See Jane Lead: 99 Ways for Women to Take Charge at Work

by Lois P. Frankel

The workplace is changing. From the boardrooms to non-profit organizations to the military, the typical male management style is now obsolete. There is a new generation of employees who reject hierarchical leadership and respond to the behaviors and characteristics that women traditionally exhibit. In other words, the time for woment to take charge is now! In SEE JANE LEAD, Dr. Frankel provides a blueprint for women who want to tap their natural leadership abilities and manage with greater ease and confidence in the business world, on the soccer field, at home, and beyond. With the same sharp insight that she demonstrated in Nice Girls Don't Get Rich and Nice Girls Don't Get the Corner Office , Dr. Frankel shows women how they can overcome sabotaging childhood behaviors that hold them back, while offering practical advice and real-life examples of strong female leaders who have succeeded--in male dominated fields--beyond their wildest dreams.

Genres: Business, Nonfiction, Leadership, Professional Development, Self Help, Personal Development, Womens

304 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2007

About the author

Dr. Lois Frankel, President of Corporate Coaching International, a Pasadena, California consulting firm, literally wrote the book on coaching people to succeed in businesses large and small around the globe. Her books Nice Girls Don’t Get The Corner Office and Nice Girls Don’t Get Rich are international bestsellers translated into over twenty-five languages worldwide. Stop Sabotaging Your Career, a book based on her experiences as a pioneer in the field of business coaching working with everyone from CEOs to entry-level professionals, is a must-read for both men and women.

Reviews

[Elyssa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was recommended and loaned to me by the only woman VP in my agency, who is also a mentor to me. I was initially wary about this book because I am usually fearful that management books geared to women will encourage them to adopt the skills and traits of the dominant male-based leadership model.

This book was a balance between both worlds and really focused on the best aspects of each. Since the intended audience is women, there was a strong focus on using skills that typically come natural to women and are also gained through managing a household/family, i.e. interpersonal relationships, emotional intelligence, multi-tasking, delegating, etc.

The author does describe the pitfalls women fall into in the male-dominated workforce such as being aggressive instead of assertive, treating employees as "doers" instead of as people, saying too much rather than delivering a succinct message, etc.

The most valuable part of the book is at the end, when the author describes her own career development, including the many mistakes she made and what she learned from them. I don't see that too often in books about leadership and I appreciated her honesty and self-analysis.

She also provides an extensive list of books and resources for continued reading, including Servant Leadership, which is already on my to-read list.

My one complaint about the book is that she often advises women not to "act like a girl", when describing self-defeating behaviors in the workplace. That sends a mixed message about being female and I think she could have found another way to frame her advice. It reminds me of being told not to "throw like a girl" by my middle school softball coach. It's a form of implied criticism and ultimately damaging and confusing for females.

Overall, I do recommend this book, especially for women who are managers or aspire to be leaders.

[Veronica · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm a little offended by some of the ideas presented in this book (it implies that if you can be a mother, you can be a manager) and by the way in which they were presented. I'd like to think that my years of education and experience are contributing somehow to my career. I did enjoy some of the profiles of succesful women. I'd recommend this book to a mother who is re-entering the workforce after a number of years as a feel-good confidence builder, but I don't think there's much in here for the average female manager who has been in her role continuously for any length of time.

[Kameka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing new here. Pragmatic book for junior or mid-career women. Some of these tips wouldn't work in some business cultures, knowing one's audience is key, which I don't think the author addressed. Not all environments are the same so universals rarely work in every instance. There is a fair amount of repetition and comparisons to parenting that was lost on me, but I can see the utility for others. However, I think this could be a very helpful book for a number of people working in organizations where they get little to no professional development.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were a few good strategies that could be taken from the book. However, the author tried to relate a lot of work place experiences to how a woman might interact with her signifcant other and children. Overall, I'm a little disapointed that I purchased this book.

[Grania · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the idea of recognising non-traditional female leadership skills, but was alienated about how they were only recognised in female industries. Repetitve, and low on content or research.

