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The Grindstone Roundup 

The number of female doctors in the US has increased by 400% since 1981.

Monday may have been a holiday, but this week hasn’t exactly been easy. Researchers dubbed January 16 the most depressing day of the year and Wikipedia went down on Wednesday in protest of legislative measures SOPA and PIPA. In spite of all the insanity and chilly weather, our friends at The Grindstone published a ton of articles to keep us entertained and informed. Here are some of our favorite pieces they’ve posted this week:

You may have a work husband and not know it. I’ve had several, so this Grindstone article on how to divorce your work hubby would have come in handy back when I was surrounded by dudes at the office.

The Internet blackout helped half of The Grindstone readers get more work done. At least something positive came out of this wild week.

The number of female doctors has gone up 400 percent since 1981, but is still low. Hopefully that changes soon, as I’m more comfortable with lady physicians than male docs. Enjoying podiatrist visits because I like having a hot man touch my feet seems wrong.

Is the new CEO accessory a stay-at-home dad?  I sure hope so because stay-at-home-dads are underrated. I know because mine was awesome.

Don’t complain, y’all: There are at least seven reasons why your job isn’t as awful as you think.

Laura Donovan is a staff writer and editor for Levo.
Jan 20
The Grindstone Roundup  The number of female doctors in the US has increased by 400% since 1981. Monday may have been a holiday, but this week hasn’t exactly been easy. Researchers dubbed January 16 the most depressing day of the year and Wikipedia went down on Wednesday in protest of legislative measures SOPA and PIPA. In spite of all the insanity and chilly weather, our friends at The Grindstone published a ton of articles to keep us entertained and informed. Here are some of our favorite pieces they’ve posted this week:You may have a work husband and not know it. I’ve had several, so this Grindstone article on how to divorce your work hubby would have come in handy back when I was surrounded by dudes at the office.The Internet blackout helped half of The Grindstone readers get more work done. At least something positive came out of this wild week.The number of female doctors has gone up 400 percent since 1981, but is still low. Hopefully that changes soon, as I’m more comfortable with lady physicians than male docs. Enjoying podiatrist visits because I like having a hot man touch my feet seems wrong. Is the new CEO accessory a stay-at-home dad?  I sure hope so because stay-at-home-dads are underrated. I know because mine was awesome. Don’t complain, y’all: There are at least seven reasons why your job isn’t as awful as you think. Laura Donovan is a staff writer and editor for Levo.

Tabled: #BOOSOPA, Autism Redefined, Caloric Consumption Round the World, and Top 5 “Most Useless” Majors that are shockingly important to basic human survival.

We’ve done our part for SOPA & PIPA – what came of all the blacking out this week? It’s been tabled. According to Politico’s Morning Tech, of the 40 original sponsors on the PROTECT IP Act before the protest began, six have dropped, and they don’t exactly qualify as moderates: Sens. Marco Rubio, Roy Blunt, John Boozman, Orrin Hatch, Chuck Grassley and David Vitter. Here’s a refresher on David Vitter, for the record. And according to this morning’s TechCrunch, Harry Reid has officially caved, along with 122 members of Congress. Oh. And he caved VIA TWITTER.

Autism is under fire again. Well, sort of. The story here is that the definition of “autism” is narrowing in the upcoming version of the DSM. Making the diagnosis, historically, has been difficult and somewhat imprecise, since no one has really been able to pinpoint the exact underlying genetic features of autism—and the old, broader definition meant that 1 in every 100 American children was diagnosed with autism at some point on the spectrum.

Ever wondered where your eating habits fall, geographically? Fast Company has a great data visualizer that’ll put your own dietary concerns in perspective.

Uninviting, and misleading, data, via Yahoo! and the Bureau of Labor Statistics: here’s their list of the top 5 most useless majors in America. And while you can easily argue with basic statistics that these fields aren’t necessarily growing at a clip, a world without, say, horticulture, agriculture, clothing design, or animal husbandry. So, thanks for the superficial analysis, Yahoo! but at the same time, let’s not be too active about discouraging future generations from learning to grow food. We need that stuff.
Jan 20
Jan 20

The Friday FYI:

WIN: Nail Polish, the Reverse Gender Gap, Alcohol & the Female Brain, and Highlights from the NBER

Check out what the New York Times has to say about the fact that this year, sales of nail polish are way up, while women’s underwear sales are down (according to their analysis, this has historically suggested intense frugality and more rough times ahead).And encouragingly, though not a holistic view of women in business, NYT also has a piece on the “reverse gender gap,” or the phenom of young women outearning their male cohort. I don’t think many Gen Y women will be surprised by their report, especially considering the prolonged adolescenceof men who bear little resemblance to us beyond sharing sharing our  birth-years. Still, one small step for woman.

Here’s a reason to lay off the sauce this holiday season: Scientific American is reporting that alcohol does neurological damage to women   in smaller quantities than it takes for the same amount of damage to men. Thank you, Claudia Fahlke of University of Gothenburg in Sweden.

And now a moment of NBER (they’re on a roll with female-related research): As Japanese families have been indicating for years, there’s a positive correlation between having a grandparent nearby to the likelihood of mothers attaching themselves to the labor force. In politics, the NBER reports that the “incumbent effect” is significantly higher in female mayoral incumbents than male ones, and NBER infers that this is due to a higher level of political skills that are unrepresented during females’ initial mayoral campaigns. NBER’s also sticking its neck out with a paper that says that countries with equality policies and women’s rights policies actual develop faster as a result of those policies.
Dec 19
WIN: Nail Polish, the Reverse Gender Gap, Alcohol & the Female Brain, and Highlights from the NBER Check out what the New York Times has to say about the fact that this year, sales of nail polish are way up, while women’s underwear sales are down (according to their analysis, this has historically suggested intense frugality and more rough times ahead).And encouragingly, though not a holistic view of women in business, NYT also has a piece on the “reverse gender gap,” or the phenom of young women outearning their male cohort. I don’t think many Gen Y women will be surprised by their report, especially considering the prolonged adolescenceof men who bear little resemblance to us beyond sharing sharing our  birth-years. Still, one small step for woman. Here’s a reason to lay off the sauce this holiday season: Scientific American is reporting that alcohol does neurological damage to women   in smaller quantities than it takes for the same amount of damage to men. Thank you, Claudia Fahlke of University of Gothenburg in Sweden. And now a moment of NBER (they’re on a roll with female-related research): As Japanese families have been indicating for years, there’s a positive correlation between having a grandparent nearby to the likelihood of mothers attaching themselves to the labor force. In politics, the NBER reports that the “incumbent effect” is significantly higher in female mayoral incumbents than male ones, and NBER infers that this is due to a higher level of political skills that are unrepresented during females’ initial mayoral campaigns. NBER’s also sticking its neck out with a paper that says that countries with equality policies and women’s rights policies actual develop faster as a result of those policies.

The Friday FYI: NYTimes Loses its Female Leader; Nurses Move to Strike; Cookie Dough, Rape Still Dangerous

Janet Robinson is Stepping Down from the NYTimes, and Arthur Sulzberger will be stepping in during the search for a replacement.

Nursing Strike!

It’s looking as if nurses in New York will be striking in an effort to combat what the New York Times reports to be “[disrespect] by a corporate hospital culture that demands sacrifices from patients and those who provide their care, but pays executives millions of dollars.” San Francisco saw a larger-scale strike in September, organized by the California Nurses Association and its 23,000 nurses. A 24-hour walkout is set for Dec. 22 at eight hospitals in the San Francisco Bay Area and one in Long Beach, and there is word of potential strikes in New Jersey and Minnesota. The New York Times says that Columbia Presbyterian has come to an agreement with its nursing stuff, but that Mount Sinai, Montefiore Medical Center and St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center are all still on the hook.

Cookie Doughn’t

If you’re looking of ways to stay out of the ER after reading that news, take heed: just because it’s the holidays doesn’t mean it’s suddenly safe to eat raw cookie dough— ready-to-bake storebought raw chocolate chip cookie dough caused an outbreak of food poisoning caused by the Shiga toxin-producing E. coli between March and July 2009. It hospitalized 35 people, and reports came in that at least 80 people were affected nationally.

