Sheryl Sandberg sets a precedential role for women in power by starting what what should be a long overdue conversation: why aren’t there more women in leadership positions? The book dissects many facets of this narrative breaking it down into easily dissectable and quotable chunks.
one of the central messages of @LeanInOrg is that we have to get beyond gender stereotypes — http://t.co/5VdKAQ9r
— Sheryl Sandberg (@sherylsandberg) January 28, 2013
It is apparent how overdue this conversation about equality is especially during the current investigation of the Facebook Cambridge Analytica scandal in 2018 and the Russian allegations for the 2016 presidential election. Mark Zuckerberg, the first in command, faced the senate and underwent media scrutiny for a short period of time. Meanwhile, Sandberg, second in command, is still under blast and facing criticism for the way the company handled the situation. This can be marked up to blatant sexism and prejudice. Zuckerberg was turned into a quirky meme and Sandberg was held accountable for the company’s mistakes and told to do better.
“We must raise both the ceiling and the floor,” Sheryl Sandberg said. This becomes apparent more and more every day. The book “Lean In” was an excellent example of a leadership book because it did not pretend to be the universal guide to solving all the world’s problems. However, it posed topical issues such as pregnant women not having parking or leaving the workforce before you ever truly enter it and opened it up for discussion with the point of view from a woman in a position in power allowed it to be relatable and enjoyable.
There were many issues with the book as well such as Sandberg coming from a place of immense privilege. Being a white woman, from a well off family in America she was able to receive a higher education to go forth and receive all the opportunities to write this book. In no way am I discrediting the hardships she may have faced but I am saying that it is important to recognize her coming from a place of privilege. This book also comes to no real solution for solving any of the problems it identifies, it just recognizes them and opens them for discussion. Overall I would recommend the book “Lean In” and I think it creates an important forum for talking about feminism today.
