Accomplished Silicon Valley Men Can Lean OUT Too

My Facebook feed recently showed a post from a friend who is a very respected leader at my former company, a promising billion-dollar Silicon Valley startup. His post announced that after four years (which is an eternity at a skyrocketing startup), he was leaving the company. This friend had joined the company shortly after I …

Why My Five-Year-Old Didn’t Get Any Birthday Presents

This last Sunday we had my sweet Everett’s fifth birthday party (he has no idea that today is his actual birthday). It was a classic March morning at our home in California; the warm Spring sun shined on our first guests as they walked up the driveway then fat raindrops fell on the guests who …

Ballad of a “Tired” Career Woman

I’m tired of being told by billionaire COO’s to "Lean In" and to “have it all” I’m tired of pretending I want to climb the corporate ladder as high as I possibly can, no matter what the cost I’m tired of reading “empowering” self-help books that tell me how I can achieve my greatest possible …

“Daddy, when are you coming home?”

This morning was like any other in the office: calm, orderly, busy but peaceful. My friendly, professional co-workers were scattered about the open office floor, comfortably nestled into each of their five-foot by five-foot worlds. Most were reading through the few dozen emails that filled up their inbox since they last checked it at 10pm …

Are You an Addict?

I (fortunately) don’t know much about drugs or addiction. But as I reflect on my relationship with External Validation, I can’t help but notice the similarities. Exposure I learned at an early age of the “high” I could get from pleasing others. While I wasn’t a naturally gifted student, I worked hard to earn decent …

It doesn’t mean you’re lazy

So far, I've shared with you what Leaning OUT means. Now, let me clarify what it does not mean. If you choose to Lean OUT: it does NOT mean you're lazy it does NOT mean you don't care about your job or your coworkers it does NOT mean you judge others who choose to Lean …

“Where do you see yourself in five years?”

In June 2017, I found myself in an impressive boardroom, sitting with the Chief Information Officer (CIO) of a major, public corporation with whom I was interviewing for a job. We were having a very engaging conversation about the role of enterprise applications in a modern organization and my own interests and experience in managing …

What do Skye, Owlette and Starla Have in Common?

If you have kids under the age of ten, you probably recognize the names Skye, Owlette, and Starla. They’re all female support characters on today’s most popular gender-neutral kids shows. And they’re not alone... I’m not sure when I first noticed this trend. It might have been when I learned my third child was a …

Leaning OUT on the Weekends

It’s 5:45 on a Saturday morning. It’s still dark outside and most of the world will be sleeping in for a couple more hours. But in our house, there is no such thing as “sleeping in” because the three little humans in our home barely know their left from right, let alone what day of …

It’s Called “PERSONAL Time Off” for a Reason

The same week I launched “We Lean OUT”, I had a very discouraging conversation with a coworker. It was Tuesday, January 9th so the office was a buzz with “Happy New Year!” as everyone gradually returned from weeks off of work, swapping stories about their Hawaiian vacations and Mexican cruises. Except for me. I had …