The Real Story Behind the So-Called "Ambition Gap"

Victoria here, Girlboss’ executive editor. 👋

Every year, Lean In and McKinsey & Company release Women in the Workplace, the largest study of women in corporate America. But this year, the findings sparked a hot debate online about whether or not women are actually becoming less ambitious (spoiler: they’re not), after the report found a growing “ambition gap” between women and men.

To dig into the findings, I sat down with Rachel Thomas, CEO and cofounder of Lean In, and Megan McConnell, Partner at McKinsey & Company. Together, we unpacked what the data actually means for working women today, why young women enter the workforce more ambitious than men under 30, and how workplace systems chip away at that ambition over time.

Read the full interview here. 👀

Other stuff the Girlboss team is yapping about on Slack:

• December is actually a great month to apply for jobs. Who knew?!

• Last-minute gift ideas—curated by us—that don’t feel last-minute. You’re welcome!

• This might be the best deal of the year.*