, and shows how to sit at the table and lead.

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10 parts, about 21 minutes to read.

Why read it

  • Argues that besides outside barriers, women's own internal doubts, such as not raising a hand, hold careers back and can be changed
  • Backs advice with research on likeability, negotiation and impostor feelings, showing why success and likeability pull apart for women
  • Makes the case for choosing a truly equal partner and not leaving the workforce before a child is even born

Who it is for

  • Women weighing ambition, promotion and a first leadership role
  • Couples deciding how to split work and home duties
  • Managers wanting to notice bias in hiring and promotion

What the summary covers

  1. The Unfinished Revolution2 min
  2. The Leadership Ambition Gap2 min
  3. Sit at the Table2 min
  4. Success and Likeability1 min
  5. The Jungle Gym, Mentors, and Speaking Your Truth3 min
  6. Don't Leave Before You Leave2 min
  7. Make Your Partner a Real Partner2 min
  8. The Myth of Doing It All3 min
  9. Naming Bias Openly2 min
  10. Working Together Toward Equality2 min

Recommended by

  • Oprah WinfreyAmerican media mogul and television personality
    Honest and brave … The new manifesto for women in the workplace.
  • Gloria SteinemAmerican journalist and social movement activist
    Having read Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg, I can testify that it addresses internalized oppression, opposes the external barriers that create it, and urges women to support each other to fight both.
  • Chelsea ClintonAmerican writer
    Lean In poses a set of ambitious challenges to women: to create the lives we want, to be leaders in our work, to be partners in our homes, and to be champions of other women.
  • Richard BransonCofounder of the Virgin Group
    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.

About the author

  • Sheryl SandbergAmerican technology executive and former chief operating officer of Meta
    • She was born on August 28, 1969, in Washington, D.C.
    • She earned a BA summa cum laude from Harvard University and an MBA with highest distinction from Harvard Business School.
    • Before Meta she was vice president of Global Online Sales and Operations at Google, chief of staff at the US Treasury under President Clinton, a McKinsey consultant and a World Bank economist.
    • She was chief operating officer of Meta Platforms from 2008 to 2022.
    • In 2012 she was named to the Time 100 list of the world's most influential people.
    • She founded a family foundation whose two initiatives are LeanIn.Org and OptionB.Org.
    • She cowrote Option B with Wharton professor Adam Grant.
    • Lean In was cowritten with the media writer Nell Scovell.

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