If You're Curious About These Questions...
You should listen to this audiobook
- Have you ever wondered why the goal of 'having it all' feels so out of reach, and what the secret is to finally making it work?
- What if you could redesign your professional life to thrive because of your family commitments, rather than in spite of them?
- Are you curious about how a simple shift in our cultural values could unlock a new level of success for both men and women?
Listen to Unfinished Business — Free Audiobook
Loading player...
Key Takeaways from Unfinished Business
- Discover why simply 'leaning in' to your career isn't enough for working mothers, and how even progressive marriages often revert to traditional gender roles once children arrive.
- Understand the hidden struggles men face when seeking a work-life balance, including the unfair professional stigmas attached to fathers who choose to stay home.
- Learn how inflexible workplaces burden mothers with irrational expectations of perfection, resulting in a wage penalty where married moms earn significantly less than single women and men.
- Recognize the dangers of striving to be 'Superwoman' and see how overworking out of guilt actually destroys your productivity, focus, and creativity.
- Find out why taking time off to provide care for dependents places professionals at a severe disadvantage in the job market, often permanently derailing promising careers.
Learning Tools
Reinforce what you learned from Unfinished Business
Mind Map
Unfinished Business
The Gendered Burden of Family
Traditional Roles Persist
The Limits of 'Leaning In'
Unequal Partnerships
The Male Struggle and Stigma
End-of-Life Regrets
Social Stigma
Myth of Maternal Primacy
Workplace Failures and Penalties
Lack of Accommodation
The Motherhood Wage Gap
Caregiving Disadvantages
Overcoming Internal Stereotypes
Self-Fulfilling Prophecies
Gatekeeping Partners
Dropping the Superwoman Image
Driving Cultural and Systemic Change
Changing the Narrative
Strategic Career Planning
Advocating at Work
Redefining Success
Quiz — Test Your Understanding
Question 1 of 7
Why does the author argue that Sheryl Sandberg's 'lean in' philosophy is insufficient for many working mothers?
Unfinished Business — Full Chapter Overview
Chapter 1: Recommendation
Chapter 2: Even today, women usually end up sacrificing career ambitions to care for their families at home.
Chapter 3: Fathers’ presence is invaluable, yet spending more time with their family often still carries a steep cost for men.
Chapter 4: Instead of supporting working mothers, society saddles them with unreasonable expectations.
Chapter 5: Anyone who has to care for others will indeed face several serious disadvantages.
Chapter 6: The first step toward gender equality is letting go of your own ingrained stereotypes.
Chapter 7: Change how you act and react to effectively improve the situation of working mothers right now.
Unfinished Business Summary & Overview
Unfinished Business (2015) offers a frank analysis of a pressing question. Is it really possible for men and women to “have it all” in our modern society? Can we hope to have a great family life and great career? As these blinks reveal, striking a balance between the personal and the professional isn’t only possible; it’s easier than you might think.
Who Should Listen to Unfinished Business?
- Women who want to have a successful career and a happy family
- CEOs who want to provide a mother-friendly workplace
- Men hoping to learn more about what equal romantic partnership means
Books Similar to Unfinished Business
Readers who enjoyed this also liked these titles.
#Upcycle Your Job
★ 4.2 / 5 • 47 ratingsThe Smart Way to Balance Family Life and Career
Lean In
★ 4.1 / 5 • 266 ratingsWomen, Work, and the Will to Lead
The Unspoken Truths for Career Success
★ 3.9 / 5 • 12 ratingsWhat You Never Learned about Navigating Pay, Promotions and Politics in the Workplace
This Isn't Working
★ 0.0 / 5 • 0 ratingsHow Women Can Overcome Stress and Overload to Find Success