It’s hard to ignore a book written by the COO of the company you work for, especially when you get a signed copy for free. Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg is a book about women in the workforce,  mixed with some lessons on careers and success in business. Here are my takeaways:

• When I don’t feel confident, one tactic I’ve learned is that it sometimes helps to fake it. After an hour of forced smiling, I often felt cheerful. One study found that when people assumed a high-power pose for just two minutes, their testosterone went up and their stress hormone levels went down.
• Opportunities are rarely offered, they’re seized.
• Success and likeability are positively correlated for men. A willingness to make an introduction or advocate for or promote someone depends upon having a positive feelings about that person. We want to work with people who are like us.
• Mark Zuckerberg told me that my desire to be liked by everyone would hold me back. He said that when you want to change things, you can’t please everyone. If you do please everyone, you aren’t making enough progress.
• As of 2010, the average american had eleven jobs from the ages of eighteen to forty-six.
• Eric Schmidt explained that only one criterion mattered when picking a job — fast growth. When companies grow quickly, there are more things to do than there are people to do them. “If you’re offered a seat on a rocket ship, you don’t ask what seat. You just get on.”
• The cost of stability is often diminished opportunities for growth. Where risks were great, the potential rewards are even greater.
• Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence.

Reading this book for business lessons was like searching for a needle in a haystack.