One of the topics I cover in the Influence Masterclass, is how to establish oneself as an expert. However, a discussion about establishing credibility is not complete without understanding gender differences and how they can impact outcomes. Many women have been taught since childhood the virtues of being humble, nice, accommodating and respectful. The problem is that "niceness" is a double-edged sword for women, because if they are perceived to be too nice or sweet, they m

Credit: John Hope Photography From the beginning of this journey, it has been clear to me that if I wanted to affect change in how we perceive women in leadership roles and give them the opportunity to thrive, I couldn't just limit myself to empowering women (many of which don't even need my help in getting empowered). Culture change comes from the top and with 80% of executive seats in most big companies being occupied by men, I had to find ways to engage them as well. Last

As a third-culture child who switched many zip codes (more about this here), I’ve gotten used to being a misunderstood outsider everywhere I go. I have always attributed this to me being a foreigner, to me being younger, to me having a strong personality. In my mind, it was always my fault and my responsibility to get better, to become a stronger communicator, to speak more softly, to be less direct. During my time in Brazil, I started noticing again and again that I would be

I previously wrote how, while working in a mining company in Brazil, I got inspired to engage in promoting women in leadership. When I came back to the United States, I didn't really know what I was going to do about it. In the meantime, I immersed myself in trying to find solutions. I read numerous reports from Catalyst, World Economic Forum, Mercer, McKinsey and other publications. I spoke to women in Technology, Banking, Academia, Oil & Gas and Media; women who were singl