Tiffany Dufu is a catalyst-at-large in the world of women’s leadership and the author of Drop the Ball, a memoir and manifesto that shows women how to cultivate the single skill they really need in order to thrive: the ability to let go. According to foreword contributor Gloria Steinem, DROP THE BALL is “important, path-breaking, intimate and brave.”
Named to Fast Company’s League of Extraordinary Women, Tiffany was a launch team member to Lean In and was Chief Leadership Officer to Levo, one of the fastest growing millennial professional networks.
Prior to that, Tiffany served as President of The White House Project. Having raised nearly $20 million toward the cause of women and girls, she’s been featured in The New York Times, ESSENCE, O, The Oprah Magazine, and on NPR. She is a consultant to Fortune 500 companies, a sought-after speaker on women’s leadership, and has presented at Fortune Magazine’s Most Powerful Women Summit, TEDWomen and MAKERS.
Tiffany is a member of Women’s Forum New York, Delta Sigma Theta, Sorority, Inc. and is a Lifetime Girl Scout. In addition to being a part of TARA, a sister group of the Belizean Grove focusing on the next generation of global leaders, she serves on the board of Girls Who Code and Simmons College.
She lives in New York City with her husband and two children.
Sneak Peek Into What You’ll Learn…
03:10 – Tiffany tells us more about her career journey that took her from the White House Project to being the author of Drop the Ball.
04:55 – Tiffany discusses how she discovered her life mission to advance the status of women and girls.
07:53 – Tiffany shares the importance of women being in positions of leadership and the role of trust in being a great leader.
13:35 – Tiffany talks about the advice she would give to someone struggling with imposter syndrome and how to confront the struggle of worrying about what other people think about you.
16:33 – Tiffany tells us more about her book, Drop the Ball, and why she wrote it.
20:17 – Tiffany shares her learnings from conversations with over one thousand women and her insight into why we don’t have more women in leadership in the public sphere.
22:58 – Tiffany explains what the term ‘drop the ball’ means and how she has re-appropriated the term.
27:37 – Tiffany tells us about the process she went through to figure out what matters most to her and what’s her highest and best use of her time and energy in achieving that.
32:14 – Tiffany unpacks strategies we can use to change gendered expectations around roles and responsibilities, especially in the home.
36:30 – Tiffany provides concrete suggestions around how to create a more equitable distribution of responsibilities in the home.
43:21 – Tiffany discusses what she would say to a woman whose partners does not want to share the domestic duties more evenly.
49:01 – We learn more about what a typical day and week look like in Tiffany’s life.
51:10 – Tiffany shares the things she still struggles with in juggling career and family.
57:39 – Tiffany talks about what she would say to someone struggling to find a mentor.
1:01:35 – Brass Tacks— The lightning round of concrete advice and tips.
Quotable quotes:
- “I believe that mission and purpose is a commitment rooted in your life experience.”
- “What you do is far less important than the difference you make.”
- “Mentorship is someone who helps you achieve clarity through guidance and encouragement.”
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Links to Resources
New York Times Reviewed Drop the Ball: Achieving More by Doing Less
