Speak Up, Be Independent, Mentor Women: Jill Biden on White House Lessons
Her silence was heard around the world.
Immediately following the infamous June 27, 2024 presidential debate between Democratic candidate Joe Biden and Republican candidate Donald Trump, the expectation was First Lady Jill Biden would publicly express her concern for her husband’s verbal stumbling, confusion and apparent incapacity.
But she only told her husband her thoughts privately and stayed mum publicly. When he waked off the Atlanta stage after the failed debate, he whispered to Jill, "I really f—cked up, didn’t I, Jill?"
Jill Biden, now 75, says she responded to him, "Yes, you did, Joe."
I’d wanted to go to Greece for years.
So when my friend Jamia Wilson invited me to a writer’s retreat she was co-facilitating with Narrative Healing founder Lisa Weinert on the beautiful island of Kythera, I enthusiastically signed up.
Picture this: you're in a room filled with the most audacious, brilliant, and bold women in leadership.
The energy is electric. The conversations are real. And the voices on that stage are about to change everything.
That's exactly what's waiting for you at Power Up 2026: Audacity Leadership in Action. This August 25–26 in Washington, D.C., you'll get to experience:
Margaret Atwood: Live & In Person A once-in-a-lifetime moment. One of the most iconic and powerful voices of our generation taking the keynote stage. This is the kind of moment people talk about for years.
Panels & Sessions Built For Right Now Real conversations. Real strategies. Women who have broken barriers and are ready to share exactly how they did it. Walk away with tools, insights, and a new way of leading that you can put into action immediately.
The BETTY Concert Because powerful women also know how to celebrate. End the evening surrounded by women just like you energized, inspired, and ready for what's next.
Connection That Goes Beyond The Weekend The women you will meet in that room will become your collaborators, your champions, and your community. This is the network you have been looking for.
Do not miss the chance to be part of something truly extraordinary. Seats are filling fast and this is one experience you do not want to look back on wishing you had attended. The audacity to show up for yourself starts with one decision.
"You've got more power than you think you have, but to use what you've got, you first have to know what you've got."
That insight sits at the heart of Take The Lead's Power Tool #3 -- and Elisabeth Ness, 2025 Power Tool Champion for Power Tool #3 -- Use What You've Got, built her leadership on it. She didn't wait for more resources, more authority, or more recognition. She started with what was already there.
The Cost of Women's Empathy: Talk Is Not Cheap
A new study of 350 women in managerial roles in U.S, by MIT's Sloan School of Management shows; 81.6% told us they spend at least 30% of their workweek on caring tasks, such as listening to colleagues’ anxieties, offering encouragement, or monitoring how people around them are feeling. That’s more than a business day’s worth of work in a five-day week. Increasingly, such work is no longer incidental. It’s becoming part of how organizations function."
Take The Lead prepares, develops, inspires, and propels all women of all diversities and intersectionalities to take their fair and equal share of leadership positions across all sectors. Learn more at www.taketheleadwomen.com.