And on a less festive note, some startling news from NYT:  nearly 1 in 5 women in a widespread national survey reported that they had been raped or had experienced an attempted rape, and one in four reported having been beaten by an intimate partner. One in six women have been stalked, according to the report.

Some people will react to this by insinuating that our definition of rape is too stringent. I’d say our definition of “respect” is too lax.
Dec 16
The Friday FYI: NYTimes Loses its Female Leader; Nurses Move to Strike; Cookie Dough, Rape Still Dangerous Janet Robinson is Stepping Down from the NYTimes, and Arthur Sulzberger will be stepping in during the search for a replacement. Nursing Strike! It’s looking as if nurses in New York will be striking in an effort to combat what the New York Times reports to be “[disrespect] by a corporate hospital culture that demands sacrifices from patients and those who provide their care, but pays executives millions of dollars.” San Francisco saw a larger-scale strike in September, organized by the California Nurses Association and its 23,000 nurses. A 24-hour walkout is set for Dec. 22 at eight hospitals in the San Francisco Bay Area and one in Long Beach, and there is word of potential strikes in New Jersey and Minnesota. The New York Times says that Columbia Presbyterian has come to an agreement with its nursing stuff, but that Mount Sinai, Montefiore Medical Center and St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center are all still on the hook. Cookie Doughn’t If you’re looking of ways to stay out of the ER after reading that news, take heed: just because it’s the holidays doesn’t mean it’s suddenly safe to eat raw cookie dough— ready-to-bake storebought raw chocolate chip cookie dough caused an outbreak of food poisoning caused by the Shiga toxin-producing E. coli between March and July 2009. It hospitalized 35 people, and reports came in that at least 80 people were affected nationally. And on a less festive note, some startling news from NYT:  nearly 1 in 5 women in a widespread national survey reported that they had been raped or had experienced an attempted rape, and one in four reported having been beaten by an intimate partner. One in six women have been stalked, according to the report. Some people will react to this by insinuating that our definition of rape is too stringent. I’d say our definition of “respect” is too lax.

Women in the News: Where are the women in Silicon Valley?

Women & Technology: the 2011 UC Davis Study of California Women Business Leaders released findings last week indicating that “the proportion of women who lead California’s largest companies is growing at such a slow pace that it will take more than a century for women business leaders to achieve parity with men.”As the New York Times reports, the software and semiconductor sectors have the lowest percentages of women among the five highest-paid executives in a company, with 4.4 percent and 2.7 percent, according to the study. On average, fewer than one in 28of the highest-paid tech executives is a woman.The report goes on to say that only 5.2 percent of directors in the semiconductor sector are women, and just 7.7 percent have more than one woman director, compared with 40 percent of companies in all other industries. Just over 9 percent of directors in the software sector are women.Women & Health: The BBC reported last week that there’s a disturbing trend in breast cancer: the side effects of therapeutic medications are so strong that many women stop taking them.

On a lighter note…

Ever seen a female garbage collector? We haven’t either. But they’re apparently an awesome minority in New York City.

In case you want every single issue of Vogue ever printed, in digital format, you can now get it: Conde is offering a single-person, annual subscription price of $1,575 for digital access to every page of every issue in Vogue’s long and illustriously fabulous history. Just in time for Christmas!

And finally: Cosmopolitan is starting a Latina-geared version of the magazine, descriptively titled Cosmopolitan Latina. Hearst is distributing 545,000 copies that across states like Texas, California, Florida and New York, which have large Latino populations. [via NYT]
Dec 12
Women in the News: Where are the women in Silicon Valley? Women & Technology: the 2011 UC Davis Study of California Women Business Leaders released findings last week indicating that “the proportion of women who lead California’s largest companies is growing at such a slow pace that it will take more than a century for women business leaders to achieve parity with men.”As the New York Times reports, the software and semiconductor sectors have the lowest percentages of women among the five highest-paid executives in a company, with 4.4 percent and 2.7 percent, according to the study. On average, fewer than one in 28of the highest-paid tech executives is a woman.The report goes on to say that only 5.2 percent of directors in the semiconductor sector are women, and just 7.7 percent have more than one woman director, compared with 40 percent of companies in all other industries. Just over 9 percent of directors in the software sector are women.Women & Health: The BBC reported last week that there’s a disturbing trend in breast cancer: the side effects of therapeutic medications are so strong that many women stop taking them. On a lighter note… Ever seen a female garbage collector? We haven’t either. But they’re apparently an awesome minority in New York City. In case you want every single issue of Vogue ever printed, in digital format, you can now get it: Conde is offering a single-person, annual subscription price of $1,575 for digital access to every page of every issue in Vogue’s long and illustriously fabulous history. Just in time for Christmas! And finally: Cosmopolitan is starting a Latina-geared version of the magazine, descriptively titled Cosmopolitan Latina. Hearst is distributing 545,000 copies that across states like Texas, California, Florida and New York, which have large Latino populations. [via NYT]

The Friday FYI: One Giant Step for Breast Cancer

By Elizabeth Burke

There’s good news out there for women with HER2-positive breast cancer and postmenopausal hormone-receptor–positive advanced breast cancer. The New England Journal of Medicine has published studies affirming that two drugs, pertuzumab from Genentech andeverolimus from Novartis, showed signs in clinical trials that they could prolong lives. Per the New York Times, it’s too early to know whether those findings will hold up.  [via NYT]

Elizabeth Burke is Levo’s managing editor.
Dec 09
The Friday FYI: One Giant Step for Breast Cancer By Elizabeth Burke There’s good news out there for women with HER2-positive breast cancer and postmenopausal hormone-receptor–positive advanced breast cancer. The New England Journal of Medicine has published studies affirming that two drugs, pertuzumab from Genentech andeverolimus from Novartis, showed signs in clinical trials that they could prolong lives. Per the New York Times, it’s too early to know whether those findings will hold up.  [via NYT] Elizabeth Burke is Levo’s managing editor.

Women in the News: Puppies & Pavlov, Biglaw Partner Designations Dwindling, Women in Afghanistan, and Women & Labor

By Elizabeth Burke

In cute puppy news, we dug up a Molson  dual advertising campaign that ran parallel in women’s & men’s magazines featuring (1) in the women’s magazine, a photo of an attractive man drinking Molson whilst holding two adorable puppies and (2) in the men’s magazine, explaining the favor Molson is doing to male readers everywhere by slowly conditioning women to associate Molson with men who love adorable puppies and look attractive. It’s good to know that puppies, at least, are benefiting from an otherwise totally vapid advertising campaign.

What do you think about the dual demographic marketing approach Molson took?

Vivia Chen of the Careerist is coming at us with some more bad news: Last year’s partner appointment rounds looked good for women in Biglaw, but this year is looking pretty vile. Her figures:
Cravath Swaine & Moore: No women out of four new partners.
Gibson Dunn & Crutcher: Four women out of 11.
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett: Two women out of 12.
Sullivan & Cromwell: One out of five.
Weil Gotshal & Manges: Two out of 11.

Afghanistan: Amid Karzai’s warning that the Taliban may rise again if a peace deal is brokered at the upcoming Bonn conference on the future of Afghanistan, the BBC reports that there’s another major concern in danger of being sidelined or even backtracking:the progress that the women of Afghanistan have made in the past decade.

Women in Music: Women in Music is a pre-Grammy warmup to bring attention to women in the music world who have made strides in the past year. Predictably, Billboard hosted what turned out to be a Taylor & Nikki-festival. Kind of a boring lineup for the magazine that’s supposed to be at the cutting edge of new music, but both women are such strong speakers and have such amazing resumes that it was still a completely inspiring event.

