The Confidence Code: The Science and Art of Self-Assurance—What Women Should Know
$19.22
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New York Times Bestseller
Following the success of Lean In and Why Women Should Rule the World, the authors of the bestselling Womenomics provide an informative and practical guide to understanding the importance of confidence—and learning how to achieve it—for women of all ages and at all stages of their career.
Working women today are better educated and more well qualified than ever before. Yet men still predominate in the corporate world. In The Confidence Code, Claire Shipman and Katty Kay argue that the key reason is confidence.
Combining cutting-edge research in genetics, gender, behavior, and cognition—with examples from their own lives and those of other successful women in politics, media, and business—Kay and Shipman go beyond admonishing women to “lean in.”Instead, they offer the inspiration and practical advice women need to close the gap and achieve the careers they want and deserve.
Publisher : Harper Business
Publication date : April 15, 2014
Edition : 1st
Language : English
Print length : 256 pages
ISBN-10 : 006223062X
ISBN-13 : 978-0062230621
Item Weight : 14.4 ounces
Dimensions : 6 x 0.89 x 9 inches
13 reviews for The Confidence Code: The Science and Art of Self-Assurance—What Women Should Know
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$19.22
Mark –
Daughter loves this book. Powerful!!
The Confidence Code is a quick, practical read on building real confidenceâespecially for women. It was recommended for me to purchase for my daughter. It mixes science, stories, and advice to help you stop overthinking and start doing. If you want to stop second-guessing yourself and go for more, this bookâs worth picking up. Highly recommend.
Tatiana –
Confidence
Good
Desirea M –
Good book
I kept seeing this book written on note pads around my house, so I purchased it as a gift
Lynne M. Spreen –
Confidence Is a Choice
The Confidence Code by Claire Shipman and Katty Kay is a wonderful book. It’s funny (Katty Kay learning to kiteboard), relatable (stellar international leaders Christine Lagarde and Angela Merkel comforting each other when male politicians beat up on them), and easy to read. Well researched, the book contains pages of helpful information, not only to understand why we as a gender tend to lag in confidence but also what to do about it. (Although the book would be good resource for any adult who lacks confidence, it’s aimed at women.)Apart from making you feel good, why is confidence important? According to the authors, …”there is evidence that confidence is more important than ability when it comes to getting ahead,” on the job and in life generally. Good compensation, happiness, and professional fulfillment may depend on confidence. Not born confident? Don’t worry. “The newest research shows that we can literally change our brains (to make us) more confidence prone.”There’s a lot of wisdom in the Confidence Code. One nugget is this: “Most people believe they need to criticize themselves in order to find motivation to reach their goals. In fact, when you constantly criticize yourself, you become depressed, and depression is not a motivational mindset.” Also, “…Of all the warped things that women do to themselves to undermine their confidence, we found the pursuit of perfection to be the most crippling…you’ll inevitably and routinely feel inadequate.”But most of us are perfectionists. How do we overcome these behaviors?To get answers, Shipman and Kay interview and cite many thoughtful and engaging experts, who are quoted throughout the book, but the short course is this: Stop overthinking everything. Have courage, take action, congratulate yourself for trying regardless of outcome, and move on. Engage in self-compassion. Practice / do the work. Mastery in one thing spills over into other areas. Meditation can shrink your amygdalae (the region of the brain that amps up fear) and stimulate your prefrontal cortex (the calm, rational area). If that’s too much work, concentrate on how you present yourself physically. Practice power positions. Spread out. Take up space. Keep your chin raised. Don’t use “upspeak” (i.e. sound like a Valley Girl when you talk).There’s so much more, but here’s the thing I want you to remember: the development of confidence is volitional – a choice. Or as Shipman and Kay put it: “Our biggest and perhaps most encouraging discovery has been that confidence is something we can, to a significant extent, control.” What an important life skill for women of all ages to learn, and to teach their daughters and granddaughters.
Bpollen –
It’s not a total waste, but not very helpful
I’m suspicious of some of the five star reviews of this book. If you check out their total reviews, for many this is their only review, and for others, they have just 2 or 3 reviews, all 5 star. And they gush a bit too much about this book. I’m having difficulty getting through this book because it’s boring. It’s mainly stories about wealthy, highly educated women, or celebrities, who expressed at some point that they felt lucky or unworthy, etc. There are other things in the book, and it is enlightening in some respects. But it’s not geared toward helpful advice for the average woman. I agree with the several other reviews for this book that say much the same thing as I am saying. It’s not a total waste of money, and if the stats apply to you, you may find it more applicable to yourself.I did find one thing in the book that I am using, which is that women apologize all the time, whether it’s justified or not. I’ve noticed that I do the same, so am trying to alter this. The response has not been great. The problem is, and perhaps the reason why, women appear to lack confidence and apologize, is because the response when they don’t do that is not good. The goal is to get certain things, whether it’s a job or a raise or congeniality in the office. I believe that women have learned how to win the end game through experience, and that experience has shown that the best way to do this is to APPEAR more subserviant and pleasant than you are. I saw a documentary once about how girl toddlers & boy toddlers are treated differently, and wondered why girls cry more than boys. You could see in the test that when girl toddlers cried in a child pen area, they got picked up more often than the boys did when they cried. So the girls learned that to cry is to get the result desired, and boys learned that crying did them no good. So the accomplished women in this book, for all their assertions that they attribute their success to luck or whatever, actually did achieve what they wanted, using precisely the things that this book is saying not to use.Maybe the book changes a bit in the second half. If so, I’ll update this review. Don’t get me wrong…it’s interesting. Just not a practical guide for the average American woman.
Kay Qube –
Phenomenal!
I read this as a black man working at big tech and trying to understand my place in this new world. A mentor recommended it, and, at first, I wondered what a book by women for women could help me with towards building my confidence. But I could see myself in almost every page. I’m already pretty high on authenticity, and I need to practice thinking less and taking more action! Highly recommend reading it ð
Niko –
A Must-Read for Instilling Confidence in Future Generations
As an expectant father, Iâve been considering how to nurture confidence in my soon-to-arrive daughter. I stumbled upon The Confidence Code and found it to be both insightful and practical.The authors provide compelling examples of the challenges women face that can erode their confidence, ranging from societal expectations to workplace biases. However, they don’t leave the reader feeling discouraged. Instead, the book offers practical solutions and a hopeful yet realistic perspective on building resilience.The personal stories and scientific research interwoven throughout make this a highly relatable and informative read.Highly recommended for those looking to empower the next generation!
â.Ëâ® Supreme Deity ® â®Ë.â –
A lot of Research
You can tell that the women who wrote this book were extremely passionate about breaking down the barriers of confidence and whatâs used define it.
Izabela –
Greatly written book supported by research and scientific data, taking into account from various angles of women confidence.Iâd say must read for all women – even the confident ones.
Andrea Riestra Gonzalez –
The quality of the book is as expected.
Natalie –
I highly recommend this book to all professional women!
Colleen Dsouza –
The book is a great read and highly recommended to all women!It was sad that a dealer like Crossword sent me copies that had bad covers. These books were intended as gifts and due to paucity of time had to be given to the recipients (with some embarrassment). Would have been a delighted customer but for this lapse.
Patrice Laslett –
An entertaining and easy read yet this book has much to offer all women who hold back or who think being perfect is the solution to all aspirations.