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Power Up  By  cover art

Power Up

By: Magdalena Yesil, Marc Benioff - foreword
Narrated by: Magdalena Yesil
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Publisher's summary

With empowering insights to help women navigate the narrowest corridors of sexism, tech-industry pioneer Magdalena Yesil shares on-the-ground career advice that is as powerful as any MBA Pioneering Silicon Valley entrepreneur and investor Magdalena Yesil came to the United States in 1976 with two suitcases and 43 dollars, blind to the challenges she would face as a woman and immigrant in Silicon Valley.

Today, she is best known as the first investor and a founding board member of Salesforce, the now-multibillion dollar company that ushered in the era of cloud-based computing.

In Power Up: How Smart Women Win in the New Economy, Yesil urges women to look beyond the alarming gender statistics of the workplace and feel confident entering tech or any field - but also to be prepared to deal with the challenges.

She shares what she experienced as a woman in Silicon Valley with surprising candor and heart, relying not just on her insight but that of more than a dozen top women entrepreneurs to offer pragmatic takeaways on topics such as:

  • Owning career choices while managing risk
  • Getting credit for your work
  • Managing sexual dynamics
  • Recruiting allies in the movement toward a supportive workplace for everyone

Pragmatic, incisive, and full of highly actionable advice, Yesil prepares ambitious women to break glass ceilings and rise to the top in the New Silicon Valley - and beyond.

©2017 Magdalena Yesil (P)2017 Hachette Audio

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Encouraging audiobook on moving forward positively

I am very thankful that Magdalena wrote (and narrated) Power Up.

Power Up is leadership/career literature. So inevitably you will find “gritty” solutions for overcoming obstacles :) (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing). But I did very much admire that the solutions were presented genuinely through Magdalena’s experiences and values.

This was personally valuable to me because I share similar experiences and values with Magdalena. I resonated with her stories about navigating the system, filial piety, needing an f* you attitude, and having a career that drives family, friends, and life itself (and not the other way around). Because of the parallels I could identify situations in my own life where I could draw from the experiences and values to resolve challenges sustainably and respectfully.

As a note, I’m probably not the target demographic. Haha, as a rank and file male I’m the opposite of Magdalena. Nevertheless, I picked up Power Up because I work at Salesforce and wanted to learn about it from a different walk of life, so that I can do better for my teammates.

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Spot-on career advice for women in tech

Self-made success and legendary woman in tech Magdalena Yesil writes a comprehensive and practical career guide for women (and men). One of the most satisfying audiobooks I've listened to in a long time - Power Up is a great read or listen for women interested in VC, entrepreneurship, and working in Silicon Valley.

Anecdotes and interviews are both illuminating and humorous. Not a dry career book or business bio! Magdalena Yesil's writing and narration is so natural you'll feel she's giving her spot-on career advice directly to you.

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Engaging, Inspiring, Powerful!

I was excited to pick up my next 'great' book. My purposeful research led me to "Power Up" by Magdalena Yesil, and having watched a few of her presentations and interviews where she generously shares hard-earned wisdom, I expected to learn quite a bit. Well, the book offered much more than that, I couldn't put it down. So glad that I opted for the audio version because by sharing her story and insights in her own voice, Magdalena made them even more inspiring, authentic, powerful!

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In Magdalena’s voice (on audible)

Magdalena’s PowerUp is a delightful combination of memoir and advice. People of all ages will enjoy it and benefit from the compelling advice.
It is particularly effective when it is read to you by the author herself-
Beth Stewart, CEO, Trewstar Corporate Board Services

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Insightful, fresh, and engaging

Magdalena knows her stuff as a long standing V.C. and Entrepeneur. This is a solid read for any ladies navigating male dominated industries that continue to be plagued by harassment, unfair wages, etc....I love her metaphor of water as a way to flow through difficult obstacles.

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Highly practical advice that transcends gender

In Power Up, the author shares blunt but pragmatic advice applicable to any professional-minded reader regardless of age, sector, or gender. I myself am a male reader and out of the technology space central to the 'new economy' but often found myself pausing to better absorb the nuggets of wisdom sprinkled throughout the book.  I think the advice maintains relevance due to a straightforward framework to fight bias, whether real or imagined, centering around a core belief about the value of self and work product.  (For the male readers hesitant to pick up the book, it also does not hurt to be a little more sensitive to challenges faced by women in the workforce).  

The advice itself shines through a well-narrated collection of stories that reveal a charismatic and personable character. That said, I found the listening speed most comfortable at 1.25x. Highly recommend.

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Must-read

I bought this book in hardcover, then wanted to read it more quickly so also bought the audio. Magdalena reads the book herself on the audio, which can give you a clue into the overall generosity of this work. While the print book already is so warm and personal, the audio makes it even more so. Now I’m going to go back to the hardcover to reread and mark passages that felt especially pertinent to me.

I’m an entrepreneur and often struggle with the sheer exhaustion of “doing it all” and making something from nothing. Magdalena’s book gave me many tools not only to pick myself up and keep going but to be even more skillful along the way. This is one of the best business books and wise “pep-talk” books I’ve read, and I’m recommending it to all my friends. I recommend it to you too.

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Inspiring and Relatable Read!

Where does Power Up rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Power Up is a very inspiring read of one woman's approach to working in a male dominated space. Magdalena's story as a female immigrant who moved to the Bay Area, is a very relatable story. Not only is it great to hear about challenges she faced throughout her career, both as a professional and a women, but also how she tackled them.

What other book might you compare Power Up to and why?

Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg is an inside peek to the life of a strong and intelligent women who seems to chart her own path on her own terms and encourages other woman to do the same. Amy Poehler's, Yes Please, is a different type of take on a smart and powerful woman building her own success (and of course it's hilarious).

Which scene was your favorite?

The depiction of one of the work conferences complete with female dancers and the author's response was pretty awesome. I also really liked the numerous insights of other accomplished female business woman and how they tackled common workplace challenges in their own careers such as balancing their careers, negotiating salary, proactively planning maternity leave, raising a family, etc.

If you could give Power Up a new subtitle, what would it be?

Be the Driving Force Behind Your Own Career.

Any additional comments?

Definitely worth the time and money to read this book!

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