The New York Times published a piece last week on women in labor unions, and the tremendous impact their voices have had in the past few years. Of the development, NYT says “Unions, of course, have been in retreat for years. But Ms. Pope and several other women, notably Rose Ann DeMoro, of National Nurses United, and Mary Kay Henry, of the Service Employees International Union, are pushing back. Their ascendance has rekindled hope that organized labor maybe, just maybe, could stage a comeback. They have also helped inspire the likes of Occupy Wall Street.”
Dec 05
Women in the News: Puppies & Pavlov, Biglaw Partner Designations Dwindling, Women in Afghanistan, and Women & Labor By Elizabeth Burke In cute puppy news, we dug up a Molson  dual advertising campaign that ran parallel in women’s & men’s magazines featuring (1) in the women’s magazine, a photo of an attractive man drinking Molson whilst holding two adorable puppies and (2) in the men’s magazine, explaining the favor Molson is doing to male readers everywhere by slowly conditioning women to associate Molson with men who love adorable puppies and look attractive. It’s good to know that puppies, at least, are benefiting from an otherwise totally vapid advertising campaign. What do you think about the dual demographic marketing approach Molson took? Vivia Chen of the Careerist is coming at us with some more bad news: Last year’s partner appointment rounds looked good for women in Biglaw, but this year is looking pretty vile. Her figures:Cravath Swaine & Moore: No women out of four new partners.Gibson Dunn & Crutcher: Four women out of 11.Simpson Thacher & Bartlett: Two women out of 12.Sullivan & Cromwell: One out of five.Weil Gotshal & Manges: Two out of 11. Afghanistan: Amid Karzai’s warning that the Taliban may rise again if a peace deal is brokered at the upcoming Bonn conference on the future of Afghanistan, the BBC reports that there’s another major concern in danger of being sidelined or even backtracking:the progress that the women of Afghanistan have made in the past decade. Women in Music: Women in Music is a pre-Grammy warmup to bring attention to women in the music world who have made strides in the past year. Predictably, Billboard hosted what turned out to be a Taylor & Nikki-festival. Kind of a boring lineup for the magazine that’s supposed to be at the cutting edge of new music, but both women are such strong speakers and have such amazing resumes that it was still a completely inspiring event. The New York Times published a piece last week on women in labor unions, and the tremendous impact their voices have had in the past few years. Of the development, NYT says “Unions, of course, have been in retreat for years. But Ms. Pope and several other women, notably Rose Ann DeMoro, of National Nurses United, and Mary Kay Henry, of the Service Employees International Union, are pushing back. Their ascendance has rekindled hope that organized labor maybe, just maybe, could stage a comeback. They have also helped inspire the likes of Occupy Wall Street.”

By Laura Donovan

The holiday season is in full swing, but our pals at The Grindstone haven’t slowed their pace. The women’s professional site does, however, recognize that Christmastime can be a distracting and stressful period in the working world and has put together some useful stories on how to continue working and managing others as the Yuletide spirit pervades our daily lives. Here are some of our favorite recent Grindstone articles that address holiday protocol at the office as well as other work-related issues that loom over us.

Tips on managing employees during the unproductive holiday season

Lindsay Cross coaches readers on how to deal with Grinch coworkers this time of year

Does a higher pay warrant sexual harassment? Some women think so.

Are women in PR just grown-up “Mean Girls”? Meredith Lepore explores why women in the cutthroat industry feel the need to compete with each other

If you are a woman and attended an Ivy League institution, rest assured knowing neither of these will help you become a CEO, according to a new study

Girl power! Women are significantly more likely to take risks when surrounded by other women

Thanks, Captain Obvious: Why listing your objective on a resume is a redundant “waste of space”

Laura Donovan is a staff writer and editor for Levo.
Dec 02
Dec 02

The Grindstone Roundup, 12/02/2011

Spotted: at the White House

By Caroline Ghosn

Yesterday I was honored to attend the White House’s Office of Public Engagement and Start-Up America event for Young Entrepreneur Council members (@theYEC) at none other than the White House itself. It was eye-opening.

Below are the best quips of inspiration from the panelists that MTV’s DJ Sway moderated with humor and ease - I’m not usually an MTV-er, but count me in for anything Sway is involved in from here on out:

Spotted: on Entrepreneurship

1. “In entrepreneurship you need credibility and the willingness to fail repeatedly.” Jeremy Johnson, @2tor Founder
2. “There’s a lot more social enterprise these days - our generation can get excited about good work” Alexis Ohanianm @reddit Founder
3. “If my life were a video game it would be on easy mode - I’m middle class, white, and have two loving parents. What’s exciting about the Internet is that it’s actually a meritocracy.” Alexis Ohanianm @reddit Founder
4. “In a start-up, if you have too much money / funding, you don’t have to focus, which can be a big disadvantage.” @dinakaplan, Founder BlipTv
5. “Spend 80% head down on product, and 20% head up listening to and serving the community you will be targeting.” @dinakaplan

Spotted: on Having the Right Mindset

“You can’t and don’t know everything and you need to learn how to learn.” Jeremy Johnson, @2tor Founder

Spotted: on Women

1. “I’m always asked: How did it feel being young, black and a woman?”  I say that the “only color that matters is green.” @tinacwells, Buzz Marketing Group Founder
2. “Mentors are key - my mentor cleared her schedule the day after I met her and asked me ‘How can I help you?’. I strive towards that every day with the programs for women I have founded.” @dinakaplan

Spotted: on Professional Advice

1. “My topline advice is be concise and be specific - it’s the most important thing” @tinawells, Buzz Marketing Group Founder
2. “Just be authentic.” @dinakaplan, Founder BlipTv
Nov 29
Spotted: at the White House By Caroline Ghosn Yesterday I was honored to attend the White House’s Office of Public Engagement and Start-Up America event for Young Entrepreneur Council members (@theYEC) at none other than the White House itself. It was eye-opening. Below are the best quips of inspiration from the panelists that MTV’s DJ Sway moderated with humor and ease - I’m not usually an MTV-er, but count me in for anything Sway is involved in from here on out: Spotted: on Entrepreneurship 1. “In entrepreneurship you need credibility and the willingness to fail repeatedly.” Jeremy Johnson, @2tor Founder2. “There’s a lot more social enterprise these days - our generation can get excited about good work” Alexis Ohanianm @reddit Founder3. “If my life were a video game it would be on easy mode - I’m middle class, white, and have two loving parents. What’s exciting about the Internet is that it’s actually a meritocracy.” Alexis Ohanianm @reddit Founder4. “In a start-up, if you have too much money / funding, you don’t have to focus, which can be a big disadvantage.” @dinakaplan, Founder BlipTv5. “Spend 80% head down on product, and 20% head up listening to and serving the community you will be targeting.” @dinakaplan Spotted: on Having the Right Mindset “You can’t and don’t know everything and you need to learn how to learn.” Jeremy Johnson, @2tor Founder Spotted: on Women 1. “I’m always asked: How did it feel being young, black and a woman?”  I say that the “only color that matters is green.” @tinacwells, Buzz Marketing Group Founder2. “Mentors are key - my mentor cleared her schedule the day after I met her and asked me ‘How can I help you?’. I strive towards that every day with the programs for women I have founded.” @dinakaplan Spotted: on Professional Advice 1. “My topline advice is be concise and be specific - it’s the most important thing” @tinawells, Buzz Marketing Group Founder2. “Just be authentic.” @dinakaplan, Founder BlipTv

The Friday FYI: It’s a Numbers Game

This Friday, L(L) is bringing you a distressing little mental exercise: Compare the Lists!

1. The Forbes 100 Most Powerful Women: We love this list. Sheryl Sandberg is ranked at #5. It’s a great list, even if it uses sort of an unflattering photo of Angela Merkel (but let’s be honest: she’s totally pulling it off). If you don’t already want to BE every woman on this list, check it out and read up on these fabulous ladies.

Angela. She’s the German Chancellor. She’s the #1 Most Powerful Woman. And this is the photo Forbes chooses?

2. The Forbes Most Powerful People: Do some side-by-side. SIX WOMEN. We are JUST SAYING.

Ever wondered about the effect of contraceptives on world population?

