2023 has been a rough year for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) efforts. Of course, much of what has occurred is playing out in a politically divided environment where corporate diversity practices are the subject of frequent social media firestorms.

Today, many companies are striving to be more diverse and inclusive. Studies show that more than 70% of job seekers are looking to work for a company with a dedicated commitment to DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion).

However, most companies are still falling short. Why?

For the past 10 years, I have wanted to give a TED talk. If you're in the speaking biz, as I am, it's a real feather in your cap -- an achievement to be proud of. However, it is not easy to do as thousands of people apply to speak at TEDx events around the world each year.

In recent years, the focus on diversity, equity & inclusion (DEI) has become increasingly popular across every sector in the world -- corporate, not-for-profit, government, education, medicine, military, and even religion.

Today marks the start of Women's History Month -- a celebration of women’s contributions to history, culture, and society and has been observed annually in the month of March in the United States since 1987.

In each article or blog that I write, I promise to share my best insights with you on the broad - and important - topics of DEI, Bias, Leadership, Gender, and Emotional Intelligence (EQ).

In Winter 2021, I was asked by Diversity Woman Magazine to contribute to an article as a leadership and gender expert. The topic focused on women's superpowers. What they are and how they contribute to success.

Whether you are early in your career wanting to advance, in a senior role wanting to lead more effectively, or an entrepreneur wanting to build a business -- knowing your emotinal intelligence (EQ) is important.

Over 30 years ago, psychology professor Carol Dweck and her colleagues at Stanford became interested in the role of students' attitudes about failure. They noticed that some students rebounded while other students seemed devastated by even the smallest setbacks.

I recently read an article in the Harvard Business Review titled "Stop promoting incompetent leaders". It caught my eye because I often speak on leadership and gender and teach a course at UC Irvine called Women & Leadership.

Humility is the quality of being humble. Dictionary definitions accentuate humility as a low self-regard and sense of unworthiness. It's also defined as a modest or low view of one's own importance. This translates to low confidence, low value, and low self-esteem.

On this last day of Women's History Month, I thought it would be appropriate to write about women's leadership. I gave a keynote to 150 women this morning, and it always reminds me how much women have to offer.

As you may know, March 8 of each year is designated as International Women's Day (IWD). In fact, March is Women's History Month. What most people don't know is that the first gathering of IWD was in 1911 (111 year ago)!

I do a lot of speaking, consulting and teaching on DEI-related topics, such as how to overcome hidden biases, how to create cultures that are more inclusive, and how to address the leadership gender gap.

As a gender expert, I spend nearly all my time speaking, teaching and writing on gender-related topics. These topics include the impact of gender on leadership, career advancement, emotional intelligence, biases, gender roles, and gender perceptions.

As speaker, author, consultant, and professor, my expertise centers on the broad topics of leadership, gender, emotional intelligence, hidden bias, and diversity & inclusion.

Have you ever been part of your manager’s in-group? When have you been in the out-group? What impact did it have on you?

I pose this question to my audiences every time I speak. I ask, “How many of you think men are more emotionally intelligent than women?” Usually, 10% of the room or less raise their hands – and sometimes no hands go up with lots of giggles.

In my last post, I discussed the socialization of boys and men, and how it relates to sexual harassment and the #MeToo movement. In this post, I discuss the concept of the Bro Code which is part of the male socialization process.

Why have there been dozens and dozens of men accused of sexual harassment? Why has sexual misconduct continued for decades, despite corporate sexual harassment training and law suits? Why aren’t more men held accountable for their actions?