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In an interview with Ric Bratton on the YouTube channel This Week in America, Fujii candidly revealed she wrote this book because she wished she’d had access to one like it when she began her career. Using her personal experience as an ambitious woman in a male-dominated field, this advice book for women is an honest study of what to expect in the work environment. The author tackles subjects such as balancing work and family, dealing with pre-conceived notions and stereotypes, presenting a strong and appropriate business presence, and using awareness of the differences in how men and women utilize language to an advantage. Though written for the young woman just entering the workforce, there is much to glean from Fujii’s experience and wisdom for women of all ages who wish to improve their communication skills in all forms of leadership. Whether you are the leader of a huge corporation, a small civic group, or a family, you’ll find much of her advice to be poignant.
Born a third-generation Japanese American, the author credits much of her strength and work ethic to her parents. Her mother and father spent much of their childhood in a Japanese internment camp, yet they continued to be proud Americans. Fujii’s father—a creative man with talents in academics, sports, and art—served in the Korean War in telecommunications. With a degree in electrical engineering, he started his own company after the war. He also invented a way for computers to talk to one another which led to his company being bought by Control Data and his invention being used by many major corporations. It was her father’s influence which led Fujii to pursue a degree in electrical engineering, and after his death, she got her first job with Control Data.
This first job is where Fujii first encountered some of the typical attitudes about female executives in male-dominated professions. Young, bright, and successful, she had to negotiate the tricky waters of her field with the wisdom learned from her parents and her own determination to make it in the corporate world. The many things she learned along the way are presented in this short, easy-to-read book in which Fujii shares those hard-learned lessons with readers in hopes their paths to success will be a little easier to navigate. She believes in women helping women to achieve their goals, especially in fields where the rules aren’t readily comprehended. What may be an unspoken understanding of how things work between men who have run large businesses for years, isn’t as easy to discern for women entering this environment with its rules and mores intact. There’s no manual on how to easily fit into the network. Fortunately, Fujii offers that manual to women in this book.
Though one would think in the post-women’s movement world the blending of the sexes in the business atmosphere would be a non-issue, the thing about stereotypes and biased thinking is they don’t disappear because of non-discriminatory laws. That became very clear in the last year with the #metoo movement. It also seems unfair that women should have to consider every aspect of how they present themselves to the world in order to be taken seriously. But the world isn’t fair. Fujii’s suggestions on how to dress, how to make presentations, how to prepare for meetings, when and how to speak up, and how to make oneself valuable to the company are all valid suggestions. Most importantly, they leave room for each woman to carve out a business persona that stays true to who she is. It is an eye-opener to read anecdotes from one who has been in the trenches and discover there is a way to build a professional presence that recognizes one’s femininity and draws upon those strengths without alienating the male workforce. After all, in this kind of work environment, women are the minority, and learning to adapt and communicate effectively is certainly an advantage.
RECOMMENDED by the US Review