On a more op-ed note, the New York Times quietly published a little opinion piece by Nicholas D. Kristof on the effect that the use of contraception has on the world’s population. His estimate? Contraception prevents 112 million abortions worldwide every year. Three cheers for  The United Nations Population Fund, whose promotion of contraception means that “it may have reduced abortions more than any organization in the world.” As Bill Clinton (love him, hate him— he’s got a good idea here) said in a speech at the DNC on August 29, 1996. “Abortion should not only be safe and legal, it should be rare.” We hear you on the “rare” thing, Bill.
Nov 04
The Friday FYI: It’s a Numbers Game This Friday, L(L) is bringing you a distressing little mental exercise: Compare the Lists! 1. The Forbes 100 Most Powerful Women: We love this list. Sheryl Sandberg is ranked at #5. It’s a great list, even if it uses sort of an unflattering photo of Angela Merkel (but let’s be honest: she’s totally pulling it off). If you don’t already want to BE every woman on this list, check it out and read up on these fabulous ladies. Angela. She’s the German Chancellor. She’s the #1 Most Powerful Woman. And this is the photo Forbes chooses? 2. The Forbes Most Powerful People: Do some side-by-side. SIX WOMEN. We are JUST SAYING. Ever wondered about the effect of contraceptives on world population? On a more op-ed note, the New York Times quietly published a little opinion piece by Nicholas D. Kristof on the effect that the use of contraception has on the world’s population. His estimate? Contraception prevents 112 million abortions worldwide every year. Three cheers for  The United Nations Population Fund, whose promotion of contraception means that “it may have reduced abortions more than any organization in the world.” As Bill Clinton (love him, hate him— he’s got a good idea here) said in a speech at the DNC on August 29, 1996. “Abortion should not only be safe and legal, it should be rare.” We hear you on the “rare” thing, Bill.

By Laura Donovan

Step aside, children: Halloween Costume Day isn’t just for energetic elementary school students anymore. The L(L)’s Laura Donovan makes some great suggestions for how to pull off a festive look that’ll charm your coworkers.

If you work in a laid-back atmosphere, among festive PYPs, you can dress up on the job on October 31 (It’s a Monday, so your office may have mutually decided to celebrate it on the previous Friday, October 28). With an estimated 17.5 million people under 24 in the labor force, youthful attitudes and practices pervade many offices, so get excited to see your colleagues decked out for All Hallows’ Eve towards the end of the month.

“Halloween is a great opportunity to show off your creative side, whether you work in a creative environment or not,” Meg Hemphill, a style writer for The Huffington Post, told The Levo (League), adding that there are plenty of clever, memorable costume ideas for PYPs to choose from.

Here at The L(L), we’re young at heart and eager to celebrate one of the most eventful days of fall as a unit, so check out our list of top ten best Halloween-at-work costumes that will foster office bonding, create humorous and enjoyable memories, and promote teamwork.

1. Where’s Waldo?

As a little kid, did you pat yourself on the back every time you spotted Waldo buried in a crowd? You’re in good company. By dressing up as the stiff, stripes-loving cartoon, you can chat with co-workers about the pride you felt upon finding Waldo on every page and connect over other favorite childhood books. Halloween falls on a Monday this year, and it will probably be a fairly slow day in the professional world, so be sure to play at least one round of “Where’s Waldo?” with colleagues. It’s been done before, so keep the game alive if you secretly miss hide-and-seek.

2. Chef

Every office has a resident cook (Caroline Ghosn here at The L(L)!), and if you’re this person, put your skills to good use by dressing up as a chef for Halloween. The costume requires little more than an apron and a hat, so you can use the extra primping time to whip up snacks for the staff. Surprise them with baked goods, mini sandwiches, or one of your favorite light dishes. You’ll have the pleasure of making tasty food, showing off your kitchen talents, and rewarding co-workers, so everybody wins.

3. Restaurant server

The waitress costume serves a similar purpose and is easy to pull off. If you want to be timely, channel Kat Dennings and Beth Behrs’ cheery waitress outfits in new sitcom, “2 Broke Girls”. To go above and beyond, put pieces of Halloween candy on your server tray and drop the treats off on each of your co-workers’ desks.

4.  A “Pan Am” flight attendant

Addicted to ABC drama “Pan Am”? Emulate your one of the show’s smiley, bright-eyed stewardesses in costume form. You’ll remind colleagues of a time when flying was pleasurable, relatively new and exciting, and worth dressing up for. If you’re feeling particularly ambitious, read our recent interview with a former Pan Am stewardess to acquire some insight on what it was actually like to be part of a flight crew in the early 70s.

5. Twister girl

Almost everyone has had funny experiences with Twister, the hands-on game that requires physical balance, flexibility, and a sense of humor. With the Twister costume, you can reminisce about such stories with colleagues. Consider it another icebreaker, and bust out the actual Twister mat if you’d like. This costumes shows you don’t take yourself too seriously and can joke around.

6. Adele

Does anyone else have a mega girl crush on British soul singer Adele, or am I the only one? The record-breaking musician resonated with many this year with hit single, “Rolling in the Deep”, so she’s a relevant person to dress up as for Halloween. Adopt her trademark bob, wear all black, purchase long fake eyelashes, and you’re set. If you enjoy singing (like our very own Elizabeth Burke), belt out one of Adele’s many romance tunes when productivity declines towards the end of the day.

7. Female politician

Female politicos have been hot news items this year, especially with Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann eyeing a 2012 run and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton taking second place on Forbes’ 2011 list of World’s Most Powerful Women. Ysolt Usigan, a CBSNews.com lifestyle and tech editor, suggests showing up to work as a well known political figure. It takes minimal effort but can be the source of many laughs.

“You can dress like Sarah Palin or Hillary Clinton by putting on the most professional skirt suit you have,” Usigan said. “Accessorize with plastic-rimmed eye glasses for Palin and a blonde bob for Clinton.”

If you want to go further with the Palin costume, don her signature red suit or throw on some hunting gear and tote a fake plastic gun. Ever wondered what a pantsuit feels like? Steal Clinton’s look and decide for yourself whether it suits you (no pun intended!).

8. Solid black

Halloween-at-work is what you make of it, so costumes can be spirited or low-key as you’d like. Both Usigan and Hemphill advise the solid black outfit for those who don’t have the funds or time to come up with an intricate costume.

“If you have nothing in your closet to transform into a Halloween costume, just pick up some cat ears from the drugstore and wear all black,” Usigan said.

Hemphill agrees that you can’t go wrong with the low-maintenance cat look.

“You can go simple with an all-black outfit (keep it sophisticated), cat ears and whiskers drawn on with eyeliner,” Hemphill added.

9. College sports fanatic (or player)

Fall is a nostalgic time for PYPs, as many of them long to visit their alma maters during Homecoming and big football games. If you went to a sports-oriented university and gladly camped out to watch highly-anticipated athletic games (looking at you, Berkeley alumna and L(L) founder Amanda Pouchot!), wear your school colors and disguise yourself as a spirited student. Body paint, dangling necklaces, and foam fingers are welcome for the costume. Here’s your shot to play college kid again and give your colleagues a glimpse into your past. Dressing up as a pro league player can also spark conversation. But be careful to be sensitive to your work environment in this one— if your job is client-facing, or even if your coworkers are reserved about the occasion, this is one of the louder options.

10. Lady Gaga circa 2008

There are dozens of ways to dress up as Lady Gaga for Halloween, but the tamest approach would be to copy her “Just Dance” music video look. It sets you up for discussion about the singer’s rise to stardom and dramatic change in style over the years. In the afternoon, you can even blast some of her greatest hits in the office.

“For something simple, a wig would be fun or even a pair of sunglasses,” Alison Coglianese, creator of fashion blog Chain Strap Purse, said of the costume, which requires no explanation.
Oct 21
Oct 21

Levo (League)’s Top Ten Halloween-At-Work Costumes

The Levo League

Posted on Friday January 20th 2012 at 01:05pm. Its tags are listed below.

