A recent Bizjournals.com article explored how women can lead with authority in systems that were not designed with them in mind. The piece makes an important point: the strongest leaders are not always the loudest voices in the room. They are often the clearest. They know the problem they are solving, the outcomes they are driving, and the people they need to bring along. That idea should feel freeing. And yet, for many women, “leading with authority” still comes with a complicated set of...

Empathy is having a leadership moment. We talk about it in manager trainings. We write it into culture statements. We ask leaders to listen better, care more deeply, create psychological safety, support employee well-being, and bring humanity into the workplace. And I believe in all of that. But a recent Associations Now article, “How to Close the Empathy Gender Gap,” points to an uncomfortable question: What happens when empathy becomes expected from everyone in theory, but carried mostly by...

A recent Inc. article, “New Research Explains Why Women Undervalue Themselves at Work,” highlights something many women have experienced but have not always had the language to explain: the gap is not necessarily in skill, ambition, or readiness. The gap is often in confidence. But even that word, confidence, can be misleading. Too often, when we talk about women and confidence, the implied message is: women need to fix themselves. Speak up more. Be bolder. Ask for the raise. Apply for the...