Why She Must Lead: Bridging the Gap Between Opportunities and Women of Color
The vision in this book will allow you to:
•Analyze reports related to the leadership gap for minority women
•Develop understanding regarding the causes for a leaky talent pipeline
•Act to create personalized approaches toward eliminating barriers and bias
•Deepen your insight about how to minimize the leadership gap
•Rise as a leader to champion equity goals for yourself or your organization
Diversity is our ground, and we must stand together for an empowered future.
For more information about Vasudha Sharma, visit:
https://www.VasudhaSharma.com
https://www.WhySheMustLead.com
SPEAKING, WORKSHOPS, AND MEDIA INQUIRIES:
connect@vasudhasharma.com
Praise for Why She Must Lead
I believe this book combines all aspects of creative ideas that womxn of color need to be successful in today’s world. Vasudha has created a detailed account using her personal experience and stories from women leaders who can enlighten the readers with a broader perspective of work-life experiences of WOC. I highly recommend this book to everyone regardless of their backgrounds or ethnicities so that they can become allies we need for womxn of color.”
-Sage Ke’alohilani Quiamno, CEO & Co-founder of Future for Us - Advancing Womxn of Color at Work | Forbes 30 Under 30 Nominee
“Why She Must Lead” is a true reflection of my transition into the non-profit world from a serial entrepreneur. I owned beauty business (Meera Beauty Parlor) then moved into the garment business, followed by manufacturing cardboard boxes for exporters and then finally managing my own advertising business. That was the point when I diverted my whole focus & attention to my passion for founding a non-profit and working for the community. Leadership is not just leading some people and organizations. A leader should have the commitment, passion, empathy, decision-making abilities, and motivating people in a certain direction while planning daily life with due diligence. Vasudha’s book “Why She must Lead” is going to be a game-changer, an inspiring force for many upcoming women leaders within our community to be the powerful agents of change for a brighter tomorrow.
-Meera Satpathy, Founder & Chairperson of Sukarya
Vasudha is a passionate advocate for the equal -- and more -- a representation of women. Her dedication to equality and equity shines through, and her deep commitment and long-standing work in the fight for fairness can be lessons to many. I am excited to bring her vision of women leadership into the work I do training and readying women to run for office.”
-Karen Basserman, Executive Director Emerge Washington
For more information about Vasudha Sharma, visit:
https://www.VasudhaSharma.com
https://www.WhySheMustLead.com
SPEAKING, WORKSHOPS, AND MEDIA INQUIRIES:
connect@vasudhasharma.com
Reviews (40)
New Book Advocates for Increased Opportunities for Women of Color
Vasudha Sharma’s new book Why She Must Lead: Bridging the Gap Between Opportunities and Women of Color is a manifesto about the situation of women, especially women of color, but embraces all women, including minority and transgender women, in the United States today. Vasudha is herself an immigrant to the United States. Originally from New Delhi, India, today she resides in the Seattle suburbs, where she is a wife, mother of two boys, and doctor of physical therapy. Her educated voice of advocacy is what this country needs as America’s racial landscape changes. As Vasudha states in the book, drawing upon a study by the US census, by the year 2045, people of color will be the majority in the United States, and by 2060, women of color will represent the majority of women. That reflects the world our children and grandchildren will inherit, and they do not deserve to experience the same sexist and racial issues we currently face. As a result, it is time women’s voices are heard. Making use of painstaking research, Why She Must Lead explores the situation of women of color today, primarily in the workplace, and then discusses ways to improve this situation. Vasudha draws on her personal experiences in India and the United States as a woman seeking to help other women. Early on, she realized the importance of feminism and came to believe that equity is a human right. In these pages, she shares the barriers and biases that stand in the way of making equity a reality for women. While women are making progress in senior leadership positions, they are still underrepresented at every level of the workforce. Vasudha explores numerous steps to promote fairness and inclusion, including through workplace recruiting and retention. She advocates for more mentorship and sponsorship of women of color. She discusses the role men can play as allies in advocating for women’s advancement in the workplace. While admitting the concept of “empowerment” may seem threatening to men and organizations, Vasudha reveals how those fears are based on myths and a misunderstanding of what equity and empowerment means. Finally, Vasudha encourages successful women to pay it forward by helping their sisters. Throughout the book, Vasudha does not shy away from stating hard facts and revealing the truths many don’t wish to talk about. Based on her personal and professional experiences, she states, “the most prominent attribute of a successful woman is her ability to speak up for herself.” If women do not speak up for themselves, they are often ignored or passed over for advancement. Often, biases exist that management is not even aware of in promoting men over women. Some of these include a belief that a woman will just work until she gets married, that she will leave when she has children, or that advancement is not as important to her as her family life. Such myths need to be dismissed. While women have long talked about the need to break the glass ceiling, Vasudha reveals that for women of color, it is a concrete ceiling. However, the most pressing problem is not a ceiling but a broken step on the ladder of advancement. She offers solutions for how to repair the