The Grindstone Roundup  The number of female doctors in the US has increased by 400% since 1981. Monday may have been a holiday, but this week hasn’t exactly been easy. Researchers dubbed January 16 the most depressing day of the year and Wikipedia went down on Wednesday in protest of legislative measures SOPA and PIPA. In spite of all the insanity and chilly weather, our friends at The Grindstone published a ton of articles to keep us entertained and informed. Here are some of our favorite pieces they’ve posted this week:You may have a work husband and not know it. I’ve had several, so this Grindstone article on how to divorce your work hubby would have come in handy back when I was surrounded by dudes at the office.The Internet blackout helped half of The Grindstone readers get more work done. At least something positive came out of this wild week.The number of female doctors has gone up 400 percent since 1981, but is still low. Hopefully that changes soon, as I’m more comfortable with lady physicians than male docs. Enjoying podiatrist visits because I like having a hot man touch my feet seems wrong. Is the new CEO accessory a stay-at-home dad?  I sure hope so because stay-at-home-dads are underrated. I know because mine was awesome. Don’t complain, y’all: There are at least seven reasons why your job isn’t as awful as you think. Laura Donovan is a staff writer and editor for Levo.

The Grindstone Roundup 

The number of female doctors in the US has increased by 400% since 1981.

Monday may have been a holiday, but this week hasn’t exactly been easy. Researchers dubbed January 16 the most depressing day of the year and Wikipedia went down on Wednesday in protest of legislative measures SOPA and PIPA. In spite of all the insanity and chilly weather, our friends at The Grindstone published a ton of articles to keep us entertained and informed. Here are some of our favorite pieces they’ve posted this week:

You may have a work husband and not know it. I’ve had several, so this Grindstone article on how to divorce your work hubby would have come in handy back when I was surrounded by dudes at the office.

The Internet blackout helped half of The Grindstone readers get more work done. At least something positive came out of this wild week.

The number of female doctors has gone up 400 percent since 1981, but is still low. Hopefully that changes soon, as I’m more comfortable with lady physicians than male docs. Enjoying podiatrist visits because I like having a hot man touch my feet seems wrong.

Is the new CEO accessory a stay-at-home dad?  I sure hope so because stay-at-home-dads are underrated. I know because mine was awesome.

Don’t complain, y’all: There are at least seven reasons why your job isn’t as awful as you think.

Laura Donovan is a staff writer and editor for Levo.

The Friday FYI:

Posted on Friday January 20th 2012 at 10:13am. Its tags are listed below.


The Friday FYI:

Tabled: #BOOSOPA, Autism Redefined, Caloric Consumption Round the World, and Top 5 “Most Useless” Majors that are shockingly important to basic human survival.

We’ve done our part for SOPA & PIPA – what came of all the blacking out this week? It’s been tabled. According to Politico’s Morning Tech, of the 40 original sponsors on the PROTECT IP Act before the protest began, six have dropped, and they don’t exactly qualify as moderates: Sens. Marco Rubio, Roy Blunt, John Boozman, Orrin Hatch, Chuck Grassley and David Vitter. Here’s a refresher on David Vitter, for the record. And according to this morning’s TechCrunch, Harry Reid has officially caved, along with 122 members of Congress. Oh. And he caved VIA TWITTER.

Autism is under fire again. Well, sort of. The story here is that the definition of “autism” is narrowing in the upcoming version of the DSM. Making the diagnosis, historically, has been difficult and somewhat imprecise, since no one has really been able to pinpoint the exact underlying genetic features of autism—and the old, broader definition meant that 1 in every 100 American children was diagnosed with autism at some point on the spectrum.

Ever wondered where your eating habits fall, geographically? Fast Company has a great data visualizer that’ll put your own dietary concerns in perspective.

Uninviting, and misleading, data, via Yahoo! and the Bureau of Labor Statistics: here’s their list of the top 5 most useless majors in America. And while you can easily argue with basic statistics that these fields aren’t necessarily growing at a clip, a world without, say, horticulture, agriculture, clothing design, or animal husbandry. So, thanks for the superficial analysis, Yahoo! but at the same time, let’s not be too active about discouraging future generations from learning to grow food. We need that stuff.

The Levo League

Posted on Monday December 19th 2011 at 12:00am. Its tags are listed below.

WIN: Nail Polish, the Reverse Gender Gap, Alcohol & the Female Brain, and Highlights from the NBER Check out what the New York Times has to say about the fact that this year, sales of nail polish are way up, while women’s underwear sales are down (according to their analysis, this has historically suggested intense frugality and more rough times ahead).And encouragingly, though not a holistic view of women in business, NYT also has a piece on the “reverse gender gap,” or the phenom of young women outearning their male cohort. I don’t think many Gen Y women will be surprised by their report, especially considering the prolonged adolescenceof men who bear little resemblance to us beyond sharing sharing our  birth-years. Still, one small step for woman. Here’s a reason to lay off the sauce this holiday season: Scientific American is reporting that alcohol does neurological damage to women   in smaller quantities than it takes for the same amount of damage to men. Thank you, Claudia Fahlke of University of Gothenburg in Sweden. And now a moment of NBER (they’re on a roll with female-related research): As Japanese families have been indicating for years, there’s a positive correlation between having a grandparent nearby to the likelihood of mothers attaching themselves to the labor force. In politics, the NBER reports that the “incumbent effect” is significantly higher in female mayoral incumbents than male ones, and NBER infers that this is due to a higher level of political skills that are unrepresented during females’ initial mayoral campaigns. NBER’s also sticking its neck out with a paper that says that countries with equality policies and women’s rights policies actual develop faster as a result of those policies.

WIN: Nail Polish, the Reverse Gender Gap, Alcohol & the Female Brain, and Highlights from the NBER

Check out what the New York Times has to say about the fact that this year, sales of nail polish are way up, while women’s underwear sales are down (according to their analysis, this has historically suggested intense frugality and more rough times ahead).And encouragingly, though not a holistic view of women in business, NYT also has a piece on the “reverse gender gap,” or the phenom of young women outearning their male cohort. I don’t think many Gen Y women will be surprised by their report, especially considering the prolonged adolescenceof men who bear little resemblance to us beyond sharing sharing our  birth-years. Still, one small step for woman.

Here’s a reason to lay off the sauce this holiday season: Scientific American is reporting that alcohol does neurological damage to women   in smaller quantities than it takes for the same amount of damage to men. Thank you, Claudia Fahlke of University of Gothenburg in Sweden.

And now a moment of NBER (they’re on a roll with female-related research): As Japanese families have been indicating for years, there’s a positive correlation between having a grandparent nearby to the likelihood of mothers attaching themselves to the labor force. In politics, the NBER reports that the “incumbent effect” is significantly higher in female mayoral incumbents than male ones, and NBER infers that this is due to a higher level of political skills that are unrepresented during females’ initial mayoral campaigns. NBER’s also sticking its neck out with a paper that says that countries with equality policies and women’s rights policies actual develop faster as a result of those policies.

The Levo League

Posted on Friday December 16th 2011 at 12:00am. Its tags are listed below.

The Friday FYI: NYTimes Loses its Female Leader; Nurses Move to Strike; Cookie Dough, Rape Still Dangerous Janet Robinson is Stepping Down from the NYTimes, and Arthur Sulzberger will be stepping in during the search for a replacement. Nursing Strike! It’s looking as if nurses in New York will be striking in an effort to combat what the New York Times reports to be “[disrespect] by a corporate hospital culture that demands sacrifices from patients and those who provide their care, but pays executives millions of dollars.” San Francisco saw a larger-scale strike in September, organized by the California Nurses Association and its 23,000 nurses. A 24-hour walkout is set for Dec. 22 at eight hospitals in the San Francisco Bay Area and one in Long Beach, and there is word of potential strikes in New Jersey and Minnesota. The New York Times says that Columbia Presbyterian has come to an agreement with its nursing stuff, but that Mount Sinai, Montefiore Medical Center and St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center are all still on the hook. Cookie Doughn’t If you’re looking of ways to stay out of the ER after reading that news, take heed: just because it’s the holidays doesn’t mean it’s suddenly safe to eat raw cookie dough— ready-to-bake storebought raw chocolate chip cookie dough caused an outbreak of food poisoning caused by the Shiga toxin-producing E. coli between March and July 2009. It hospitalized 35 people, and reports came in that at least 80 people were affected nationally. And on a less festive note, some startling news from NYT:  nearly 1 in 5 women in a widespread national survey reported that they had been raped or had experienced an attempted rape, and one in four reported having been beaten by an intimate partner. One in six women have been stalked, according to the report. Some people will react to this by insinuating that our definition of rape is too stringent. I’d say our definition of “respect” is too lax.