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is in the same vein as the author's other book, "Nice Girls Don't Get the Corner Office." Essentially, this book is for women who feel stuck in their jobs despite working hard (or even harder than others in the company). The author gives advice on how to highlight your successes and express your desire to advance to the next level. You can't expect a promotion automatically after years of hard work. Unfortunately, the person who frequently says, "I want to be a partner in this firm" is the one who seems hungry for the position and leads the decision-makers to think that if he doesn't get the position, they'll lose him to a competing company. And the woman working diligently and quietly is not even considered for the position.

[Ayat Saleh · Rating 3 out of 5]

With a focus on revealing and solving the different attitudes that are under what is called "Nice Girls Syndrome", Lois P. Frankel developed this book to discuss the "feminization of leadership", i.e. how women can lead in the workplace without being called too bossy, aggressive or egotistical.

Why is that? Lois believes that "nice girls have a particularly difficult time assuming leadership roles and doing it effectively. When they do, they often try to make everyone happy (which, as you know, is impossible), delay decision making by trying to get everyone's buy-in, hesitate to take necessary risks for fear of offending the powers that be, and communicate in ways that undermine their confidence and credibility".

In my experience, the challenge is real and can be easily noticed in any workplace, yet, without discussing it openly, more and more businesswomen will continue to suffer. Accordingly, we will continue seeing few numbers of businesswomen in top-managerial roles.

This is the third book I read by this author. Unfortunately, the momentum and the positive energy in the previous two books were much higher than this book. Having said this, still, I believe that this book can be one of the many good resources that a lady can use to better understand the business environment.

Following the same approach of listing 101 unconscious mistakes that women make that sabotage their careers in her book 'Nice Girls Don't Get the Corner Office' and the 75 avoidable mistakes women make with money in her book 'Nice Girls Don't Get Rich', this book summarizes 99 strategies that will help women to take charge and lead at the workplace.

The book starts with a quick assessment in order to help you to identify the areas that you need to focus on and hence, start reading the related chapter directly.

The book is filled with stories and quotes from different businesswomen to provide real examples; however, I found them too distracting and prevented me from focusing on the main ideas.

Nevertheless, it is a good book and worthy to read.

[Marilyn Goh · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are many interesting idea and tips to help women feel more "relatable" and "confident" in the "corporate world" by trying to connect the workplace with the mundane task that is relatable to women. My favourite connection is about marriage and taking risk (LMAO) "you already taken risk if you've taken the plunge and gotten married" - chapter 3 taking risk: no more nice girl. (LOL). Overall It was insightful. Maybe a bit outdated. Would give it a 5 star if the reference at the end includes a list of Dr Lois P. Frankel research paper. Because some of the concepts are interesting but seems a bit murky - specifically the part where we verify influencing style by choosing the most appealing shape ... I am sorry but I prefer if this part is not in the book because it makes me question everything else. that's why I was keen to find the research about it at the reference and felt disappointed to have not found it.🙏 (pls let me know if I am wrong) However, that is only one person opinion. It is a book worth reading and would go through it once more

[Lia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I borrowed this as an audiobook, and found that the target audience was a mid-career woman with traditional gender roles. Much of the book was written in short blurbs (the 99 tips), and I found useful the sections on leadership, assertiveness, team-building and coaching. I also appreciated the references to other useful business and leadership books. Where the book lost me was a lot of the assumed context of the reader as well as the last third of the book regarding entrepreneurship and raising female children, not particular topics I was looking for in this book. A short 'read' with some simple refreshers that can be useful, no large earth-shattering new concepts.

[Aoife · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was dismayed by how stereotyped the examples were in this book. I loved Frankl’s other books so I was a bit shocked by how bad this was. The examples are things like ‘have you ever decided to lose weight and then made a plan? Then you can be a leader!’. In this book examples are all to do with married women with kids (think of the time you managed your difficult mother in law or the parents committee at school), it was very alienating.

[Kirsten Hall · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ms. Frankel's comparison of household management to business leadership is outdated and perpetuates the bias that all women can only first master their family management skills before going into the business world. I read this expecting some specific behavioral approaches to lead when faced with mysogeny. No, it's general Business 101 suggestions that any thinking women is already doing. Sisters, confidence and not strident rebellion will get you further in the world than anything else.

