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No Ceiling, No Walls: What women haven't been told about leadership from career-start to the corporate boardroom
With the right leadership skills, the highest levels of career success are well within reach. Unfortunately, conventional wisdom about leadership won’t get you to the top. Much of it is outdated, incomplete, and ineffective. What you need is...
The Missing 33%™!
No Ceiling, No Walls takes a fresh, unblinking look at leadership. It identifies the vital missing piece of the leadership equation, describing the "why" as well as the "what" with specific, actionable information you won't find anywhere
• Develop 3 crucial skills seldom taught in leadership programs
• Focus on hitting outcomes rather than just doing your job
• Speak the Language of Power™ without losing your voice
• Cultivate your own greatness while engaging it in others
• Create your own career path with help from trailblazing leading women
and more!
Organizations that have bought No Ceiling, No
Among the organizations that have bought multiple copies of No Ceiling, No Walls for their women AACE International, DePuy (a J&J company), Interpublic Group, Kodak, MassMutual, New York Life, PepsiCo, Professional Women in Healthcare, OfficeMax, Prudential, Sunoco, The MITRE Corporationand many more!
Praise for No Ceiling, No Walls
“Women at all career levels must incorporate the ideas in this thoughtful book on leadership. The future depends on women acknowledging that there is nothing holding them back from succeeding in business.”
Vicki Donlan, author of HER Why It's Time for Women to Lead in America
“Colantuono’s book provides thoughtful coaching to women leaders, whether experienced or new to the workforce. Her wise and practical advice is a must-read for individuals who are determined to reach the next level of their careers."
Anne Szostak, President & CEO of Szostak Partners and former chairman and CEO Fleet Bank Rhode Island
"Informed by her extensive experience , Susan Colantuono offers a refreshingly keen, sophisticated analysis of what women need to do to become leaders. This is a must-read book for women - and men - who want more women in leadership positions in America."
Evelyn Murphy, author of Getting Why Women Don't Get Paid Like Men and What To Do About It
"No Ceiling, No Walls, is both inspirational and inspired. Practical exercises and tools offer valuable ways women can enhance their leadership skills ? for example, using the language of power to communicate the value they bring. But perhaps what makes this book so smart is the emphasis it puts on business acumen as the way for women to demonstrate that they have the “right stuff” to take on leadership roles. Aside from this being the absolute truth, it certainly makes climbing the corporate ladder more accessible.Be your own coach yourself using No Ceilings, No Walls as a guide."
Carol Frohlinger, author Nice Girls Just Don't Get It and Her Place at the Table
No Ceiling, No Walls "is a guide for women who...want to prosper and succeed at a much higher level....a fascinating read with plenty of wisdom to absorb, highly recommended..."
Midwest Book Review (The Business Shelf)
No Ceiling, No Walls is the first in our ASK Leading Women™ series. All ASK Leading Women™ books offer inspiring and practical solutions for women as they move from career-start to the C-suite and onto corporate boards. When you ASK Leading Women, you get cutting-edge content, ready-to-apply tools, insights from self-assessments, and examples from successful women who act as your virtual mentors.
The Missing 33%™!
No Ceiling, No Walls takes a fresh, unblinking look at leadership. It identifies the vital missing piece of the leadership equation, describing the "why" as well as the "what" with specific, actionable information you won't find anywhere
• Develop 3 crucial skills seldom taught in leadership programs
• Focus on hitting outcomes rather than just doing your job
• Speak the Language of Power™ without losing your voice
• Cultivate your own greatness while engaging it in others
• Create your own career path with help from trailblazing leading women
and more!
Organizations that have bought No Ceiling, No
Among the organizations that have bought multiple copies of No Ceiling, No Walls for their women AACE International, DePuy (a J&J company), Interpublic Group, Kodak, MassMutual, New York Life, PepsiCo, Professional Women in Healthcare, OfficeMax, Prudential, Sunoco, The MITRE Corporationand many more!
