The Latest Insights from Leading NOW

Career advice received by women covers only 2/3 of the success equation in business. This Missing 33%® has serious implications for a woman’s chances of being seen as high potential, receiving promotions to senior positions, receiving optimal benefits from mentoring relationships and nurturing the next generation of women leaders.

There's a not-so-little hidden secret that women aren't being told about career success. It's a rarely discussed element that holds women back... or propels them ahead. It's one element on which they are consistently rated as under-performing their male counterparts. It is one element missing from (or under-taught in) most organizations' leadership development programs - and frequently totally absent from the activities of women's networks, affinity groups or leadership forums. This one element is the vital missing piece of the success equation for women. I call it The Missing 33%®. It is business savvy with all its related skills and knowledge.

Riding toward our campsite at the head of the Gardiner River in Yellowstone National Park, Vickie points across a valley to the top of a hill. "There’s a Grizzly up there," she says.

A few years ago I sat down with an executive coaching client (let's call her Jeanne) who was a new Director of HR. As we discussed her leadership goals and challenges, Jeanne told this story, "Last week my COO walked into my office and said, 'I've had it with George. I want him fired. Make it happen.'" Jeanne went on, "I wasn't comfortable with the demand, but because the COO is my primary customer, I went ahead and did what he wanted."

You've probably heard the saying, "You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink." In other words, a horse that's led to water will drink only if it's thirsty. While we might be able to guilt a person who isn't thirsty into taking a drink, this saying does hold an important leadership lesson for women. It's this: as a leader we can clearly point someone in the direction of success, performance or achievement, but in the end, the person must be thirsty for success, performance or achievement or no action is taken.

A while ago, as I worked in my home office, a small herd of young deer came over the stone walls. Two entered the yard. A nibble from the ground here, a nibble from the ground there. Delicate steps, ear-twisting listening, noses seeking the scent of danger. Zip, gone a few tips of lily leaves, a few hydrangea leaves, a few rose leaves. After they left, there was no sign that they had been here. No bare spot of grass, no absent frond of lily leaves, no stripped branch of hydrangea or rose. I was struck by how carefully they steward the land from which they take their sustenance - a lesson I try to live daily as I seek to simplify the material part of life.

Christine walked into her coaching session and before she even sat down she said, “I’m very nervous about a conversation I have to have with Jack who is constantly making disparaging comments about his co-workers.”

Fashionistas would have women believe that what we wear, the accessories we use and how we look are keys to executive presence. Why? Because that’s how they sell products - and most of us know by now that women make or influence 85% of all consumer purchases. But in the context of executive presence, this emphasis on personal appearance can lead women astray. Appearance isn’t the same as executive presence. Presentation skills aren’t the sole factor in executive presence. And, further, executive presence is different from personal presence. So what aren't women being told about executive presence.

I recently read a book in which the author claims that changing a culture is like turning an aircraft carrier. I frankly think his simile totally misses the mark. For starters, an aircraft carrier is quite nimble for its size and turning it is actually quite simple. The Junior Officer of the Deck (JOOD) gives orders to the helmsman (who controls the rudder) about the direction of the turn and to the lee helmsman (who controls the engines) about the speed of the turn.

In the quiet of a Sunday afternoon, I savor the book descriptions in my Bas Bleu catalog. One title in particular jumps off the page. Sprezzatura: Fifty Ways Italian Genius Shaped the World.