Dana Theus

Research Says: Women In Groups Make Smarter Groups!

Study: The Female Factor (Harvard Business Review, Woolley and McGovern, 2011). A study on women in groups and working in groups. Finding: The IQ of individuals in a group is not as important as how balanced it is in terms of social perceptiveness. Gender-diversity and women's statically...

read more

Coaching vs Mentoring: Do you need both?

There are many ways to get stuck in your career. You can find yourself feeling unmotivated, frustrated at a lack of progress, confused about what your goals should be, or uncertain about how to motivate your team, manage your workload or get your mojo back. When you hit a wall, it’s time to ask...

read more

The Weakness in Strengths-based Leadership

We love the strength’s-based leadership approach. It challenges us to know what our natural gifts are and build on them. But if we’re not careful it can make us blind to our opportunities to improve. – InPower Editors I recently worked with a Vice President who was an up-and-comer in her firm’s...

read more

Archetypal Personal Branding: A Woman’s Best Business Friend

Practical experience and research both tell us that women struggle more than men to speak up and promote themselves. Even women who speak up often find it hard to “sell” themselves. If you’re on the corporate ladder this can slow (or stop) your climb; when you’re self-employed, it can kill your...

read more

Update: Newest Research on Women in Leadership (March ’23)

We like to keep up with the newest data on women in leadership, updating our primary catalog, Guide to Women’s Leadership, about twice a year. Thanks for my colleague, Jennifer V. Miller we keep this extensive documentation pretty current. The guide now includes 109 citations in four categories...

read more

Mentee vs. Protégé: Is there a Difference?

When you’re mentoring someone, what do you call the person to whom you’re imparting all your wisdom? Mentee seems the easy, opposite of mentor, but I don’t like the term. Putting an “ee” on something makes it sound like something you’re “doing to” someone else.  Key Takeaways: Mentorship is a...

read more

What Meryl Streep Can Teach Us About Mean Girl Bosses

Between Maggie Thatcher in The Iron Lady and Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada, Meryl Streep has played some pretty tough bosses in her movies. So when I got the umpteenth request from professional women - readers, clients and friends - to explain the phenomenon of lady bully bosses (i.e.,...

read more

Co-opting Post-Sexist Gender Bias to Retain Top Talent

Have you ever taken Karate? I took two classes, not enough to retain any physical benefit, but I learned one thing I still keep with me 30 years later: when we take advantage of natural forces to create change, change happens more smoothly and comfortably. Research out of Harvard may just hold the...

read more

Categories