Lean In

About the Author

Sheryl Sandberg is the Chief Operating Officer at Facebook and is recognized as one of the most powerful women in business. She is listed on Fortune's "50 Most Powerful Women in Business" and Time's "100 Most Influential People in the World." Before joining Facebook, Sandberg was Vice President of Global Online Sales and Operations at Google and Chief of Staff at the United States Treasury Department. She has also worked as a consultant at McKinsey & Company and as a research assistant at the World Bank. Sandberg holds a BA in Economics from Harvard University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. She serves on the boards of several organizations, including Facebook, The Walt Disney Company, and Women for Women International. Sandberg lives in northern California with her husband, Dave Goldberg, and their two children.

Main Idea

Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg challenges women to push forward and chart their own course to reach significant personal and professional goals. Despite advancements, women’s voices are still not heard equally. Sandberg argues that women often hold themselves back in their careers and deserve to move to the forefront in leadership roles. She focuses on adjustments women can make, such as increasing self-confidence, taking risks, and seeking their own goals, asserting that a better world will exist when "half of our institutions are run by women and half our homes are run by men."

Table of Contents

• Introduction: The Leadership Ambition Gap
• Sit at the Table
• Success and Likeability
• It’s a Jungle Gym, Not a Ladder
• Are You My Mentor?
• Seek and Speak Your Truth
• Don’t Leave Before You Leave
• Make Your Partner a Real Partner
• The Myth of Doing It All
• Let’s Start Talking About It
• Working Together Toward Equality

Introduction: The Leadership Ambition Gap

Sandberg begins by addressing the leadership ambition gap, noting that even highly trained women are scaling back and dropping out of the workforce in high numbers due to the challenges of integrating personal aspirations with professional goals. She points out that gender stereotyping starts from birth and continues through education, becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy that discourages girls from aspiring to senior leadership positions. Sandberg emphasizes the need for women to overcome internal barriers such as lack of self-confidence and reluctance to raise their hands, encouraging them to "lean in" rather than "pull back."

"Women often hold themselves back in their careers, whereas they actually deserve to move to the forefront in leadership roles." - Sheryl Sandberg

Sit at the Table

In this chapter, Sandberg discusses the importance of women asserting themselves and taking a seat at the table. She emphasizes that women need to believe in their own abilities and take risks to reach their goals. Sandberg shares her own experiences of overcoming self-doubt and learning to sit at the table.

"I know that in order to continue to grow and challenge myself, I have to believe in my own abilities. I still face situations that I fear are beyond my capabilities. But now I know how to take a deep breath and keep my hand up." - Sheryl Sandberg

Sandberg provides practical advice and examples to illustrate her points: