Lean In

Speak Up in Meetings: Make it a point to contribute at least one comment or idea in every meeting you attend. This helps establish your presence and ensures your voice is heard.

Prepare and Participate: Before attending a meeting or event, prepare some thoughts or questions related to the topic. This preparation will boost your confidence to engage actively.

Claim Your Seat: Literally sit at the table where decisions are being made, rather than choosing a seat at the back or on the sidelines. This physical action is a metaphor for taking your rightful place in discussions.

Celebrate Your Achievements: Keep track of your accomplishments and share them with your team or superiors when appropriate. This isn't bragging; it's acknowledging your contributions to the team's success.

Seek Feedback and Act on It: Regularly ask for feedback on your performance and use it constructively to improve and assert your presence more effectively.

During a team meeting, Maria notices the discussion moving towards a decision without considering an important aspect. She confidently raises her point, ensuring it's considered before any decision is made.

John, realizing he often remains quiet during meetings due to uncertainty, decides to jot down a few key points related to the meeting's agenda beforehand. At the next meeting, he uses these notes as a reference to actively participate in the discussion.

Communicate Openly and Honestly: Start by having an open conversation with your partner about the distribution of household and childcare duties. Discuss each other's expectations, work schedules, and how you can support one another in achieving a balanced life.

Create a Shared Schedule: Use a calendar or an app to organize and divide household tasks and responsibilities. This visual aid can help ensure that both partners are contributing equally and can adjust as needed based on workload or other commitments.

Establish a Support Network: Sometimes, despite best efforts, balancing everything can be challenging. Look into creating a support network of family, friends, or paid services that can step in when both partners are stretched thin.

Regular Check-ins: Set aside time for regular check-ins with your partner to discuss how the arrangement is working and make adjustments as necessary. This keeps communication open and ensures that both partners feel supported and valued.

A couple decides to alternate cooking dinner each night of the week to ensure neither partner is solely responsible for meal preparation. They use a shared digital calendar to track who is cooking each day and plan meals together during the weekend.

Another couple with young children agrees that one parent will handle morning routines and drop-offs, while the other manages pickups and evening routines. They switch roles every month to maintain balance and prevent burnout.

Visualize Your Career Path: Regularly take time to envision where you want your career to go. Don't factor in potential life changes like starting a family just yet. Focus on what you want to achieve professionally in the next few years and what steps you need to take to get there.

Say Yes to Opportunities: When offered a new project, promotion, or role that aligns with your career goals, say yes—even if you're considering starting a family in the future. These opportunities can propel your career forward and might not come around again.

Communicate Your Ambitions: Make sure your manager and team know about your career aspirations. If you're open about wanting to take on more responsibility, you're more likely to be considered for upcoming projects and promotions.

Seek Out Mentors and Sponsors: Find individuals in your organization or industry who can offer guidance, support, and advocate for your career advancement. Their insight can be invaluable in navigating your career path effectively.

Plan for Flexibility: While staying fully engaged, also explore how your workplace supports flexibility. Understanding policies on remote work, part-time hours, or sabbaticals can help you plan how to balance career and personal life when the time comes.

A software engineer is offered a lead role on a high-profile project but is hesitant because she plans to start a family in the next year. Instead of declining, she accepts, knowing the experience will significantly boost her career and she can negotiate flexibility later.

An accountant is considering scaling back her hours in anticipation of family planning but decides instead to express her interest in a managerial position. She gets the promotion and works with her team to ensure a supportive environment for when she decides to take maternity leave.

Identify Your Comfort Zone: Start by recognizing the boundaries of your comfort zone. What tasks or responsibilities do you find easy or routine? Acknowledging these will help you understand where growth opportunities lie.

Set Stretch Goals: Create goals that push you slightly beyond your current capabilities or knowledge. These should be challenging yet achievable with effort and dedication. For instance, if public speaking is a challenge, set a goal to present at a team meeting or a local event.

Seek Feedback Actively: After taking on new challenges, ask for feedback from peers, mentors, or supervisors. Constructive criticism is invaluable for learning and improvement. It helps you understand your progress and areas needing more work.

Embrace Failure as a Learning Tool: Understand that not every risk will lead to success, and that's okay. View failures as opportunities to learn and grow. Reflect on what didn't work and how you can improve in the future.

Network with Risk-Takers: Surround yourself with individuals who also embrace challenges and risks. Their experiences and advice can be incredibly motivating and provide practical insights on how to navigate similar paths.

A software developer who primarily works on backend systems decides to take on a project involving the user interface (UI) design to better understand the full scope of product development. Despite initial struggles, they gain valuable insights into user experience principles and improve their coding versatility.

A marketing professional who fears public speaking volunteers to lead a workshop at a local conference. They spend weeks preparing, seeking feedback from colleagues, and practicing their delivery. The presentation is well-received, boosting their confidence and establishing them as a knowledgeable figure in their field.

Practice Active Listening: Make a conscious effort to listen more than you speak in conversations. This means fully concentrating on what is being said rather than just passively hearing the message. By doing so, you create a space where others feel heard and valued, encouraging them to open up and share their truth as well.

Encourage Feedback: Create opportunities for feedback in your interactions, whether at work or in personal relationships. Ask open-ended questions like 'How do you feel about this?' or 'What are your thoughts?' This not only shows that you value others' opinions but also sets a precedent for honest and transparent communication.

Share Your Experiences: Don't shy away from sharing your own experiences, thoughts, and feelings. When you open up, it signals to others that it's safe for them to do the same. Start with smaller, less vulnerable topics to build trust and gradually move to more significant discussions.

Set the Tone for Respectful Communication: Always communicate with respect, even when discussing difficult topics. Avoid judgmental language and focus on expressing your perspective without invalidating others. This fosters an environment where everyone feels comfortable speaking their truth.

In a team meeting, instead of immediately shooting down an idea, you could say, 'I see where you're coming from. Can you tell me more about how you envision this working?' This approach encourages open dialogue and shows respect for the speaker's perspective.

When a friend shares something personal with you, respond by sharing a similar experience of your own, if applicable. This can help create a deeper connection and show that you're engaged and empathetic. For example, 'I understand how challenging that must be. I went through something similar when…' This kind of exchange promotes a two-way, authentic communication.