Sharpen Your Heels: Mrs. Moneypenny's Career Advice for Women [Hardcover]

Mrs. Moneypenny (Author), Heather McGregor (Author)

Book Description

Release date: February 2, 2012

Star Financial Times columnist Mrs. Moneypenny says the smartest thing women can do for their careers is to stop trying to “have it all” – time is scarce and you can’t excel both at work and at home, so stop feeling guilty already! Instead, she shows you how to figure out what you want, make your choices and own them in her latest book, Sharpen Your Heels: Mrs. Moneypenny's Career Advice For Women.

As a successful business owner and mother of three, Mrs. Moneypenny knows her stuff and takes her responsibility to help other women very seriously. She draws from her own career and from her circle of “superwomen” to tackle the realities of being a career woman – even if it means doing paperwork in the loo.

Among the essentials:

-How to say NO – even to those you love – but also how to not take “no” for an answer when it comes to your priorities.

-How to effectively network with men who do their socializing while hitting the links.   

-How to stop trying to achieve the mythical work-life balance. Your work is part of your life – so figure out how you can integrate family and work commitments.

Whether you're just starting out or a rung from the top, whether you're a store manager or a CEO, let Mrs. Moneypenny be your ultimate mentor - and guide you to success.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“I read Mrs. Moneypenny‘s Sharpen Your Heels expecting a book-length serving of the wit and honesty readers know and love from her Financial Times column. And I wasn’t disappointed. This wisdom-filled guide obliterates the myth that women can ‘have it all,’ and in the process does the invaluable service of redefining success and happiness for everyone.”

—Arianna Huffington, president and editor in chief of the Huffington Post Media Group

 

“Mrs. Moneypenny’s advice is tough but spot on. Aim for the top. Jettison guilt. Outsource like a madwoman. Success requires sharp heels—and a sharp mind—but if you’re willing to work hard, it is absolutely there for the taking.”

—Laura Vanderkam , author of All the Money in the World and 168 Hours

 

“Sharpen Your Heels is an easy and critical read. If you want to reach the top there’s no better way than following the example and lessons of those who have gotten there before you. Take Mrs. Moneypenny’s advice straight to the top!”

—Barbara Corcoran, star of ABC’s Shark Tank; founder of The Corcoran Group

 

“Mrs. Moneypenny covers the career basics and more. As a mother, sister, aunt, manager and friend this is a book I’ll recommend to all the women I care about.”

—Maryanne B. Rainone, senior vice president and managing director, Heyman Associates

 

“Sharpen Your Heels is such a clever and insightful read, I found myself (momentarily) wishing I were a woman so I could follow my friend Mrs. Moneypenny’s sage advice and use her and her circle of power women as examples while I climbed the corporate ladder.”

—Ali Velshi , CNN anchor and chief business correspondent

 

“Straightforward, to the point, idealistic and pragmatic: wonderful woman.”

—Cristiana Falcone, World Economic Forum

 

“Sharpen Your Heels is filled with up-to-date strategies and practical tips to propel your career to the next level—regardless of your age or current position.”

—Jill Konrath , author of SNAP Selling and Selling to Big Companies

About the Author

For twelve years Mrs. Moneypenny has been entertaining readers of the Financial Times with her views on everything from Wellington boots to waxing. She runs her own business while juggling a golf-obsessed husband and three children, whom she lovingly refers to as Cost Centers 1, 2 and 3. Her one-woman show has run at the Edinburgh Fringe, off Broadway and at the Hay Festival.

Dr. Heather McGregor is a leading London headhunter who owns and runs Taylor Bennett, an executive search firm. She also teaches from time to time at the Cass Business School and the London Business School, and chairs Career Academies UK, an educational charity.

Strangely, no one has ever seen Mrs. Moneypenny and Dr. McGregor in the same place at the same time.

Visit www.MrsMoneypenny.com

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Portfolio Hardcover (February 2, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 9781591844662
• ISBN-13: 978-1591844662
• ASIN: 1591844665
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #444,971 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars For Most of History, "Anonymous" Was a Woman. February 8, 2012

By AdamSmythe

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is being written from the perspective of someone who has worked with women, for women, and (later in life) as an employer of women, some of whom became very successful in their careers and some of whom had a more difficult time climbing the proverbial ladder of success. As I will describe in a moment, the advice is fascinating, and I recommend this book for professional and career women of all ages.

The authors are "Mrs. Moneypenny with Heather McGregor." Mrs. Moneypenny (not to be confused with Miss Moneypenny, the secretary for James Bond's boss, M) is the pseudonym used by a Financial Times columnist who has written on women's topics for 12 years. She runs her own successful business, is married and has three children. McGregor is a leading London headhunter, has three academic degrees, teaches from time to time at the prestigious London Business School and the Cass Business School, and chairs Career Academies UK, an educational charity. Importantly, nobody has ever seen Mrs. Moneypenny and Dr. McGregor at the same place at the same time. In short, we have a very well qualified and successful author.

