I know from my own life that this can be a painful issue, so I wanted to inspire, not blame women, and to give them practical tools and tips to help them on their journey forward. You see, I was a teen mom, married my high school sweetheart and had three children by just after my 20th birthday. Climbing out of that situation where I had no education or employable skills took some doing.

1. Adventures of Gloria Feldt,
Co-founder and President
Take The Lead
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Hi everyone I’m Gloria Feldt, co-founder and president of Take The Lead, a new nonprofit organization whose mission is to
prepare, develop, inspire, and propel women to take their fair and equal share of leadership positions across all sectors by
2025. I’m also an author and public speaker, and formerly president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Federation of
America.
I got into this role out of my passion for equality for all, and in particular for women to get a fair shake. That passion has
taken several forms. Take The Lead is the most recent incarnation. It began in 2008 when I discovered while researching an
article on women in politics for Elle Magazine that the barriers to women in leadership—whether in the workplace, in civic
life and politics, or in personal life--now have as much to do with our own ambivalence toward power as with external
barriers.
I know from my own life that this can be a painful issue, so I wanted to inspire, not blame women, and to give them
practical tools and tips to help them on their journey forward. You see, I was a teen mom, married my high school
sweetheart and had three children by just after my 20th
birthday. Climbing out of that situation where I had no education or
employable skills took some doing. So I got started in the workplace later than most young women today and I had to
compensate for that by working hard and taking on lots of responsibility.
But they say you write the book you need to read, and confronting my own power demons as I explored women’s lack of
leadership progress became my latest of four books, No Excuses: 9 Ways Women Can Change How We Think About Power.
Then people started asking me to teach and conduct workshops to share the practical tips and leadership “power tools” I
created to help women deal with difficult issues such as conflict, chaos, and controversy that might be holding them back.
When I realized that I could never reach enough people with my message in small groups, I joined with a colleague, former
investment banker Amy Litzenberger, to start this new initiative.
I am absolutely certain this is the moment for women to Take The Lead! And I am excited beyond words to be launching
our first fully online women’s leadership certificate course starting October 2. Anyone can take this 6-week course to uptick
her career and embrace her power in fulfilling ways, creating a personal action plan proven to take her to her goal.
I feel like the goddess with 18 hands right now. I am the CEO, the spokesperson, the curriculum designer, the marketer, the
social media manager, the fundraiser, you name it. We are a start up nonprofit but we think like an entrepreneurial start up,
always looking for strategic alliances and partnerships that can benefit both parties.
As for my work routine……..Can you hear me laughing? Every day is different. But generally I keep mornings (after I
exercise—for me this is a requirement to keep my energy high and also I am vain ) open for the most important tasks,
whether phoning a potential funder, writing a workshop proposal, catching up my cofounder and board chair, or talking with
the few staff and many interns and volunteers we are blessed to have. I work from my home office. I spend about half an
hour on social media most mornings, and try not to do more because I am a bit of an addict. I try to take face to face

2. meetings either at afternoon tea time or have walking meetings, both of which I find delightful. Working at home, I have too
few boundaries—for example, I am writing this at night on a holiday.
Though I attribute much of my success to the willingness to say “yes” when offered a new opportunity, I do wish I had been
more intentional about where I wanted to be and how I wanted to make my mark. Who knows, I might be president of a
large company I started now, or maybe governor of a state.
Do I have any regrets or careers I would have liked to explore? One can never go backward, only forward. And as Diana
Nyad has shown, it is never too late to do something you want to do! Now the biggest obstacle is that many people identify
me still with Planned Parenthood since it was such a high public profile position, rather than recognizing that I have always
been about the big picture of women’s equality and leadership. But that’s not a bad place to be, is it?
How would I rate my success in my current role? You’ll have to ask me that in five years when Take The Lead is thriving-or
not! I am very good at setting a vision and goals. I do not love managing the many moving parts of daily tasks that must be
done to make the vision happen.
Is there a secret to success…… J. Paul Getty used to answer this question by saying, “Get up early, work hard, find oil.” I
haven’t found oil yet, so I rely on getting up early and working hard.
I think the concept of balance borders on absurd. Let’s face it, Life is a series of choices. Every day you have do decide
what that 24 hours is going to mean. So I don’t look for balance so much as asking am I getting my exercise so I feel good
physically, have I talked with my kids, and did I have fun in my work. If it’s not fun, stop and go do something else.
Here’s what’s so exciting today: Women are transforming the power paradigm. I have a concept I call “Sister Courage.” It
has three parts:
1. Be a sister. Reach out to another woman to offer help. Ask for help when you need it. Don’t let yourself be isolated or try
to solve all problems by yourself.
2. Have the courage to raise the issues that concern you. Do you think there is a better way to solve a problem or design a
product? Do you want to negotiate flex time so you can see your children more?
3. Put the two together with a strategic plan to lead to the change you want to see in your workplace.
That’s Sister Courage. And with it, you can change your workplace, your life, your world.
I am inspired to do my work because it is a big, bold vision to change the world for the better. I think we all need to be
inspired to do something bigger than ourselves. The time is right for women to reach leadership parity much faster than the
70-year trajectory we have been on. Besides, I get calls and letters like one from Valerie, who took my workshop. A year
later called to tell me she had achieved the goal she set for herself using the power tools I taught her—she had just been
promoted to vice president. And there was the young woman who asked for and got $10,000 more in salary than she was
initially offered after she read my book. That’s the real payoff---to know I have helped an individual person.
For young people thinking of entering this field, I say, if it is your passion, go for it. But don’t let yourself get lost in a
cause—have a plan and a vision of where you want to be in five or ten years.
All things are possible, so go big, and know your worth when you do. Network purposefully, for the world turns on human
connections. Take risks because you can always “unchoose” a path taken, especially when you are young. And in the end,
honesty and courage are the most important values, so be true to your own integrity even if it means leaving behind
something you thought you wanted.
I want to leave a legacy where women will take their fair and equal share of leadership positions across all sectors by 2025.
And now as my story draws to a close I would like to leave you with one of my favorite quotes. I collect quotes. I have
hundreds of them so choosing just one is hard. However here’s one I recently learned by the late Muriel Siebert, the first
woman to buy a seat on the NY Stock exchange: “If you can’t play with the big boys, start your own game.”
If you’d like to get more of my favorite inspirational quotes, learn my Leadership Power Tools and how to use them to
advance your career, I invite you to join up for my online certificate course.
Gloria Feldt,
Co-founder and President
Take The Lead