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The Naked Truth: A Working Woman's Manifesto on Business and What Really Matters
In this provocative book, Margaret Heffernan, former CEO and Fast Company contributor, fuses her own experience with that of hundreds of women to identify the biggest challenges and the best solutions that women face today. From VPs of Fortune 100 companies to entrepreneurs to women just starting their careers, she traces the patterns and themes underlying women's power, choices, love, sex, money, and many other vital topics for working women. Without sugar-coating the facts, preaching, or oversimplifying, she offers solutions and shares the truth about the working world: women's choices are limited, you can't have it all, women do work differently from men and, yes, it is possible to find success amidst all of this and feel good about it. "Finally! A book that exposes the masculine myths about what it takes to be effective in business and helps women reclaim the relational intelligence we have been taught to ignore. A must-read for all women who want to increase their power and influence in the workplace—especially those who are thinking of leaving because they are tired of the corporate gamesmanship that requires splitting themselves into a 'work me' and a 'home me.'"
— Joyce K. Fletcher , professor of management, Simmons School of Management, Boston, Massachusetts Order your copy today!
— Joyce K. Fletcher , professor of management, Simmons School of Management, Boston, Massachusetts Order your copy today!
- GenresBusinessNonfiction
288 pages, Hardcover
First published August 13, 2004
12 people are currently reading
203 people want to read
About the author
Margaret Heffernan
37 books154 followers MARGARET HEFFERNAN is an entrepreneur, Chief Executive and author. She was born in Texas, raised in Holland and educated at Cambridge University. She worked in BBC Radio for five years where she wrote, directed, produced and commissioned dozens of documentaries and dramas.
As a television producer, she made documentary films for Timewatch, Arena, and Newsnight. She was one of the producers of Out of the Doll's House, the prize-winning documentary series about the history of women in the twentieth century.
She designed and executive produced a thirteen part series on The French Revolution for the BBC and A&E. The series featured, among others, Alan Rickman, Alfred Molina, Janet Suzman, Simon Callow and Jim Broadbent and introduced both historian Simon Schama and playwright Peter Barnes to British television. She also produced music videos with Virgin Records and the London Chamber Orchestra to raise attention and funds for Unicef's Lebanese fund.
Leaving the BBC, she ran the trade association IPPA, which represented the interests of independent film and television producers and was once described by the Financial Times as "the most formidable lobbying organization in England."
In 1994, she returned to the United States where she worked on public affair campaigns in Massachusetts and with software companies trying to break into multimedia. She developed interactive multimedia products with Peter Lynch, Tom Peters, Standard & Poors and The Learning Company.
She then joined CMGI where she ran, bought and sold leading Internet businesses, serving as Chief Executive Officer for InfoMation Corporation, ZineZone Corporation and iCAST Corporation.
She was named one of the Internet's Top 100 by Silicon Alley Reporter in 1999, one of the Top 25 by Streaming Media magazine and one of the Top 100 Media Executives by The Hollywood Reporter. Her "Tear Down the Wall" campaign against AOL won the 2001 Silver SABRE award for public relations.
Her third book, Wilful Blindness (Simon&Schuster in the UK, Bloomsbury in the US, Doubleday in Canada) was a finalist for the Financial Times/Goldman Sachs Best Business Book award and, in 2014, the Financial Times named it one of its "best business books of the decade.” Her next book A Bigger Prize (Simon&Schuster in the UK, Public Affairs in the US and Doubleday in Canada) won the Transmission Prize. Her most recent book Beyond Measure : The Big Impact of Small Changes was published in 2015. Her TED talks have been seen by over 5 million people. She has been invited to speak at all of the world’s leading financial services businesses, the leading FTSE and S&P corporations as well as the world’s most successful sports teams. She continues to advise private and public businesses, to mentor senior and chief executives and to write for the Financial Times and Huffington Post.
As a television producer, she made documentary films for Timewatch, Arena, and Newsnight. She was one of the producers of Out of the Doll's House, the prize-winning documentary series about the history of women in the twentieth century.