Praise for No Ceiling, No Walls
“Women at all career levels must incorporate the ideas in this thoughtful book on leadership. The future depends on women acknowledging that there is nothing holding them back from succeeding in business.”
Vicki Donlan, author of HER Why It's Time for Women to Lead in America
“Colantuono’s book provides thoughtful coaching to women leaders, whether experienced or new to the workforce. Her wise and practical advice is a must-read for individuals who are determined to reach the next level of their careers."
Anne Szostak, President & CEO of Szostak Partners and former chairman and CEO Fleet Bank Rhode Island
"Informed by her extensive experience , Susan Colantuono offers a refreshingly keen, sophisticated analysis of what women need to do to become leaders. This is a must-read book for women - and men - who want more women in leadership positions in America."
Evelyn Murphy, author of Getting Why Women Don't Get Paid Like Men and What To Do About It
"No Ceiling, No Walls, is both inspirational and inspired. Practical exercises and tools offer valuable ways women can enhance their leadership skills ? for example, using the language of power to communicate the value they bring. But perhaps what makes this book so smart is the emphasis it puts on business acumen as the way for women to demonstrate that they have the “right stuff” to take on leadership roles. Aside from this being the absolute truth, it certainly makes climbing the corporate ladder more accessible.Be your own coach yourself using No Ceilings, No Walls as a guide."
Carol Frohlinger, author Nice Girls Just Don't Get It and Her Place at the Table
No Ceiling, No Walls "is a guide for women who...want to prosper and succeed at a much higher level....a fascinating read with plenty of wisdom to absorb, highly recommended..."
Midwest Book Review (The Business Shelf)
No Ceiling, No Walls is the first in our ASK Leading Women™ series. All ASK Leading Women™ books offer inspiring and practical solutions for women as they move from career-start to the C-suite and onto corporate boards. When you ASK Leading Women, you get cutting-edge content, ready-to-apply tools, insights from self-assessments, and examples from successful women who act as your virtual mentors.
192 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2010
38 people are currently reading
245 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
March 5, 2018
Amazing Messages on Leadership Perspective
As an executive leader I found the book very insightful on ways to communicate more effectively with my team. I am definitely empowered with many actionable steps to enhance my strategic thinking to work in a more purposeful way.
As an executive leader I found the book very insightful on ways to communicate more effectively with my team. I am definitely empowered with many actionable steps to enhance my strategic thinking to work in a more purposeful way.
May 8, 2015
Don't be fooled by the awful cover design or the first section of the book! It seems like an incredibly lightweight, rah-rah sort of leadership pre-101,self-help book (women have a hard time in leadership, did you know??). But when she starts the main section on the 3 basic elements of leadership, Colantuono dishes out some concrete and extremely helpful observations, exercises, and suggestions. FYI, the 3 elements are based on her definition of leadership which is, "Leadership is using the greatness in you (1), to achieve and sustain extraordinary outcomes (2), by engaging the greatness of others (3)."
Although actually, in the book she examines those elements in a different order, writing about #2 (outcomes) first, as that relates to the main premise of her book, that women in leadership tend to be passed over for leadership opportunities because they lack knowledge, experience, and ways to communicate about outcomes (primarily economic) within their field. This is explained especially well in Colantuono's TED talk, in which she hones in on what she says is the missing 33% of attributes/strengths that many women lack. Oftentimes, according to the author, women are groomed with focusing on networking, building relationships, building confidence and communication skills, yet business acumen for their industry is not addressed outright. It is assumed that women will know this or pick this up. Meanwhile, when men are groomed for promotion, the focus is all on business and strategic angles (outcomes), and less about relationships.
As someone who has largely had to self-educate regarding business and strategic practices within my field (museums & higher education), I found this book to be incredibly helpful. Not necessarily with specifics of my industry but useful in terms of big picture, vocabulary, and importance. The chapters are short but I had to slow down in between and digest them. It's still a Leadership 101 book, but it's extremely focused on issues related to women with scenarios and suggestions that would apply to people in different industries. She focuses mainly on white-collar work, but there are examples from other businesses like nursing and retail.
