In 1972, Katharine Graham became the CEO of The Washington Post, making her the first woman to lead a Fortune 500 company. In 2024, over 10% of CEO positions at the largest U.S. corporations were held by women. Whether you are looking to advance to highest rung of your corporate ladder, start a new business, or want to be a better communicator, this collection features the unique perspectives of top female executives and celebrated experts.
by Brené Brown
Daring leadership in a culture defined by scarcity, fear, and uncertainty requires skill-building around traits that are deeply and uniquely human. The irony is that we’re choosing not to invest in developing the hearts and minds of leaders at the exact same time as we’re scrambling to figure out what we have to offer that machines and AI can’t do better and faster. How do you cultivate braver, more daring leaders, and how do you embed the value of courage in your culture? In Dare to Lead, Brené Brown uses new research conducted with leaders, change makers, and culture shifters, to show us how to put those ideas into practice so we can step up and lead.
by Kim Scott
Kim Scott has earned international fame with her vital approach to effective leadership. The idea is simple: You don’t have to choose between being a pushover and a jerk. The concept of Radical Candor is about caring personally and challenging directly, about soliciting criticism to improve your leadership and also providing guidance that helps others grow. Required reading for the most successful organizations, Radical Candor has raised the bar for management practices worldwide.
by Stacey Abrams
Stacey Abrams argues that knowing your own passion is the key to success, regardless of the scale or target. Stacey uses her experience and hard-won insights to break down how ambition, fear, money, and failure function in leadership, while offering personal stories that illuminate practical strategies. Written with the awareness of the experiences and challenges that hinder anyone who exists beyond the structure of traditional white male power—women, people of color, members of the LGBTQ community, and millennials ready to make a difference, Lead from the Outside is the handbook for outsiders.
by Julie Zhuo
When Julie Zhuo became a rookie manager at the age of 25, she realized she didn’t really know what she was doing. How was she supposed to spin teamwork into value? How could she be a good steward of her reports’ careers? What was the secret to leading with confidence in new and unexpected situations? Now, having managed dozens of teams spanning tens to hundreds of people, Julie knows the most important lesson of all: great managers are made, not born. The Making of a Manager is a modern field guide packed everyday examples and transformative insights. Whether you’re new to the job, a veteran leader, or looking to be promoted, this is the handbook you need to be the kind of manager you wish you had.
by Laysha Ward
In Lead Like You Mean It, Laysha Ward draws on her storied career as one of the nation’s top Black female C-suite executives to show readers how to lead with meaning. Leading with meaning entails viewing your life and career as part of the same puzzle, acting from your purpose, making intentional choices, nurturing relationships, and championing and sustaining yourself and others. When you lead with meaning, you are taking a holistic approach that blends your life and career.
by Kathleen Griffith
From the self-made businesswoman and founder of the global platform Build Like A Woman comes the essential resource to unleash your business, take up space, and create your dream life. Blending foundational mindset tenets with the practical, actionable, business-building skillsets, Build Like A Woman is for aspiring and existing entrepreneurs who want to start and scale a business AND life they love. From corporate dropouts to side hustlers to recent college grads to full-fledged founders. This is not a regular business book, but an unconventional blueprint for creation.
by Julia Gillard and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala
Women make up fewer than ten percent of national leaders worldwide, and behind this eye-opening statistic lies a pattern of unequal access to power. Through conversations with some of the world’s most powerful and interesting women—including Jacinda Ardern, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Christine Lagarde, Michelle Bachelet, and Theresa May—Women and Leadership explores gender bias and asks why there aren’t more women in leadership roles. Using current research as a starting point, Julia Gillard and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala—both political leaders in their own countries—analyze the lived experiences of these women leaders. The result is a rare insight into life as a leader and a powerful call to arms for women everywhere.
by Elaine Meryl Brown, Marsha Haygood and Rhonda Joy McLean
This invaluable “mentor in your pocket” by three dynamic and successful black female executives will help all black women, at any level of their careers, play the power game—and win. Rich with wisdom, this practical gem focuses on the building blocks of true leadership—self-confidence, effective communication, collaboration, and courage—while dealing specifically with stereotypes and the perils of self-victimization. Some leaders are born, but most leaders are made—and The Little Black Book of Success will show you how to make it to the top, one step at a time.
by Mel Robbins and Sawyer Robbins
In The Let Them Theory, Mel Robbins—New York Times bestselling author and one of the world’s most respected experts on motivation, confidence, and mindset—teaches you how to stop wasting energy on what you can’t control and start focusing on what truly matters: YOU. Your happiness. Your goals. Your life. Written as an easy-to-understand guide, Robbins shares relatable stories from her own life, highlights key takeaways, relevant research and introduces you to world-renowned experts in psychology, neuroscience, relationships, happiness, and ancient wisdom who champion The Let Them Theory every step of the way.
by Kate Williams
In this galvanizing and illuminating read, Kate Williams tackles hustle culture head-on, exploring the ways in which women are primed to become relentless strivers. From the workplace to motherhood, from relationships to “self-care”—no arena of a woman’s life is safe from the pressure to exceed expectations. This conflation of self-worth with achievement, she argues, is both toxic and counterproductive, as the qualities we most seek—happiness, meaning, purpose—are not earned but rather owned. Deeply felt, passionately argued, and often laugh-out-loud funny, How To Stop Trying is a book for every woman who has ever wondered what would happen if she stopped trying so hard—and just let go.
by Angela Duckworth
Pioneering psychologist Angela Duckworth shows anyone striving to succeed—be it parents, students, educators, athletes, or business people—that the secret to outstanding achievement is not talent but a special blend of passion and persistence she calls “grit.” Winningly personal, insightful, and even life-changing, Grit is a book about what goes through your head when you fall down, and how that—not talent or luck—makes all the difference.