This book is well written, easy to read, and incorporates a no-nonsense approach that the reader will likely find to be effective and even inspiring. It is substantive, yet you will likely find it hard to put down. It makes use of many years of the author's observations and experience. With a few of clarifying comments here and there, here's how the main part of the book is organized:

1. What You Know. Qualifications matter, because they give you confidence, act as an independent testimony to your capabilities, and provide you with important links to others.

2. Who You Know. The author wrote her PhD thesis on the concept of "social capital."

3. It Is Never Too Late. I loved this chapter. As the author explains, far too many women give up on their ambitions for the stated reason that "it is too late." Truth be told, it's seldom too late.

4. Just Say No. To get a feel for the author's style, here's how she begins this chapter: "No! Say it. Say it again. Say it out loud. There, see? It's not that difficult, is it?"

5. You Can't Have It All. Perhaps the most important chapter in the book, according to the author. I won't spoil what she has to say.

6. ...But You Have To Do It All. This chapter is specifically for working women with children and women with other responsibilities.

7. Financial Literacy. This was my favorite chapter (I'm an economist). Basically, if you want to become successful in business, you need to be able to speak the language of finance.

8. The Third Dimension. Mrs. Moneypenny tells you that it's not enough to be good at your job and run your home life well. You need a "third dimension" (from a number of alternatives) to round out your effectiveness.

9. Doing Your Own PR. Virginia Woolf once said, "For most of history `Anonymous' was a woman." You need to spend about 5 percent of your time doing your own PR, and you need to understand the most effective techniques.

10. You Can't Do It Alone. The author tells young women that there is no such sentence as, "I can't do it." Rather, the real sentence is, "I can't do it alone." There's good advice here for working with others to improve your effectiveness.

At the end of each chapter there is a "homework" section that helps readers summarize the chapter and organize their activities. I will end with Mrs. Moneypenny's closing advice: "A final word to all the ambitious women who will read this book. When you get to the top--and if you follow my advice, you will do so--remember to turn around and reach back to help the generation of women behind you. As Madeleine Albright once said, `There is a special place in hell for women who don't help other women.'"

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Recommend for all career minded, ambitious women February 25, 2013

By LLane

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

If you just exist at your job, you do what is asked and you are physically present 8-5 but you wonder why after having done everything that is asked or expected, you are not being promoted or rewarded, then this book is definitely for you.

I recommend this to all women. These are best practices that are as important as your job. In today's business world, being good at your work is not good enough, you are playing a game and you need to be good at every aspect of your game. This book will definitely add to your basket of skills and help you make the leap from ordinary to "How did she know to do that" or "How did she do it, I wish I knew"
Buy it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Five-star careers advice for women ... and men July 4, 2012

By Karen Triggs

Format:Hardcover

This marvelous careers advice book is aimed at women (it says so in the title of course!) but if you are a man - or if you know a man - who is standing at the bottom of the greasy pole looking up, or stalled, clinging on at the halfway mark, then recommend him this. Maybe advise him to buy the Kindle edition, so no-one will see he's reading it - after all, as Mrs Moneypenny points out, image is important. She herself, she reports, is often seen carrying a copy of the London Financial Times rolled under her arm, thus demonstrating she is a business-like person.

I feel slightly ashamed to admit I'm not a regular reader of the Financial Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Economist or any other high end financial paper. Neither do I work for a bank or possess a degree in accounting (Mrs Moneypenny is currently studying for one and somewhat regrets she didn't do this earlier in life but personally, I couldn't imagine a duller way to spend my time). I haven't attended the World Economic Forum in Switzerland (as yet) or ever been invited to a game shooting party at an English country house, both of which Mrs Moneypenny recommends as a fine means to improve one's network of contacts and oil the wheels of business. Nonetheless, I rather enjoyed reading about this high-flying, megabucks world, which is testament to Mrs Moneypenny's humorous style, so finely honed over a number of years in her Financial Times column of the same name.

Although Mrs Moneypenny clearly intends, at one level, for her advice for to be taken literally - attend the best university you possibly can, study finance, network with the right people, hire a great nanny, sit on the board of a charity and so on - it was the principle of the thing that I really took away: plan ahead, work hard, seek out opportunities, grow some cojones, help others and (some of them) may later help you. In this respect the book has something for you whether you are a elementary school teacher aspiring to become a vice-principal, a newly-qualified nurse-practitioner looking for your first higher-level prescribing position, an optician studying sports science at night in the hope of becoming a personal trainer, or a mom of toddlers working very part-time whilst looking to the future. Did you guess it? Yes, these ladies are all real people, my friends, and I shall be recommending this book to all of them.

And if your goal is to become a fully paid-up member of the corporate elite or to advise an ambitious, clever but not-very-socially-well-connected girl on how to become one (and by this I mean that Poppa can't fix her up the right internships), then this book is also for you. Although I think they probably broke the mould after they made Mrs Moneypenny, her advice on how to reach the dizzy heights of blue-chip CEO is solid gold, as well it should be given that, in real life, she runs a recruitment firm.

Do I plan to take up game shooting as a result of reading this book? Probably not. But I'm having a very hard think about what the equivalent activity is for my own industry.