The Friday FYI: NYTimes Loses its Female Leader; Nurses Move to Strike; Cookie Dough, Rape Still Dangerous

Janet Robinson is Stepping Down from the NYTimes, and Arthur Sulzberger will be stepping in during the search for a replacement.

Nursing Strike!

It’s looking as if nurses in New York will be striking in an effort to combat what the New York Times reports to be “[disrespect] by a corporate hospital culture that demands sacrifices from patients and those who provide their care, but pays executives millions of dollars.” San Francisco saw a larger-scale strike in September, organized by the California Nurses Association and its 23,000 nurses. A 24-hour walkout is set for Dec. 22 at eight hospitals in the San Francisco Bay Area and one in Long Beach, and there is word of potential strikes in New Jersey and Minnesota. The New York Times says that Columbia Presbyterian has come to an agreement with its nursing stuff, but that Mount Sinai, Montefiore Medical Center and St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center are all still on the hook.

Cookie Doughn’t

If you’re looking of ways to stay out of the ER after reading that news, take heed: just because it’s the holidays doesn’t mean it’s suddenly safe to eat raw cookie dough— ready-to-bake storebought raw chocolate chip cookie dough caused an outbreak of food poisoning caused by the Shiga toxin-producing E. coli between March and July 2009. It hospitalized 35 people, and reports came in that at least 80 people were affected nationally.

And on a less festive note, some startling news from NYT:  nearly 1 in 5 women in a widespread national survey reported that they had been raped or had experienced an attempted rape, and one in four reported having been beaten by an intimate partner. One in six women have been stalked, according to the report.

Some people will react to this by insinuating that our definition of rape is too stringent. I’d say our definition of “respect” is too lax.

The Levo League

Posted on Monday December 12th 2011 at 12:00am. Its tags are listed below.

Women in the News: Where are the women in Silicon Valley? Women & Technology: the 2011 UC Davis Study of California Women Business Leaders released findings last week indicating that “the proportion of women who lead California’s largest companies is growing at such a slow pace that it will take more than a century for women business leaders to achieve parity with men.”As the New York Times reports, the software and semiconductor sectors have the lowest percentages of women among the five highest-paid executives in a company, with 4.4 percent and 2.7 percent, according to the study. On average, fewer than one in 28of the highest-paid tech executives is a woman.The report goes on to say that only 5.2 percent of directors in the semiconductor sector are women, and just 7.7 percent have more than one woman director, compared with 40 percent of companies in all other industries. Just over 9 percent of directors in the software sector are women.Women & Health: The BBC reported last week that there’s a disturbing trend in breast cancer: the side effects of therapeutic medications are so strong that many women stop taking them. On a lighter note… Ever seen a female garbage collector? We haven’t either. But they’re apparently an awesome minority in New York City. In case you want every single issue of Vogue ever printed, in digital format, you can now get it: Conde is offering a single-person, annual subscription price of $1,575 for digital access to every page of every issue in Vogue’s long and illustriously fabulous history. Just in time for Christmas! And finally: Cosmopolitan is starting a Latina-geared version of the magazine, descriptively titled Cosmopolitan Latina. Hearst is distributing 545,000 copies that across states like Texas, California, Florida and New York, which have large Latino populations. [via NYT]

Women in the News: Where are the women in Silicon Valley?

Women & Technology: the 2011 UC Davis Study of California Women Business Leaders released findings last week indicating that “the proportion of women who lead California’s largest companies is growing at such a slow pace that it will take more than a century for women business leaders to achieve parity with men.”As the New York Times reports, the software and semiconductor sectors have the lowest percentages of women among the five highest-paid executives in a company, with 4.4 percent and 2.7 percent, according to the study. On average, fewer than one in 28of the highest-paid tech executives is a woman.The report goes on to say that only 5.2 percent of directors in the semiconductor sector are women, and just 7.7 percent have more than one woman director, compared with 40 percent of companies in all other industries. Just over 9 percent of directors in the software sector are women.Women & Health: The BBC reported last week that there’s a disturbing trend in breast cancer: the side effects of therapeutic medications are so strong that many women stop taking them.

On a lighter note…

Ever seen a female garbage collector? We haven’t either. But they’re apparently an awesome minority in New York City.

In case you want every single issue of Vogue ever printed, in digital format, you can now get it: Conde is offering a single-person, annual subscription price of $1,575 for digital access to every page of every issue in Vogue’s long and illustriously fabulous history. Just in time for Christmas!

And finally: Cosmopolitan is starting a Latina-geared version of the magazine, descriptively titled Cosmopolitan Latina. Hearst is distributing 545,000 copies that across states like Texas, California, Florida and New York, which have large Latino populations. [via NYT]

The Levo League

Posted on Friday December 9th 2011 at 12:00am. Its tags are listed below.

The Friday FYI: One Giant Step for Breast Cancer By Elizabeth Burke There’s good news out there for women with HER2-positive breast cancer and postmenopausal hormone-receptor–positive advanced breast cancer. The New England Journal of Medicine has published studies affirming that two drugs, pertuzumab from Genentech andeverolimus from Novartis, showed signs in clinical trials that they could prolong lives. Per the New York Times, it’s too early to know whether those findings will hold up.  [via NYT] Elizabeth Burke is Levo’s managing editor.

The Friday FYI: One Giant Step for Breast Cancer

By Elizabeth Burke

There’s good news out there for women with HER2-positive breast cancer and postmenopausal hormone-receptor–positive advanced breast cancer. The New England Journal of Medicine has published studies affirming that two drugs, pertuzumab from Genentech andeverolimus from Novartis, showed signs in clinical trials that they could prolong lives. Per the New York Times, it’s too early to know whether those findings will hold up.  [via NYT]

Elizabeth Burke is Levo’s managing editor.

The Levo League

Posted on Monday December 5th 2011 at 12:00am. Its tags are listed below.

Women in the News: Puppies & Pavlov, Biglaw Partner Designations Dwindling, Women in Afghanistan, and Women & Labor By Elizabeth Burke In cute puppy news, we dug up a Molson  dual advertising campaign that ran parallel in women’s & men’s magazines featuring (1) in the women’s magazine, a photo of an attractive man drinking Molson whilst holding two adorable puppies and (2) in the men’s magazine, explaining the favor Molson is doing to male readers everywhere by slowly conditioning women to associate Molson with men who love adorable puppies and look attractive. It’s good to know that puppies, at least, are benefiting from an otherwise totally vapid advertising campaign. What do you think about the dual demographic marketing approach Molson took? Vivia Chen of the Careerist is coming at us with some more bad news: Last year’s partner appointment rounds looked good for women in Biglaw, but this year is looking pretty vile. Her figures:Cravath Swaine & Moore: No women out of four new partners.Gibson Dunn & Crutcher: Four women out of 11.Simpson Thacher & Bartlett: Two women out of 12.Sullivan & Cromwell: One out of five.Weil Gotshal & Manges: Two out of 11. Afghanistan: Amid Karzai’s warning that the Taliban may rise again if a peace deal is brokered at the upcoming Bonn conference on the future of Afghanistan, the BBC reports that there’s another major concern in danger of being sidelined or even backtracking:the progress that the women of Afghanistan have made in the past decade. Women in Music: Women in Music is a pre-Grammy warmup to bring attention to women in the music world who have made strides in the past year. Predictably, Billboard hosted what turned out to be a Taylor & Nikki-festival. Kind of a boring lineup for the magazine that’s supposed to be at the cutting edge of new music, but both women are such strong speakers and have such amazing resumes that it was still a completely inspiring event. The New York Times published a piece last week on women in labor unions, and the tremendous impact their voices have had in the past few years. Of the development, NYT says “Unions, of course, have been in retreat for years. But Ms. Pope and several other women, notably Rose Ann DeMoro, of National Nurses United, and Mary Kay Henry, of the Service Employees International Union, are pushing back. Their ascendance has rekindled hope that organized labor maybe, just maybe, could stage a comeback. They have also helped inspire the likes of Occupy Wall Street.”

