Gloria Feldt Tells Women to Embrace Their Power

Have you ever wondered why women still earn 78 cents for every $1 a man makes? Do you wonder why women still only make up 18% of the corporate boardrooms, even though we make 85% of consumer spending decisions in the United States? Or do you want to know why women only make up 17% of elected positions in the US, even though we’re twice as likely to vote as men?

Gloria Feldt has some surprising answers in her new book No Excuses: 9 Ways Women Can Change How We Think About Power. In No Excuses, Feldt argues that no one is holding women back but themselves. Just think about that statement for a minute. No one is stopping women from claiming positions of leadership. We can vote. We can run for office. We can start our own companies. No one is telling us, “no.” But even though there are 18 million cracks in the glass ceiling, women are still hesitant to embrace their power.

No Excuses provides some interesting research to back up Gloria Feldt’s claims, and there are inspiring interviews with women from across the country who share their stories of embracing their power. In fact, Gloria offers women tools for taking practical steps in their lives to embrace that power. She calls them the “power tools,” and she has been going even more in depth each week on her 9 Ways Blog.

I love the power tools in No Excuses. Instead of pointing the finger at this or that problem, Gloria provides practical solutions. One of my favorite tools is “Use What You’ve Got.” We all have strengths that we can employ to equalize our lives. Take me for example. I love to write, I am comfortable talking to people, I can research and assimilate information into a coherent argument, I tell a good joke, and I love to cook. All of these are skills that can be employed to make a difference. (I included cooking on the list because people have a harder time telling me “no” when I’m offering them a cupcake.)

I also like Gloria’s tool for defining your own terms. If you don’t tell people what you expect, what you need, or what you want, you cannot be disappointed when people don’t meet your expectations. I’m going to use myself as an example again. I need an hour alone in the mornings, just me and my coffee. My partner knows this, and he takes the dog to the park every morning. But if I hadn’t told him that I need my alone time, I might continue to get frustrated every day. This plays out in the workplace, too. Think about bosses you’ve had who didn’t give you a clear job description or performance standards. Were you happy at that job? Now imagine what the workplace looks like when everyone’s responsibilities are clearly defined. It’s a much better work environment, isn’t it?

There are portions of No Excuses that I do not agree with. In her analysis of the persistent wage gap, Feldt argues that women who opt out of paid work outside of the home are partially to blame for pay inequities. Feldt believes that both men and women should be pressing for paid parental leave, and then taking it, because everyone needs to be able to earn a living and have a life. I agree with that statement. But I have trouble pinning the responsibility of persistent wage disparities on stay-at-home moms. Of course, I’m oversimplifying the argument, and Feldt’s argument is much more nuanced in the book. So you should read the book and then share your opinion about the wage gap. I’d love to know what you think about it.

I think that Gloria is well aware that some of her arguments will rustle some feathers. Then again, Gloria Feldt is not one to shun controversy. In fact, one of her power tools encourages women to embrace controversy, because Gloria believes that controversy provides us an opportunity to clarify our own values.

Pick up a copy of No Excuses, then share your opinion with the Feminists For Choice community in the comments section.  If you want to read No Excuses but you’re running low on pocket money, you can get a free copy of the book if you sign up for the Progressive Book Club by October 27th.

I’m so excited to go to Gloria’s book reading tonight at the Changing Hands Bookstore in Tempe, AZ. I will also be attending the book even at Antigone’s Bookstore in Tucson on November 19th. Check out Gloria Feldt’s event page for a complete list of book events around the country. And hit up her 9 Ways Blog to join the discussion about No Excuses and the power tools in the book.