[Sarah Kohler · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was written in 2007, so much of the stats quoted are outdated. Regardless, this was good reminder of how to be a female leader in a world run by men. The first half of this book was intriguing and engaging. The second half seemed a little repetitive and mundane. Regardless, the 4 hours was worth the listen and I would recommend to any woman looking for pointers of how to lead or any man wanting to be an ally to women in the workplace.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good and to the point. Listened to the audio book and it's a "bullet point" book of advice. I especially liked the other books referenced and recommended. Great book for women.... Good range if advice to women who don't consider themselves leaders and women find themselves in formal leadership positions

[PixieART · Rating 5 out of 5]

A straight to the point view on why its still hard for women to believe in themselves and see and be seen as leaders. Recommended for working women, women in leadership positions of any kind like PTA or book club, or parents of daughters.

[Gina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book pretty boring and run of the mill. There is good content, to be sure, but it's not presented in an entertaining manner.

[Ashley Gardner · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this a good book to read to think of how to be a leader and gain confidence.

[Shernell Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was very insightful I even made notes and I would like to read more books similar to it

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

As this audio book started, I found myself rolling my eyes quite a bit. It just seemed too simplified, too contrived, even. However, as the third disc ended, I found that I did really enjoy it. While nothing seemed incredibly new, it was a good refresher and has me nodding in agreement. It also made me realize that even though I gave up my official manager role, I do think I am, legitimately, a leader (how cocky do I sound?!?). The book made me appreciate what I have to offer in the workplace, how I have been able to contribute in the past (and present) and made me think about what i can do to contribute further.

[Sarah Walton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read a few pages of this on my way into the city every morning. It inspires me to the point that I walk into my office ready to tackle the not so easy tasks, and I can do that with confidence.

She discusses now important feminine power is in the workplace, how distinct it is, and how much energy women waste on trying to use a masculine power instead. Very insightful, not pushy and a fun read. I highly recommend it.

[Kaylen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of this book had really great information that I can add to my repertoire for leadership skills, and that I found extremely useful. There is also an assessment of your leadership strengths and opportunities that I liked. However, much of it I felt like I already know, or already put into practice. I think it would probably be better for someone who is newer to management/leadership positions.

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like for the fact that this book can be read individually by each chapters and you don't need to read from chapter 1 to the end chronologically.

There are some chapters that are more suited to me and I focus on absorbing the content of those chapters.

This book is for women who are employees in a companies, who are managers finding ways to lead and manage their teams, moms raising their daughters.

Overall a good book for women who are working and in different stages in their lives.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book and obtained many great take-aways. Dr. Frankel has a very readable writing style and although not syaing anything truly different from other leadership books, she phrases the ideas in means which I can easily grasp and apply. Good read for those starting careers as well because it's never too early to start leading.

[Brekke · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars.
Some great insights on leadership for women, but this book is heavily geared toward wives and mothers. As a woman who is neither of these things, nearly a third of the book - and the 99 tips - are not relevant to my life. While the good stuff is good, it's definitely tailored to a specific type of woman in leadership.

[Chevelle]

Saw this in Borders the same time I bought "Nice Girls don't get the corner office", and I think I'll move on to that if Nice Girls turns out alright. It's been getting good ratings, and now that I'm in management, I need to pick up my game and get good pointers. I'm in need of a mentor!!!

[Whitney · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit dry, but it's a book I could see myself coming back to down the road when/if I am managing a team of people. I would like to read her other books (the Nice Girl books) and see if I could learn a bit more from this author.

[Rachel B. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciated how Frankel organized the book into tips, making it easy to work though nugget by nugget. I was surprised (in a good way) by the direction she took at the end when she started offering up tips for developing daughters who want to lead.

[Gigliola Conte-Patel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another book that provides women with career guidance, this time the focus is one which positive behaviours one should employ in order too be taken seriously. Many of the tips touch on entrepreneurial behaviours which I found very interesting.

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was released in 2009 so it feels a little stale, but some of the points are still valid. I was particularly struck by the section on office politics; it's something that, particularly for women, is just not taught. I will certainly be exploring that topic further!

[deva · Rating 4 out of 5]

best way to lead..motivation for all of women...

[Margaretta Dita]

still on progress..