Women in the News: Puppies & Pavlov, Biglaw Partner Designations Dwindling, Women in Afghanistan, and Women & Labor

By Elizabeth Burke

In cute puppy news, we dug up a Molson  dual advertising campaign that ran parallel in women’s & men’s magazines featuring (1) in the women’s magazine, a photo of an attractive man drinking Molson whilst holding two adorable puppies and (2) in the men’s magazine, explaining the favor Molson is doing to male readers everywhere by slowly conditioning women to associate Molson with men who love adorable puppies and look attractive. It’s good to know that puppies, at least, are benefiting from an otherwise totally vapid advertising campaign.

What do you think about the dual demographic marketing approach Molson took?

Vivia Chen of the Careerist is coming at us with some more bad news: Last year’s partner appointment rounds looked good for women in Biglaw, but this year is looking pretty vile. Her figures:
Cravath Swaine & Moore: No women out of four new partners.
Gibson Dunn & Crutcher: Four women out of 11.
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett: Two women out of 12.
Sullivan & Cromwell: One out of five.
Weil Gotshal & Manges: Two out of 11.

Afghanistan: Amid Karzai’s warning that the Taliban may rise again if a peace deal is brokered at the upcoming Bonn conference on the future of Afghanistan, the BBC reports that there’s another major concern in danger of being sidelined or even backtracking:the progress that the women of Afghanistan have made in the past decade.

Women in Music: Women in Music is a pre-Grammy warmup to bring attention to women in the music world who have made strides in the past year. Predictably, Billboard hosted what turned out to be a Taylor & Nikki-festival. Kind of a boring lineup for the magazine that’s supposed to be at the cutting edge of new music, but both women are such strong speakers and have such amazing resumes that it was still a completely inspiring event.

The New York Times published a piece last week on women in labor unions, and the tremendous impact their voices have had in the past few years. Of the development, NYT says “Unions, of course, have been in retreat for years. But Ms. Pope and several other women, notably Rose Ann DeMoro, of National Nurses United, and Mary Kay Henry, of the Service Employees International Union, are pushing back. Their ascendance has rekindled hope that organized labor maybe, just maybe, could stage a comeback. They have also helped inspire the likes of Occupy Wall Street.”

The Grindstone Roundup, 12/02/2011

Posted on Friday December 2nd 2011 at 12:00am. Its tags are listed below.


The Grindstone Roundup, 12/02/2011

By Laura Donovan

The holiday season is in full swing, but our pals at The Grindstone haven’t slowed their pace. The women’s professional site does, however, recognize that Christmastime can be a distracting and stressful period in the working world and has put together some useful stories on how to continue working and managing others as the Yuletide spirit pervades our daily lives. Here are some of our favorite recent Grindstone articles that address holiday protocol at the office as well as other work-related issues that loom over us.

Tips on managing employees during the unproductive holiday season

Lindsay Cross coaches readers on how to deal with Grinch coworkers this time of year

Does a higher pay warrant sexual harassment? Some women think so.

Are women in PR just grown-up “Mean Girls”? Meredith Lepore explores why women in the cutthroat industry feel the need to compete with each other

If you are a woman and attended an Ivy League institution, rest assured knowing neither of these will help you become a CEO, according to a new study

Girl power! Women are significantly more likely to take risks when surrounded by other women

Thanks, Captain Obvious: Why listing your objective on a resume is a redundant “waste of space”

Laura Donovan is a staff writer and editor for Levo.

The Levo League

Posted on Tuesday November 29th 2011 at 12:00am. Its tags are listed below.

Spotted: at the White House By Caroline Ghosn Yesterday I was honored to attend the White House’s Office of Public Engagement and Start-Up America event for Young Entrepreneur Council members (@theYEC) at none other than the White House itself. It was eye-opening. Below are the best quips of inspiration from the panelists that MTV’s DJ Sway moderated with humor and ease - I’m not usually an MTV-er, but count me in for anything Sway is involved in from here on out: Spotted: on Entrepreneurship 1. “In entrepreneurship you need credibility and the willingness to fail repeatedly.” Jeremy Johnson, @2tor Founder2. “There’s a lot more social enterprise these days - our generation can get excited about good work” Alexis Ohanianm @reddit Founder3. “If my life were a video game it would be on easy mode - I’m middle class, white, and have two loving parents. What’s exciting about the Internet is that it’s actually a meritocracy.” Alexis Ohanianm @reddit Founder4. “In a start-up, if you have too much money / funding, you don’t have to focus, which can be a big disadvantage.” @dinakaplan, Founder BlipTv5. “Spend 80% head down on product, and 20% head up listening to and serving the community you will be targeting.” @dinakaplan Spotted: on Having the Right Mindset “You can’t and don’t know everything and you need to learn how to learn.” Jeremy Johnson, @2tor Founder Spotted: on Women 1. “I’m always asked: How did it feel being young, black and a woman?”  I say that the “only color that matters is green.” @tinacwells, Buzz Marketing Group Founder2. “Mentors are key - my mentor cleared her schedule the day after I met her and asked me ‘How can I help you?’. I strive towards that every day with the programs for women I have founded.” @dinakaplan Spotted: on Professional Advice 1. “My topline advice is be concise and be specific - it’s the most important thing” @tinawells, Buzz Marketing Group Founder2. “Just be authentic.” @dinakaplan, Founder BlipTv

Spotted: at the White House

By Caroline Ghosn

Yesterday I was honored to attend the White House’s Office of Public Engagement and Start-Up America event for Young Entrepreneur Council members (@theYEC) at none other than the White House itself. It was eye-opening.

Below are the best quips of inspiration from the panelists that MTV’s DJ Sway moderated with humor and ease - I’m not usually an MTV-er, but count me in for anything Sway is involved in from here on out:

Spotted: on Entrepreneurship

1. “In entrepreneurship you need credibility and the willingness to fail repeatedly.” Jeremy Johnson, @2tor Founder
2. “There’s a lot more social enterprise these days - our generation can get excited about good work” Alexis Ohanianm @reddit Founder
3. “If my life were a video game it would be on easy mode - I’m middle class, white, and have two loving parents. What’s exciting about the Internet is that it’s actually a meritocracy.” Alexis Ohanianm @reddit Founder
4. “In a start-up, if you have too much money / funding, you don’t have to focus, which can be a big disadvantage.” @dinakaplan, Founder BlipTv
5. “Spend 80% head down on product, and 20% head up listening to and serving the community you will be targeting.” @dinakaplan

Spotted: on Having the Right Mindset

“You can’t and don’t know everything and you need to learn how to learn.” Jeremy Johnson, @2tor Founder

Spotted: on Women

1. “I’m always asked: How did it feel being young, black and a woman?”  I say that the “only color that matters is green.” @tinacwells, Buzz Marketing Group Founder
2. “Mentors are key - my mentor cleared her schedule the day after I met her and asked me ‘How can I help you?’. I strive towards that every day with the programs for women I have founded.” @dinakaplan

Spotted: on Professional Advice

1. “My topline advice is be concise and be specific - it’s the most important thing” @tinawells, Buzz Marketing Group Founder
2. “Just be authentic.” @dinakaplan, Founder BlipTv

The Levo League

Posted on Friday November 4th 2011 at 12:00am. Its tags are listed below.

The Friday FYI: It’s a Numbers Game This Friday, L(L) is bringing you a distressing little mental exercise: Compare the Lists! 1. The Forbes 100 Most Powerful Women: We love this list. Sheryl Sandberg is ranked at #5. It’s a great list, even if it uses sort of an unflattering photo of Angela Merkel (but let’s be honest: she’s totally pulling it off). If you don’t already want to BE every woman on this list, check it out and read up on these fabulous ladies. Angela. She’s the German Chancellor. She’s the #1 Most Powerful Woman. And this is the photo Forbes chooses? 2. The Forbes Most Powerful People: Do some side-by-side. SIX WOMEN. We are JUST SAYING. Ever wondered about the effect of contraceptives on world population? On a more op-ed note, the New York Times quietly published a little opinion piece by Nicholas D. Kristof on the effect that the use of contraception has on the world’s population. His estimate? Contraception prevents 112 million abortions worldwide every year. Three cheers for  The United Nations Population Fund, whose promotion of contraception means that “it may have reduced abortions more than any organization in the world.” As Bill Clinton (love him, hate him— he’s got a good idea here) said in a speech at the DNC on August 29, 1996. “Abortion should not only be safe and legal, it should be rare.” We hear you on the “rare” thing, Bill.

