Gloria Feldt is the definition of a twenty-first-century Renaissance woman. Called a “feminist icon” by Amazon.com, she is a nationally recognized social and political advocate for women’s rights, and an author, an educator, an executive, and the co-founder and president of Take the Lead, a nonprofit organization with a goal to propel women to leadership parity in politics, business, and their personal lives by 2025.

With thirty years of CEO experience, she served as president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America from 1996 to 2005. She is the New York Times bestselling author of No Excuses: Nine Ways Women Can Change How We Think About Power, as well as three other books. Her commentary has appeared in the New York Times, USA Today, the Wall Street Journal, and the Washington Post, among other publications.

Gloria was named to Vanity Fair’s “Top 200 Women, Legends, Leaders, and Trailblazers.” She currently teaches “Women, Power, and Leadership” at Arizona State University.

The nineteenth-century abolitionist and women’s rights crusader Sojourner Truth stated, “If women want more power than they’ve got, why don’t they just take it and not just be talking about it?” Her words exemplify an attitude that has guided and inspired me as a CEO, as a women’s advocate, and as a person. If we, as women, want something more than what we have, we can’t just whine about it, we must go and do it!

And do it we have. In the United States, we’ve made great strides in advancing new inclusive legislation and removed many of the barriers that have denied women equality and access to leadership roles. But we’re not completely there yet.

For several decades now, it’s been my mission to see women get equal treatment under the law, at work, and in society as a whole. Through the nonprofit organization Take the Lead, which my colleague Amy Litzenberger and I founded, I share my experience so that we might reach the goal of women coming to full personhood and enjoying equality in our society. Specifically, our mission is to prepare, develop, inspire, and propel women to take their fair and equal share of leadership positions across all sectors by 2025.

Although we have removed many of the barriers to women’s equality and leadership roles, there is still more to do. There are many books and articles that tell women how they need to change themselves when, in fact, it’s the system that needs to be changed. We need to learn how to change the system for the benefit of our daughters and granddaughters so that it will be more supportive and welcoming and so that it will strengthen the power of women to be more confident and comfortable contributing their intelligence, skills, and capabilities to society.

However, the main challenge we have now is primarily within ourselves. We hang on to habits learned back in the days when our power and opportunities were limited, and these old habits prevent us from asking for promotions or asking for a raise, putting ourselves forward, and seeing ourselves as political candidates or the heads of corporations. That’s what my work focuses on now. I believe that the work that I do helps women to embrace the power they own and understand its dynamics.

I look at this as an exciting opportunity to address power-related issues—for instance, we know women are socialized to negotiate better for others than for themselves. It’s important for women to realize that when they effectively address their own professional and financial needs, it makes things better for other women too.

I grew up in a time when women were powerless over their own finances, their options for employment, and their own bodies. I married young, and by the age of twenty had three children. I couldn’t even open up my own credit card account without my husband’s approval. “The Pill” didn’t exist and abortions were illegal. Although I wanted to become a high school teacher, it took me twelve years to finish college in order to qualify. Then I was offered a job at a small Planned Parenthood affiliate in my native Texas. Over time, I rose through the ranks of the organization, reaching the position of President and CEO of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. As the CEO of a large national nonprofit organization, I used all of the skills that the CEOs of GE or Ford Motor Company would use—but without the resources that they have (which I think is a fairly typical thing for women).

Was everything in my life perfect? No. But I was able to use the power that I had to build dedicated teams of bright and talented individuals intent on getting the job done. It’s been my philosophy to take what I have and make something good out of it. I’m a positive person and always believe that anything is possible. I fervently believe that when women share equally in power and leadership, the world will be a better place for everyone. And that is why my personal mission today is to encourage, teach, and inspire women to take their fair and equal share of leadership roles in all aspects of life, from the boardroom to the bedroom.