The Confident Woman: Learn the Rules of the Game [Hardcover]

Marjorie Hansen Shaevitz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 28, 1999

Marjorie Hansen Shaevitz, executive coach, lecturer, and therapist who has won national awards for her work in women's health, has the success some people only dream of: a prosperous professional life; a long, happy marriage; two Stanford-educated children; and a best-selling book, The Superwoman Syndrome, which coined a term for a generation of women. Despite all of her accomplishments, however, she struggled with the issue of confidence. After conducting extensive research, she found that she was far from alone: Many women are in the paradox of enjoying success in their business and personal lives while not having much confidence in themselves.        

Throughout her professional career, Shaevitz has helped scores of women find the power within themselves to unshackle, rescue, or recover their self- confidence. Using a series of seven steps, complete with techniques and questions, Shaevitz presents an accessible and proven program that helps women regain their confidence.         The Confident Woman focuses on the issues that women face in growing up as a girl and living as a woman in this society, offering the reader a more comprehensive approach to "filling the void within herself." The advice and information in this book are not limited to one age or stage of a woman's life: It is written for women of all ages, ending with an epilogue for mothers who want practical tips for raising confident daughters. Written in clear, concise prose and filled with anecdotes and humor, The Confident Woman focuses on what women say they want: practical advice that they can use now.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

If you have low self-confidence, it's difficult to imagine being self-assured. Marjorie Hansen Shaevitz knows this firsthand. She was 5'9" at age 11--taller than the other children and the teachers. She was date-raped in college, stalked, abused in relationships, and sexually harassed at work as a young adult. She was too embarrassed to tell anyone about any of this and assumed it was her fault. She kept trying to be "nicer"--which exacerbated the problems and her lack of confidence. As a married woman and mother, she put everyone else first--always.

Now a powerful, confident, and self-actualized woman, Shaevitz presents the steps you can take to empower yourself and create self-confidence. There's a ton of helpful material here: quotes, concepts, strategies, and questionnaires, all aimed at helping you figure out what you really want from life (work, home, relationships) and how to create the confidence to get yourself there. A nice touch at the end of each chapter is "the Break": a tip for some nice things you can do for yourself, like new flavors of tea, uplifting music, refreshing activities, relaxation alternatives, and book recommendations. This book will help you become a person

who has a strong sense of herself, who takes good care of herself, who solves her own problems, who competently handles life's challenges, who chooses to spend time with loving, supportive people, who reads and is well educated, who loves her work and yet takes time for herself.

--Joan Price

From Publishers Weekly

Unlike self-esteem, confidence can be cultivated by carefully defining one's identity, likes and dislikes; learning to focus and manage time; eliminating stress; learning to be assertive; and developing trust in one's instincts, according to Shaevitz. A therapist in Los Angeles associated with Stanford's Institute for Research on Women and Gender, she points to her own development as a case study. Her advice on developing confidence is thorough if unoriginal; in an effort to be entertaining, she also includes "Tea Breaks" at the end of each chapter, which contain a recipe, jokes or music suggestions. The appendixes on depression and abuse and her bibliography are quite solid. However well-researched and well-meaning the book may be, its somewhat staid view of women's concerns and its programmatic approach make it a cousin to an earlier generation of self-help books. Shaevitz studiedAand draws fromApsychological research and self-help literature from such highly respected sources as Martin Seligman, Herbert Benson, Harriet Lerner, Ken Pelletier and David Burns. The sections on improving time management and assertiveness and the variety of quizzes, how-to exercises and self-assessments aimed at clarifying identity are particularly well done. In its entirety, however, the book is behind the times and too long. Agent, Sandra Dijkstra. (Nov.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Harmony; 1st edition (December 28, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0609603523
• ISBN-13: 978-0609603529
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.5 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #521,808 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Marjorie Hansen Shaevitz is an award-winning author, speaker and professional counselor who has successfully helped scores of individuals select and gain admission to colleges throughout the country. Over the years, she has has worked with both public and private school students throughout the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Europe, Israel, and India. On a pro bono basis, she often counsels students from disadvantaged family backgrounds. Marjorie has worked for the Dean of Students Office at Stanford University, was Orientation Officer for the East West Center at the University of Hawaii and directed the Re-entry Program at the University of California, San Diego. Ms. Hansen Shaevitz is an active member of the National Association for College Admission Counseling. She is also a former member of the Stanford University National Parents Board and spent twelve years as a trustee for La Jolla Country Day School. Author of the best-selling books, The Confident Woman and The Superwoman Syndrome, she also co-authored So You Want to Go Back to School. Hansen Shaevitz's newest book is adMISSION POSSIBLE: Getting Into the College of Your Choice

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Go, Woman!, April 18, 2000

By 

Peggy Margaret (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Confident Woman: Learn the Rules of the Game (Hardcover)

I wish I had had this book when I was younger! There is so much helpful insight into why we women often lack confidence, and so much help on how to increase it -- and value it. The author is expert at sharing her own experiences in a manner that makes you feel like you're talking with a good friend, a friend who knows how to help you grow into all you can be. This really is a book for women at any stage in their lives, for those who feel they are confident as well as those who recognize they would like to increase their level of confidence. Go,Woman!

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars WHAT A BOOK!, January 7, 2000

By 

Dianne (Pacific Beach, California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Confident Woman: Learn the Rules of the Game (Hardcover)

I just finished reading The Confident Woman and I already want to pick it up and read it again! I'm ordering copies for my best friends as well as my two daughters-in-law. No matter where you are on the pendulum of confidence, this book is for you. I not only walked away feeling uplifted, more positive, and of course more CONFIDENT, but I am continually going back grabbing great ideas from those end of chapter "Be Good to Yourself Breaks" Thanks Marjorie. I needed this!

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thank you, Marjorie!, May 23, 2000

By 

"chuchohn" (Torrance, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Confident Woman: Learn the Rules of the Game (Hardcover)

As a woman re-entering the workforce after years of being a "stay-at-home-mom" I found this book to be invaluable. Not only was it insightful on a psychological level, but also fun to read as I explored the different areas the author has you examine about yourself. Personally and professionally, it provides a concrete roadmap for any woman wanting to be "confident" which, as Marjorie so brilliantly explains, is simply knowing yourself. I recommend this book to all wo men and particularly hope that young women will read and absorb it. Then maybe the next generation won't have to work so hard at becoming the confident women we should all be.