She designed and executive produced a thirteen part series on The French Revolution for the BBC and A&E. The series featured, among others, Alan Rickman, Alfred Molina, Janet Suzman, Simon Callow and Jim Broadbent and introduced both historian Simon Schama and playwright Peter Barnes to British television. She also produced music videos with Virgin Records and the London Chamber Orchestra to raise attention and funds for Unicef's Lebanese fund.
Leaving the BBC, she ran the trade association IPPA, which represented the interests of independent film and television producers and was once described by the Financial Times as "the most formidable lobbying organization in England."
In 1994, she returned to the United States where she worked on public affair campaigns in Massachusetts and with software companies trying to break into multimedia. She developed interactive multimedia products with Peter Lynch, Tom Peters, Standard & Poors and The Learning Company.
She then joined CMGI where she ran, bought and sold leading Internet businesses, serving as Chief Executive Officer for InfoMation Corporation, ZineZone Corporation and iCAST Corporation.
She was named one of the Internet's Top 100 by Silicon Alley Reporter in 1999, one of the Top 25 by Streaming Media magazine and one of the Top 100 Media Executives by The Hollywood Reporter. Her "Tear Down the Wall" campaign against AOL won the 2001 Silver SABRE award for public relations.
Her third book, Wilful Blindness (Simon&Schuster in the UK, Bloomsbury in the US, Doubleday in Canada) was a finalist for the Financial Times/Goldman Sachs Best Business Book award and, in 2014, the Financial Times named it one of its "best business books of the decade.” Her next book A Bigger Prize (Simon&Schuster in the UK, Public Affairs in the US and Doubleday in Canada) won the Transmission Prize. Her most recent book Beyond Measure : The Big Impact of Small Changes was published in 2015. Her TED talks have been seen by over 5 million people. She has been invited to speak at all of the world’s leading financial services businesses, the leading FTSE and S&P corporations as well as the world’s most successful sports teams. She continues to advise private and public businesses, to mentor senior and chief executives and to write for the Financial Times and Huffington Post.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
December 27, 2025
This book, which started out with some promise in the first chapter…was terrible.
It was largely a lot of complaining about how unfair life is because “the patriarchy”, but I lost it in the chapter that discussed “Bikini Industrial Complex”.
There is a section which describes one of the authors, who is a professional musician, teaching a class of young children to breathe correctly while singing because society has trained them that they must suck in their stomachs or by ostracized by…whoever.
Lady. I was a fairly serious musician in my youth and correct breathing has to be taught to everyone. People naturally breathe from their chests and have to taught the proper, and most advantageous, way to breathe for their instrument. I spent hundreds of hours doing breathing exercises for all of the years I marched drum corps. I promise I never got offended because my a MAN was telling me I had to expand my gut to get the best breath patterns for running while playing my horn.
Proper breathing has nothing to do with the “Bikini Industrial Complex” and as a professional musician, she should know better. The book and their “points” lost all credibility after that section and it quickly turned into a whine-fest. You want to know why men run the world? Women complain too much. Suck it up, ladies. Not everyone is out to get you.
It was largely a lot of complaining about how unfair life is because “the patriarchy”, but I lost it in the chapter that discussed “Bikini Industrial Complex”.
There is a section which describes one of the authors, who is a professional musician, teaching a class of young children to breathe correctly while singing because society has trained them that they must suck in their stomachs or by ostracized by…whoever.
Lady. I was a fairly serious musician in my youth and correct breathing has to be taught to everyone. People naturally breathe from their chests and have to taught the proper, and most advantageous, way to breathe for their instrument. I spent hundreds of hours doing breathing exercises for all of the years I marched drum corps. I promise I never got offended because my a MAN was telling me I had to expand my gut to get the best breath patterns for running while playing my horn.
