Dear Sheryl,

I hear you have a book coming out soon, something about us women needing to hit the accelerator and “lean in” even more than we are now. Apparently, you feel that we still have way more work to do and are offering advice. Your “movement” is getting a lot of praise and you have caught my attention. But before I read your book or commit more of my valuable time to your Lean In Circles, I am just dying to know a few things.

1. Do you have a full-time nanny, housekeeper and cook?

2. When you go home for dinner with your family, what time do you jump back on your computer to answer emails and do more work? How many hours a day do you work and is it more than 40?

3. Do your “handlers” help you through your day? Do you get help or even a little help from a personal assistant, executive assistant, stylist or personal shopper?

4. Do you really think its possible for all women to “lean in?”  What if a woman or has no help, is a single mother, has an un-supportive husband or suffers from a chronic illness?

5. Have you ever been worried about money and making ends meet, or lived paycheck to paycheck?

6. Don’t you think you are simply propelling the paradigm that power can only come from the top and women need to change the world in the same way as men?

7. Have you ever broke-down, hit bottom, felt over-worked and exhausted from all the leaning in and acceleration?

8. Have you ever cried at work? Have you ever hid in the bathroom and cried at home? Have you ever cried in public? Have you ever cried to your friends?

9. Do you think its possible that women can still “run the world” without being CEO’s of big companies?

10. Do you really believe you can lead a social movement, even though you point to our lack of confidence and self-sabotaging ways, which just makes us feel more shame and reminds us that we aren’t keeping up and have more “failures” to add to our ever growing list?

I am just wondering, so I thought I would ask is all. Maybe your book is not meant for me, as I am just a mother of one, with an average-income career, 2/3’s of a college degree, who struggles to keep up with the rush of The Bay Area and can openly admit that all the striving for a high level job that breaks the glass ceiling is not so alluring.

Well anyhow, good luck with your book launch and lean in circles, I can see you are passionate that is always nice to see.

Sincerely,
A Mother Trying to Do the Opposite of Leaning In