Career
by Sheryl Sandberg
Why so few women at the top?
Sheryl Sandberg was Facebook's chief operating officer when she wrote Lean In. Women were earning most university degrees, yet the higher she looked, the fewer women she saw. She names the barriers the world puts up, then spends most of the book on the ones women carry inside.
Hear a sample · read by Laura
Researchers gave students a case study about a successful entrepreneur, Heidi Roizen. Half of them read it with her name changed to Howard. They rated the two as equally capable, but liked Howard and found Heidi selfish. Success made the man more likeable and the woman less.
Sandberg borrows an image from the Fortune editor Pattie Sellers. A ladder has one way up. A jungle gym has many, including sideways and even down. Her own route ran through the World Bank, the US Treasury and Google before Facebook.
Sandberg calls the choice of a life partner the most important career decision a woman makes. Women still do most of the childcare and housework, even when both people work full-time. A demanding job is far easier with someone at home who really does half.
The table
Pull up a chair at the main table, even when part of you feels you haven't earned it.
Likeability
Students read one success story with the name Howard or Heidi. They liked Howard and found Heidi selfish.
Jungle gym
A career is less like a ladder and more like a jungle gym. Sideways moves count.
Staying in
Don't quietly scale back at work years before you even have a baby.
A real partner
Who you share a home with shapes your career. Look for a partner who does half the chores and childcare.
A story from the book
When US Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner visited Facebook, the women on his team took chairs along the side of the room. Sandberg waved them over to the table. They stayed put. She saw women choosing to watch a meeting they'd earned a place in.
Hot take · true or myth?
Men and women explain their own success in much the same way.
Myth. Ask a successful man why he did well and he'll point to his own skills, Sandberg writes. Ask a woman and she'll credit luck, hard work or help from other people.
One thing to try
After one talk, Sandberg said she'd take two more questions. A young woman lowered her hand. The men kept theirs up, and Sandberg kept answering them. This week, keep yours up. Ask for the project or the role you want before you feel fully ready.
Knotd has the key ideas from 250+ non-fiction books, each in a few minutes, in plain words. Lean In comes with a Hot Take round to make it stick.
Get the whole book on KnotdOpen in the appWhy so few women at the top? Sheryl Sandberg was Facebook's chief operating officer when she wrote Lean In. Women were earning most university degrees, yet the higher she looked, the fewer women she saw. She names the barriers the world puts up, then spends most of the book on the ones women carry inside.
The likeability penalty; Careers are jungle gyms; Make your partner a partner.
After one talk, Sandberg said she'd take two more questions. A young woman lowered her hand. The men kept theirs up, and Sandberg kept answering them. This week, keep yours up. Ask for the project or the role you want before you feel fully ready.
Yes. Knotd has the key ideas from Lean In in a few minutes, in plain words, plus a Hot Take round to test them. It's one of 250+ non-fiction books in the app.
