International women’s leadership expert Gloria Feldt knows her worth.
In 2014, Feldt, the former CEO of Planned Parenthood in Arizona and author of No Excuses: 9 Ways Women Can Change How We Think About Power, founded Take the Lead, an innovative leadership training program that’s paving the way for greater equity and inclusion across industries—with a focus on helping women get paid what they deserve.
While the number of women in the workforce has ballooned over the past 60 years, rising from 37% to 57%, women still remain underrepresented in leadership and management positions. Consider that only 28% of American CEOs and a mere 6.4% of S&P 500 CEOs are women.
“It’s one thing to know money is important, but another for women to understand the power of their own wealth,” says Feldt, who was also named one of Forbes’ 50 Over 50 in 2022.
What’s Feldt’s best advice for helping women step into their power? It starts with knowing their history, she says.
Here, she offers some vital insights on how women can better advocate for themselves, understand their worth and reach their true potential as leaders.
Q: In 2022, women earned just 82 cents for every $1 men earned. How can we work to close this pay gap?
We have to be willing to assess our own worth, ask for what we deserve and promote ourselves. I don’t mean just being a cheerleader. What I mean is doing your homework and knowing what you are worth in the market. Women ask for between 3% and 32% less than men when they’re negotiating their compensation. My dad used to say, “If you don’t ask, then you don’t get.”
But this doesn’t mean you have to be rude—you can be nice and polite while also being assertive and firm. Say, “This is what I have accomplished for the organization.” You can always vote with your feet (aka leave) if you don’t get what you deserve.
Q: COVID-19 has altered the way many people think about work. How can women use the pandemic to their professional advantage?
A disruptive time is the perfect time to make big systemic change. The normal human response to disruption and chaos is to back off, but what happens if we take that disruption and lean into it instead? If we look back five to 10 years from now, we will see that this was the best opportunity organizations had to alter their professional makeup.
The pandemic also helped us understand the importance of quality, widespread child care. We’re still a long way from having it, but at least we’re having the conversation. Of course, if the workplace had been designed by women, we would’ve had this figured out by now.
Q: Is there a woman in a leadership role, past or present, who made a leap forward by embracing disruption and chaos?
I would point to Sallie Krawcheck, who started the robo-advisor investment platform Ellevest. She was fired from several banking jobs but took the problems she faced in the financial industry, which is still male dominated, and parlayed them into an organization that helps women become financially stronger.
For example, we know that older women currently have less saved for retirement because the pay gap has kept them from having equal earning opportunities. That means they are paying less into Social Security and possibly have less in their 401(k)s. The implications for women not having enough saved are enormous—and Ellevest is working to change that.
Q: You’ve said that Take the Lead helps women shift their mindset. Can you tell us more about that?
The answer to gender inequality is providing women with the intention and skills they need to step into greater leadership roles and enact change in their professions. Within six months, 40% of the women who go through the Take the Lead 50 Women Can Change the World program to achieve a higher leadership role.
I still think that boys grow up believing they own the world, while girls are socialized to think about what others are going to think about them or how they can best serve others. Women are still objectified, and that can reduce our ambitions and intentions—or as I like to say, our intentioning. Intentioning is saying “heck yes, I want that,” and then going for it knowing you have the power to get it.
Q: How is Take the Lead helping women of color move forward in their careers?
The more diversity and inclusion you have in the workplace, the stronger your organization. Of our active Take the Lead leadership team members, 50% are women of color, sometimes more—so we walk the walk in that way.
Say we’re doing our “Power Up” conference on Women’s Equality Day. We ultimately don’t have control over who registers, but we can control other things. Are the speakers diverse? Are the topics covered going to appeal to a diverse audience? Start there, and you’ll attract diverse participants, too.
Q: What are some important lessons you’ve learned as a leader yourself?
The most important responsibility of a leader is to create meaning, and this applies to leaders at every level. To foster a welcoming, trusting atmosphere, people on your team or at your company need a sense of meaning in order to do their work well. That’s why it’s so important to set and communicate your and your company’s agenda.
One final lesson I’ll impart: You don’t know where or when you might cross paths with people again you’ve met in your life, so be courteous, kind and open. Everything we do in life is about connections and relationships.
Alizah Salario is a freelance writer and editor based in Brooklyn, NY. Most recently, she covered personal finance for CNBC’s Grow magazine.
Illustration by Josie Portillo
LEARN MORE: Saving Strategies for The Real World