ladder. Vasudha highlights that while many men are open to helping women advance, they do not always realize the false biases and prejudices that may cloud their judgment and make them unfair to their female colleagues. They may also make sexist assumptions. For example, mansplaining often happens in the workplace, in which a man feels he must speak down to a woman to explain something to her. Because our society has come to believe women should be advocated for, the discrimination against women has become more subtle and results in microaggressive behaviors, like mansplaining, that are often invisible. Vasudha brings all these issues into the open while embracing men as allies and providing clear processes for how they can help women move ahead. One of my favorite passages in the book centers on Vasudha’s role as a mother to two boys: “People often ask me, since I am a mother of two boys, why I am still such an advocate for women. Wouldn’t this make men secondary? I always have the same answer; I am responsible for my sisterhood, who face the same challenges as I do because of the broken system, and I have an obligation to help my boys understand and acknowledge the importance of equality in the household and professional world. I want my boys to step up and take the central role in the conversation. “Even when I was waiting for my sons’ arrival in the world, I envisioned for my sons: compassion, good citizenship, excellent college educations, successful careers, and achieving whatever they strove for in their lives. Also, I wanted them to be feminists like their dad.” Vasudha’s meticulous research and well-thought-out arguments will open the eyes of male and female readers. I believe every manager and human resources professional needs to read this book. I also believe all women, especially women of color, will benefit from reading it. Perhaps most importantly, Why She Must Lead reveals “why she must speak up.” Vasudha has spoken up with this book, and hopefully, her message will spread. As she states near the end: “I don’t believe change can happen one person or one couple at a time. Currents of culture carry the wave of change. To create those currents, we need to stir the stories and bring them to the surface. That’s why I am sharing mine. Also, I don’t want to project that I know it all when it comes to finding solutions to equality. I had a good set of challenges and flaws. The truth is, I learned more by sharing them.”
What an amazing book!
Very well written book. One of the best that I have read so far on gender equity. The combination of Vasudha's personal experience on this topic and the actual facts made it very interesting. I loved the questions at the end of each chapter which made me think about my experiences on this matter. I could really relate to it. A goal of every woman to achieve equal rights. I really liked the tips Vasudha gave on career growth especially in Chapter 5 about communication, how important communication is in the workplace. Vasudha took a stand and I really hope we’ll get there one day. A must read for sure.
Must read
The story is a traditional immigrant narrative that follows the life of the author as she works hard to achieve the American Dream.Her strength reminded me of the women of my community, who had crossed the border searching for a better life for their families. The book walks you through a lot of structural inequalities that make such dream difficult for many women immigrants of color, who face the added burden of gender inequality.My personal interest were the Self -Reflection Excercises added at the end of each Chapter. God Luck Vasudha !!
An Important Read
Sharma dives into the inequalities Women of Color face on a daily basis in the work force. She has done significant research on the topic and draws on her personal experience as an immigrant. This book is a must-read for all women of color trying to climb the corporate ladder; we are routinely knocked down and not given the same opportunities as the average white man. We keep reaching the glass ceiling but unable to break it due to structural racism.
A must read
This book discusses an important topic of our time: equal opportunity. The author discusses relevant issues related to women of color in the workplace and the biases and consequent difficulties that exist in this space. The book draws on personal experiences and stories of the author coupled with in depth research, not shying away from sharing uncomfortable facts, to make the case for equal opportunity for women of color. A must read.
An eye opener
Vasudha has done a marvelous job researching on and interviewing many pertinent women leaders and change-makers. Though gender equality in our boardrooms and policy making discussions have become a hot topic of late, there is still a long way to go to achieve this , so it’s all about women leaders who are actively finding ways to redress the balance that will help activate significant change moving forward.
I purchased many copies to share with my friends
Phenomenal Author, Vasudha has profound wisdom. She is a trailblazer. I am honored to have met her personally few months ago.
Must Read for All!
“Not only is bringing diversity, equity and inclusion to light important, but so is the empowerment of all women to speak up for themselves. In this book, Vasudha captures it all. The experiences of some of these women is painstaking, but we will pave the way. Why She Must Lead is a great start! Great read! I highly recommend!”
Inspiring Women Leaders!
What an impactful book and perfect timing to share to the world. We need more inspiring, dynamic, women leaders to lead, and I believe this book will light the fire and launch many women leaders!
practical cookbook on women leadership
A practical book on women leadership!! The author enlists the challenges and shows the way to get rid off. The contents are very inclusive and authentic perspectives on women leadership and how to take charge of it. I enjoyed and learned reading it. I will recommend to my friends.
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