Proper breathing has nothing to do with the “Bikini Industrial Complex” and as a professional musician, she should know better. The book and their “points” lost all credibility after that section and it quickly turned into a whine-fest. You want to know why men run the world? Women complain too much. Suck it up, ladies. Not everyone is out to get you.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 9, 2020
A lot of information in here resonated with me and it's a topic I'm very interested in. That said, at 15 years old, this book already feels dated. I did object to the author referring to women who leave the traditional work force as "opting out" and seem to imply that they are quitters. She doesn't present much beyond a choice between "suck it up" and deal with toxic work culture or "opt out". There are many examples of women leaving and going on to more success on their own -- but maybe this has become more evident in the years since the book was published.
May 19, 2019
Margaret Heffernan is awesome. While this book is targeted to women, it is equally valuable to men. Margaret has years of experience and a unique insight into business and forming great teams. This book provides a valuable look into the struggles that women face in the business environment. It identifies the biases that women face and the roles they are often forced in to.
January 15, 2022
Not my favorite but interesting points.
February 17, 2008
A bit extremist feminist, but still has some great points about working women. I did disagree with the author on several points, for example how she believes that women should NOT take ANY maternity leave because there's nothing special about a newborn that would require its mother's daily care over someone else's. Also, she focuses on CEO or upper management level career paths for women which, let's face it, if you're already there why do you need a book like this? Still, it was somewhat inspirational, as I learned a lot of statistics about how women are paid less than men (especially in the UK, where I am now working - I cross-referenced this on salary.com, and it's true). But, at the same time, I think it is ideas like Heffernan's that are causing the decay of the modern family in favor of children who are drugged-up so parents don't have to give them attention and love, while still allowing them to boast that Little Johnny gets straight-A's since the Ritalin has "saved his life". Unlike Heffernan, I believe that families are more important than careers, but like Heffernan, I agree that I should not be paid less for the same job because I am a woman. I would actually recommend this book for a women's book club - it raises a lot of important modern issues for working women (and those who choose not to work!).
June 13, 2011
Dry, didactic, and slanted, this book left much to be desired. She could have used so many personal anecdotes and a more conversational voice to bring life to this mentor-style guide for modern professional women. Instead, it's filled with commands and abstractions that rubbed me the wrong way. (Not to mention the professional reader on the CDs is way too smooth and brings no personality to the text.)
However, I must admit that Heffernan did give me something valuable: the encouragement not to limit myself with society's traditional compartments and rules about what it takes to grow and thrive as a "professional" - to be more broad-minded and three-dimensional about using *all* my strengths (not just the traditionally business-oriented strengths) to achieve my goals. Such an approach turns my current stage of life (a time when I'm growing and learning a lot as a wife/mother/reader/friend/consumer) into an advantage rather than a disadvantage (b/c I'm not working fulltime as a marketer) - something I'm only too happy to do.
However, I must admit that Heffernan did give me something valuable: the encouragement not to limit myself with society's traditional compartments and rules about what it takes to grow and thrive as a "professional" - to be more broad-minded and three-dimensional about using *all* my strengths (not just the traditionally business-oriented strengths) to achieve my goals. Such an approach turns my current stage of life (a time when I'm growing and learning a lot as a wife/mother/reader/friend/consumer) into an advantage rather than a disadvantage (b/c I'm not working fulltime as a marketer) - something I'm only too happy to do.
July 13, 2012
I picked this up following a Women's Engineering Society Conference after a pretty lengthy debate about the why's and wherefore's of women trying to 'have it all'.
I now use this book as a reference for grounding my thoughts and ideas - I don't agree with everything she says, but I am able to make more informed choices/decisions and understand some of the issues I face day to day from a different perspective; probably something that I would not have done before!
I now use this book as a reference for grounding my thoughts and ideas - I don't agree with everything she says, but I am able to make more informed choices/decisions and understand some of the issues I face day to day from a different perspective; probably something that I would not have done before!
June 1, 2007
Not sure how I feel about this book. She has some great points and it's definitely empowering for women frustrated with the male dominated business world. Some of what she says gets very repetitive and she beats the horse of patriarchal system and the disenfranchisement of women a few times too many. Still, I learned a lot.
May 5, 2007
trenendously insightful collection of opinions on men and women in the workplace...confirmed much that i had already
experienced
experienced
October 12, 2008
this is a set of CDs but it is priceless for working mums
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews