I worked for Gloria Feldt for a few years back in the 90s and always believed that if there was one woman who didn’t have a problem embracing power it was Gloria. She faced off Henry Hyde in the House of Representatives. She debated Bill O’Reilly on Fox. She cajoled. She intimidated. She persuaded. She yelled. Whatever it took to promote the cause. (As long as it was legal).
So imagine my surprise when I read No Excuses and learned that Gloria’s own assessment of her relationship to power is mixed. In the first few pages, she confesses that she failed to fully embrace her power during much of her life, and that she used what power she did have to help other women clarify their life purpose, rather than focusing on her own.
This particular line from the introduction resonated deeply with me: “It is this relationship with power—almost a spiritual factor, rarely acknowledged by the metrics or even the philosophers, which I’ve witnessed in myself and countless other women—that fascinated and propelled me to write this book. For until we understand and redefine our relationship with power we will stay stuck in our half-finished revolution.”
Wow. “Our half-finished revolution.” That feels so true it aches. So how do we move ahead? No Excuses suggests nine ways to do that, starting with understanding your own internalized barriers and ending with my favorite bit of advice, “Don’t follow your dream—lead it.” Throughout the nine chapters, each focused on a different technique for changing the way you think about power, Gloria Feldt offers stories of women, well-known and not, who faced the same challenges we face now. And if you like good quotations as much as I do, you’ll find a wealth of those in here too, scattered like bread crumbs helping you find your way.
In short, this is a great book that reads well, will get you thinking, and with a touch of grace, taking action. Highly recommended.