The Friday FYI: It’s a Numbers Game

This Friday, L(L) is bringing you a distressing little mental exercise: Compare the Lists!

1. The Forbes 100 Most Powerful Women: We love this list. Sheryl Sandberg is ranked at #5. It’s a great list, even if it uses sort of an unflattering photo of Angela Merkel (but let’s be honest: she’s totally pulling it off). If you don’t already want to BE every woman on this list, check it out and read up on these fabulous ladies.

Angela. She’s the German Chancellor. She’s the #1 Most Powerful Woman. And this is the photo Forbes chooses?

2. The Forbes Most Powerful People: Do some side-by-side. SIX WOMEN. We are JUST SAYING.

Ever wondered about the effect of contraceptives on world population?

On a more op-ed note, the New York Times quietly published a little opinion piece by Nicholas D. Kristof on the effect that the use of contraception has on the world’s population. His estimate? Contraception prevents 112 million abortions worldwide every year. Three cheers for  The United Nations Population Fund, whose promotion of contraception means that “it may have reduced abortions more than any organization in the world.” As Bill Clinton (love him, hate him— he’s got a good idea here) said in a speech at the DNC on August 29, 1996. “Abortion should not only be safe and legal, it should be rare.” We hear you on the “rare” thing, Bill.

Levo (League)’s Top Ten Halloween-At-Work Costumes

Posted on Friday October 21st 2011 at 12:00am. Its tags are listed below.


Levo (League)’s Top Ten Halloween-At-Work Costumes

By Laura Donovan

Step aside, children: Halloween Costume Day isn’t just for energetic elementary school students anymore. The L(L)’s Laura Donovan makes some great suggestions for how to pull off a festive look that’ll charm your coworkers.

If you work in a laid-back atmosphere, among festive PYPs, you can dress up on the job on October 31 (It’s a Monday, so your office may have mutually decided to celebrate it on the previous Friday, October 28). With an estimated 17.5 million people under 24 in the labor force, youthful attitudes and practices pervade many offices, so get excited to see your colleagues decked out for All Hallows’ Eve towards the end of the month.

“Halloween is a great opportunity to show off your creative side, whether you work in a creative environment or not,” Meg Hemphill, a style writer for The Huffington Post, told The Levo (League), adding that there are plenty of clever, memorable costume ideas for PYPs to choose from.

Here at The L(L), we’re young at heart and eager to celebrate one of the most eventful days of fall as a unit, so check out our list of top ten best Halloween-at-work costumes that will foster office bonding, create humorous and enjoyable memories, and promote teamwork.

1. Where’s Waldo?

As a little kid, did you pat yourself on the back every time you spotted Waldo buried in a crowd? You’re in good company. By dressing up as the stiff, stripes-loving cartoon, you can chat with co-workers about the pride you felt upon finding Waldo on every page and connect over other favorite childhood books. Halloween falls on a Monday this year, and it will probably be a fairly slow day in the professional world, so be sure to play at least one round of “Where’s Waldo?” with colleagues. It’s been done before, so keep the game alive if you secretly miss hide-and-seek.

2. Chef

Every office has a resident cook (Caroline Ghosn here at The L(L)!), and if you’re this person, put your skills to good use by dressing up as a chef for Halloween. The costume requires little more than an apron and a hat, so you can use the extra primping time to whip up snacks for the staff. Surprise them with baked goods, mini sandwiches, or one of your favorite light dishes. You’ll have the pleasure of making tasty food, showing off your kitchen talents, and rewarding co-workers, so everybody wins.

3. Restaurant server

The waitress costume serves a similar purpose and is easy to pull off. If you want to be timely, channel Kat Dennings and Beth Behrs’ cheery waitress outfits in new sitcom, “2 Broke Girls”. To go above and beyond, put pieces of Halloween candy on your server tray and drop the treats off on each of your co-workers’ desks.

4.  A “Pan Am” flight attendant

Addicted to ABC drama “Pan Am”? Emulate your one of the show’s smiley, bright-eyed stewardesses in costume form. You’ll remind colleagues of a time when flying was pleasurable, relatively new and exciting, and worth dressing up for. If you’re feeling particularly ambitious, read our recent interview with a former Pan Am stewardess to acquire some insight on what it was actually like to be part of a flight crew in the early 70s.

5. Twister girl

Almost everyone has had funny experiences with Twister, the hands-on game that requires physical balance, flexibility, and a sense of humor. With the Twister costume, you can reminisce about such stories with colleagues. Consider it another icebreaker, and bust out the actual Twister mat if you’d like. This costumes shows you don’t take yourself too seriously and can joke around.

6. Adele

Does anyone else have a mega girl crush on British soul singer Adele, or am I the only one? The record-breaking musician resonated with many this year with hit single, “Rolling in the Deep”, so she’s a relevant person to dress up as for Halloween. Adopt her trademark bob, wear all black, purchase long fake eyelashes, and you’re set. If you enjoy singing (like our very own Elizabeth Burke), belt out one of Adele’s many romance tunes when productivity declines towards the end of the day.

7. Female politician

Female politicos have been hot news items this year, especially with Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann eyeing a 2012 run and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton taking second place on Forbes’ 2011 list of World’s Most Powerful Women. Ysolt Usigan, a CBSNews.com lifestyle and tech editor, suggests showing up to work as a well known political figure. It takes minimal effort but can be the source of many laughs.

“You can dress like Sarah Palin or Hillary Clinton by putting on the most professional skirt suit you have,” Usigan said. “Accessorize with plastic-rimmed eye glasses for Palin and a blonde bob for Clinton.”

If you want to go further with the Palin costume, don her signature red suit or throw on some hunting gear and tote a fake plastic gun. Ever wondered what a pantsuit feels like? Steal Clinton’s look and decide for yourself whether it suits you (no pun intended!).

8. Solid black

Halloween-at-work is what you make of it, so costumes can be spirited or low-key as you’d like. Both Usigan and Hemphill advise the solid black outfit for those who don’t have the funds or time to come up with an intricate costume.

“If you have nothing in your closet to transform into a Halloween costume, just pick up some cat ears from the drugstore and wear all black,” Usigan said.

Hemphill agrees that you can’t go wrong with the low-maintenance cat look.

“You can go simple with an all-black outfit (keep it sophisticated), cat ears and whiskers drawn on with eyeliner,” Hemphill added.

9. College sports fanatic (or player)

Fall is a nostalgic time for PYPs, as many of them long to visit their alma maters during Homecoming and big football games. If you went to a sports-oriented university and gladly camped out to watch highly-anticipated athletic games (looking at you, Berkeley alumna and L(L) founder Amanda Pouchot!), wear your school colors and disguise yourself as a spirited student. Body paint, dangling necklaces, and foam fingers are welcome for the costume. Here’s your shot to play college kid again and give your colleagues a glimpse into your past. Dressing up as a pro league player can also spark conversation. But be careful to be sensitive to your work environment in this one— if your job is client-facing, or even if your coworkers are reserved about the occasion, this is one of the louder options.

10. Lady Gaga circa 2008

There are dozens of ways to dress up as Lady Gaga for Halloween, but the tamest approach would be to copy her “Just Dance” music video look. It sets you up for discussion about the singer’s rise to stardom and dramatic change in style over the years. In the afternoon, you can even blast some of her greatest hits in the office.

“For something simple, a wig would be fun or even a pair of sunglasses,” Alison Coglianese, creator of fashion blog Chain Strap Purse, said of the costume, which requires no explanation.

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