Overview

Be nice, but not too nice. Be successful, but not too successful. Just be likeable. Whatever that means Women are stuck in an impossible bind. At work, strong women are criticized for being cold, and warm women are seen as pushovers. An award-winning journalist examines this fundamental paradox and empowers readers to let go of old rules and reimagine leadership rather than reinventing themselves. Consider that even competent women must appear likeable to successfully negotiate a salary, ask for a promotion, or take credit for a job well done—and that studies show these actions usually make them less likeable. And this minefield is doubly loaded when likeability intersects with race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and parental status. Relying on extensive research and interviews, and carefully examined personal experience, The Likeability Trap delivers an essential examination of the pressure put on women to be amiable at work, home, and in the public sphere, and explores the price women pay for internalizing those demands. Rather than advising readers to make themselves likeable, Menendez empowers them to examine how they perceive themselves and others and explores how the concept of likeability is riddled with cultural biases. Our demands for likeability, she argues, hinder everyone’s progress and power. Inspiring, thoughtful and often funny, The Likeability Trap proposes surprising, practical solutions for confronting the cultural patterns holding us back, encourages us to value unique talents and styles instead of muting them, and to remember that while likeability is part of the game, it will not break you.

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9780062838766

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Menendez, a journalist and the cohost of PBS's Amanpour and Company, issues a friend-to-friend wake-up call for pathological approval seekers. . . . The description of the problem is perfect . . . . the chatty, friendly, heart-to-heart tone will be a comfort and an encouragement to women hampered by their desire to be both liked and successful. -- <strong>Publishers Weekly</strong> Wanting to be liked is more than feeding our ego or calming our insecurities, it can unwittingly impact almost every aspect of our personal and professional life. With her innate sense of wit and eloquence, Alicia Menendez makes us reflect on how we can navigate the troubled waters of likeability, ignore the inevitable noise that blocks our progress, and live at peace with ourselves. -- <strong>Maria Elena Salinas, CBS News Contributor</strong> There will be a great deal of enthusiastic nodding and audible sighs among women devouring multimedia journalist Menendez's first book. . . . This will stoke camaraderie and genuine outrage among women, and might even make a difference, one person at a time. -- <strong>Booklist</strong>

Menendez, a journalist and the cohost of PBS's Amanpour and Company, issues a friend-to-friend wake-up call for pathological approval seekers. . . . The description of the problem is perfect . . . . the chatty, friendly, heart-to-heart tone will be a comfort and an encouragement to women hampered by their desire to be both liked and successful. -- <strong>Publishers Weekly</strong>

Menendez, a journalist and the cohost of PBS's Amanpour and Company, issues a friend-to-friend wake-up call for pathological approval seekers. . . . The description of the problem is perfect . . . . the chatty, friendly, heart-to-heart tone will be a comfort and an encouragement to women hampered by their desire to be both liked and successful. -- <strong>Publishers Weekly</strong> Wanting to be liked is more than feeding our ego or calming our insecurities, it can unwittingly impact almost every aspect of our personal and professional life. With her innate sense of wit and eloquence, Alicia Menendez makes us reflect on how we can navigate the troubled waters of likeability, ignore the inevitable noise that blocks our progress, and live at peace with ourselves. -- <strong>Maria Elena Salinas, CBS News Contributor</strong>

Author Information

Alicia Menendez is an award-winning multimedia journalist and the co-host of PBS' Amanpour and Company. A contributing editor at The Bustle, she hosts the podcast Latina to Latina. She has also contributed to ABC's Nightline and World News Tonight as well as its Emmy-nominated 2014 Election Night coverage. A graduate of Harvard College, she lives in Miami, Florida with her husband and daughter.

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