Although actually, in the book she examines those elements in a different order, writing about #2 (outcomes) first, as that relates to the main premise of her book, that women in leadership tend to be passed over for leadership opportunities because they lack knowledge, experience, and ways to communicate about outcomes (primarily economic) within their field. This is explained especially well in Colantuono's TED talk, in which she hones in on what she says is the missing 33% of attributes/strengths that many women lack. Oftentimes, according to the author, women are groomed with focusing on networking, building relationships, building confidence and communication skills, yet business acumen for their industry is not addressed outright. It is assumed that women will know this or pick this up. Meanwhile, when men are groomed for promotion, the focus is all on business and strategic angles (outcomes), and less about relationships.
As someone who has largely had to self-educate regarding business and strategic practices within my field (museums & higher education), I found this book to be incredibly helpful. Not necessarily with specifics of my industry but useful in terms of big picture, vocabulary, and importance. The chapters are short but I had to slow down in between and digest them. It's still a Leadership 101 book, but it's extremely focused on issues related to women with scenarios and suggestions that would apply to people in different industries. She focuses mainly on white-collar work, but there are examples from other businesses like nursing and retail.
June 27, 2015
A novel perspective on why women aren't rising into executive leadership ranks and an insightful and practical guide to explain how business really works.
She has identified that most management and leadership training programs are designed to bolster the weaknesses of men (soft skills) and not the weaknesses of women (business acumen) as the source of the leadership gap. That women's perceived weakness in business acumen is why they aren't rising to the executive ranks and they aren't being told that, because it's a blind spot.
This was an eye opening idea to me that really resonates. She spends the first part of the book making the case for that point and then moves on to explain her definition of leadership and provide training on business acumen and other skills executive leaders need. I found her explanations of the business side enlightening and straight forward. It gave me a lot to think about. I could immediately see how I could apply her guidance to my work.
Her TED talk on this topic was forwarded to me and I found it interesting, so I picked up the book and I'm glad I did. There is substantially more content in the book than in the talk and I found that content extremely helpful. I almost wish the book didn't have the "women's business" aspect to it because the middle section on business acumen would be beneficial to any middle manager. Many would pass this book by thinking it's talking about the problem of the glass ceiling and not an excellent primer on how business really works. I didn't expect the primer, but I'm thankful it was included.
I would recommend this book to any women in business and to any man that manages women.
She has identified that most management and leadership training programs are designed to bolster the weaknesses of men (soft skills) and not the weaknesses of women (business acumen) as the source of the leadership gap. That women's perceived weakness in business acumen is why they aren't rising to the executive ranks and they aren't being told that, because it's a blind spot.
This was an eye opening idea to me that really resonates. She spends the first part of the book making the case for that point and then moves on to explain her definition of leadership and provide training on business acumen and other skills executive leaders need. I found her explanations of the business side enlightening and straight forward. It gave me a lot to think about. I could immediately see how I could apply her guidance to my work.
Her TED talk on this topic was forwarded to me and I found it interesting, so I picked up the book and I'm glad I did. There is substantially more content in the book than in the talk and I found that content extremely helpful. I almost wish the book didn't have the "women's business" aspect to it because the middle section on business acumen would be beneficial to any middle manager. Many would pass this book by thinking it's talking about the problem of the glass ceiling and not an excellent primer on how business really works. I didn't expect the primer, but I'm thankful it was included.
I would recommend this book to any women in business and to any man that manages women.
February 8, 2017
This book is phenomenal and provides new insight into what is keeping women back from attaining leadership positions. This is a MUST READ for all professional women! Thanks Susan for this brilliant book!
January 17, 2016
Really good. Took me awhile to get into it, but was worth sticking it out. Really made me think about how I talk and how I connect my work with the entire company rather than just the problem at hand
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews