Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead Paperback – 6 August 2015

📖In this book, Facebook COO, Sheryl Sandberg, discusses the various challenges faced by women, trying to balance between their career and family, through various examples from her own life.📝I came to know about this book through one of my closest friends and one of the strongest women I have seen. It is primarily focused on workplace challenges faced by women and puts forth very practical arguments and ways to overcome them. Working in a corporate environment with a number of female colleagues, I could relate to the views presented by Ms. Sandberg. Moreover, the book also serves as a career development guide for anyone irrespective of gender. This book is a must read for not only women but also men, in order to empathize with their female counterparts.📝I would love to share some of my favorite quotes from this book.✒️"Done is better than perfect." (A quote used often by my friend whenever I tend to overthink before making a decision)✒️"Careers are a jungle gym, not a ladder."✒️"There is no perfect fit when you're looking for the next big thing to do. You have to take opportunities and make an opportunity fit for you, rather than the other way around. The ability to learn is the most important quality a leader can have."

Sheryl Sandberg certainly has a way with words - this book manages to make a strong case for gender equality without once sounding hackneyed or distastefully overbearing. Her candid admissions of second guessing her choices, and the narration of instances where women in power are branded as over-ambitious and unlikeable, ring true for every working woman.Personally, what I liked the most is the fact that the narrative is delightfully straight forward - I almost felt like I was talking to Sheryl face to face and nodding in agreement. She doesn't prescribe any quick fixes to solve the issues that cause negative perceptions about working women, instead, this entire book addresses the root cause and seeks to make both men and women aware of it. I ardently hope that we won't have to wait too long for the day when we can all look back at this book and say that we're past most of the glaring issues that women face because the seeds of change were sown when this book was written.

Fantastic book

Loved the easy flow of book which was personal and same time data and statistics. Her way of telling story is simply breath catching. I felt she is standing in front of me to rise me from deep comfort and fight back on female centric issues. Truly the only way we can bring change is talking about it. Female leaders can bring more and better changes and hence it's important to support this cause but more important is be part of this cause even if it means starting small. Like the time I marched in my presidents office 7 months pregnant and told him this office is not built for women. The bathroom doors open inside hitting the pregnant belly when they should open outside. Speak up, be the change maker and be the women you needed for someone else when you have power.

I haven't nodded so much while reading any other book as this one. It is spot on! All the dilemmas, all the cultural norms, all the guilt-trips, roadblocks that women are either faced with or put up for themselves, it's here: recognized, researched and represented in a way every woman can relate. It is gratifying to learn how women across the world, irrespective of countries, cultures, religions, social status, etc. are more similar than they are different. Sometimes inequality exists in such a subtle way that it is hard to notice and easier to deny. Yet it is there. While this book is labelled as a 'business book', I believe it is more of a 'human' book, the one that teaches us not to discard the feminine aspects to succeed in business, but how to celebrate them.WOMEN: You owe reading this book to yourself. Add it to your shopping list. Or grocery list. Or any other list. It's better if you could read it at the beginning of your career or before you get married, but if not so, still read it. And gift a copy of it to your friends as well. It is such an important book, I believe I will be re-reading it again and again.MEN: You owe reading this book for all the women in your life- your mother, your wife, daughters, sisters, friends, colleagues, employees, etc. And to yourself - for your business or career or marriage or relationships.[I bought a paperback copy of this book. The page quality and print were alright. Unlike some of the reviews, mine was a legit copy]

I bought the book after several recommendations. I am usually intrigued by stories of women in and around and when it comes to a woman making it all the way to the top, I just couldn't stop myself. Lean in is mostly an ask from the author to come together as a community of men and women and help the women rise in her career. It has anecdotes and experiences from her own life, family, friends and colleagues and some pulled from other successful women in Business. It's a great read if you are woman trying to make your own paths in your career. Being an ivy league and an extreme hard worker, it's sad to hear that she too had to struggle for her position but at the same time inspiring that if you have the intention and labour you can make it.