As Good as Pumpkin spice: Signs of Rebirth and an Intentioning Bookalogue

Issue 181 — October 18, 2021

Dear Reader,

It made me as happy as a pumpkin spice cupcake to see this sign on the carousel in Central Park when I walked by it this week:

Sure, there are days when I think I can’t do one more zoom meeting or when an in-person event on the schedule turns virtual because people are still skittish about being in a group in close quarters, but all in all, in these beautiful pumpkin spice days of fall in New York, things are good and getting better. I AM INTENTIONING that you are having the same experience.

Many people have asked me about the word “Intentioning.” I confess that I made it up, because I couldn’t find the exact word to express what I wanted to say when I wrote my new book of that name. It turns the useful, even necessary, concept of intention into an active verb to signify that I’m talking about taking action on your intentions rather than merely thinking about them.

It’s been a minute since I’ve had a chance to be a guest on The Women’s Eye. And what a pleasure to be interviewed by Catherine Anaya on how we can be “Building Back Stronger Post-Pandemic.” Listen or watch here.

Now if you want to know the most anxiety producing thing I did this last week, or even if you don’t, I’m going to tell you because in the spirit of self-care I am rewarding myself for doing something that terrified me. I had recorded the book a few weeks ago. I listen to audiobooks myself more than I read the paper version now, and I prefer hearing it in the author’s voice. I enjoyed doing it. So that was the easy part for me. Much harder was downloading each chapter separately, making sure they had been labeled and produced correctly (I had to send a few back for fixes), and then uploading them one at a time to the right place in the right sequence on Amazon’s Audible platform which I hadn’t used before. Whew. If you too are an audiobook fan, watch this spot for a free sample chapter soon. Within two weeks, the book should be available on Audible and iTunes.

Looking a little bleary eyed after three days of recording but we got it done!

Thanks to Luminary, a most outstanding panel came together to discuss various topics within Intentioning’s covers. Curating panels is fun for me because it always involves people who are either in the book or otherwise have some connection to it. Let me just say that the female firepower in this room sparked an extraordinary conversation. Drew Dixon, a key protagonist in the documentary film “On the Record” sharing her story of sexual harassment and violence in the music industry, gave me a new insight by suggesting that sexual harassment is an often unacknowledged undertow setting women’s careers back as much as the proverbial glass ceiling.

Luminary founder Cate Luzio shared how she pivoted to rethink her New York based co-working space into a virtual community with no geographic boundaries and actually grew the business during that difficult time. Entrepreneur/investor Nathalie Molina Nino, who exemplifies Leadership Intentioning Tool #7 “Be unreasonable,” reminded me of one of her personal mantras, “You are source of your own supply.” I’ve so often quoted her. It gives me chills every time. We’ll share the video of this when it’s done.

You might have noticed that I made up another word in the title of this post: Bookalogue. That’s more or less what my Sum is this week. (And, a shameless plug: ask me to come speak to your company, organization, or book club here.)

Women in the biotech industry are doing their part too. So it was very exciting to keynote Delaware Bio’s Inspiring Women in STEM conference. The state has a vibrant biotechnology innovation sector that is serving all aspects of the industry, from pharmaceutical research and development to agriculture to medical and academic institutions.

Upcoming, and I’d love for you to join us whether you are a lawyer or not, for this fireside chat on Wednesday, October 20 at 12:30 EDT, with Shearman and Sterling’s Chief People Officer Geline Midouin.

Chief People Officer Geline Midouin.

The Shearman and Sterling law firm has been a tremendously valued partner in programs Take The Lead has delivered for women in law and I am honored that they are hosting this event. Find the invitation details and registration here.

Watch Take The Lead’s Law Webinar, hosted by Veronica Vargas Stidvent with panelists Emily Ramshaw, Lori Lorenzo, Jami Wintz McKeon, Patricia Refo, Sandra Phillips Rogers, and Scott Westfahl.

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Jennefer Witter
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917–532–9907

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Gloria Feldt
gloria@gloriafeldt.com
917–715–5107

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Take The Lead
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GLORIA FELDT is the Cofounder and President of Take The Lead, a motivational speaker and expert women’s leadership developer for companies that want to build gender balance, and a bestselling author of five books, most recently Intentioning: Sex, Power, Pandemics, and How Women Will Take The Lead for (Everyone’s) Good. Former President of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, she teaches “Women, Power, and Leadership” at Arizona State University and is a frequent media commentator. Learn more at www.gloriafeldt.com and www.taketheleadwomen.com. Tweet Gloria Feldt.