--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Women have made enormous progress on the…" description: "\"Women have made enormous progress on the lower and middle rungs of the career ladder, but we are failing to make the leap into senior positions. Everyo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/sylvia-ann-hewlett-26752_bigs_women-have-made-enormous-progress-on-the_1653931.jpg" --- # Women have made enormous progress on the lower and middle… ![“Women have made enormous progress on the lower and middle rungs of the career ladder, but we are failing to make the leap into senior positions. Everyone jumps to the conclusion that it's motherhood that holds women back, but often the big roadblock is the lack of executive presence.” quote by Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/sylvia-ann-hewlett-26752_bigs_women-have-made-enormous-progress-on-the_1653931.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/sylvia-ann-hewlett-26752_bigs_women-have-made-enormous-progress-on-the_1653931.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/sylvia-ann-hewlett-26752_bigs_women-have-made-enormous-progress-on-the_1653931.jpg) > “Women have made enormous progress on the lower and middle rungs of the career ladder, but we are failing to make the leap into senior positions. Everyone jumps to the conclusion that it's motherhood that holds women back, but often the big roadblock is the lack of executive presence.” [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Women advance in mid‑level jobs but still lack senior roles, often due to missing executive presence rather than motherhood. **In simple terms:** Women climb to middle jobs but not senior ones; presence matters. Key Takeaway Develop executive presence to break the glass ceiling. Themes gender equity leadership career advancement Mood determined optimistic critical Type advice analytical When to use this quote - corporate boardrooms - political appointments - startup leadership - academic deans Key Concepts executive presence organizational bias mentorship Questions to Reflect On - How can organizations train and recognize executive presence? - What structural changes support women’s rise to senior roles? A Different Perspective Executive presence can be cultivated, but systemic bias may still hinder progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bigs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bigs/) [Careers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/careers/) [Conclusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conclusion/) [Conclusion Motherhood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conclusion-motherhood-685796/) [Enormous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enormous/) [Executive Presence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/executive-presence-685795/) [Executives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/executives/) [Failing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failing/) [Feminism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminism/) [Lack Executive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lack-executive-685793/) [Ladders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ladders/) [Leap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leap/) [Made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/made/) [Middle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle/) [Motherhood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/motherhood/) [Motherhood Holds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/motherhood-holds-685794/) [Position](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/position/) [Progress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/progress/) [Roadblock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/roadblock/) [Senior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/senior/) ## Related quotes > [“It is executive presence—and no man or woman attains a top job, lands an extraordinary deal, or develops a significant following without this heady…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/it-is-executive-presence-and-no-man-or-woman-attains-a-top-job-lands/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) > [I have no maternal instinct whatsoever. Motherhood holds no interest for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mirren/i-have-no-maternal-instinct-whatsoever-motherhood-holds-no-interest/) [Helen Mirren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mirren/) > [Executive presence has to do with the whole of the person. It's much more than presentation skill, charisma or savvy. It shows up in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-bates/executive-presence-has-to-do-with-the-whole-of-the-person-it-s-much/) [Suzanne Bates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-bates/) > [For years when we went into companies to discuss how we could help their leaders be most effective, we heard people say, "Our leaders…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-bates/for-years-when-we-went-into-companies-to-discuss-how-we-could-help/) [Suzanne Bates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-bates/) > [There are no roadblocks, only springboards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brent-smith/there-are-no-roadblocks-only-springboards/) [Brent Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brent-smith/) > [“When a person boldly declares 'You can't' he might as well add on 'Can you?' knowing that this spoken roadblock only serves to fuel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/when-a-person-boldly-declares-you-can-t-he-might-as-well-add-on-can/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [When you are starting a business or going down any challenging endeavor, you are bound to encounter challenges. You are going to hit many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/when-you-are-starting-a-business-or-going-down-any-challenging/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [Lessons often come dressed up as detours and roadblocks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/lessons-often-come-dressed-up-as-detours-and-roadblocks/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [There are two roadblocks in the way of transforming India into an economic giant and one of them was education. I believe that if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kumar-mangalam-birla/there-are-two-roadblocks-in-the-way-of-transforming-india-into-an/) [Kumar Mangalam Birla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kumar-mangalam-birla/) > [“Don't let your problems create a roadblock on the way to your success.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debasish-mridha/don-t-let-your-problems-create-a-roadblock-on-the-way-to-your-success/) [Debasish Mridha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debasish-mridha/) > [People have amazing ideas. The main problem - I won't call it a problem, let's call it a roadblock - is if you use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-somerhalder/people-have-amazing-ideas-the-main-problem-i-won-t-call-it-a-problem/) [Ian Somerhalder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-somerhalder/) > [Christian Zionism has become the most powerful and destructive force at work in America today. Influential in shaping Western foreign policy on the Middle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-sizer/christian-zionism-has-become-the-most-powerful-and-destructive-force/) [Stephen Sizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-sizer/) > [Once I decide to do something, I can't have people telling me I can't. If there's a roadblock, you jump over it, walk around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kitty-kelley/once-i-decide-to-do-something-i-can-t-have-people-telling-me-i-can-t/) [Kitty Kelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kitty-kelley/) > [When I first started, I was really nervous. You could hear my voice quiver. So I started drinking a bit and that helped. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-mcgraw/when-i-first-started-i-was-really-nervous-you-could-hear-my-voice/) [Tim McGraw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-mcgraw/) > [When your science runs into a policy roadblock, all of a sudden the science starts to disappear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-fox/when-your-science-runs-into-a-policy-roadblock-all-of-a-sudden-the/) [Josh Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-fox/) ## More by Sylvia Ann Hewlett > [For women the wage gap sets up an infuriating Catch-22 situation. They do the housework because they earn less, and they earn lessbecause they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/for-women-the-wage-gap-sets-up-an-infuriating-catch-22-situation-they/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) > [ Fashions change, and with the new psychoanalytical perspective of the postwar period \[WWII\], child rearing became enshrined as thespecial responsibility of mothersany shortcoming in… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/fashions-change-and-with-the-new-psychoanalytical-perspective-of-the/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) > [The decision to have a child is both a private and a public decision, for children are our collective future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/the-decision-to-have-a-child-is-both-a-private-and-a-public-decision/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) > [“Star performers are very likely to attract sponsors, and loyal performers are very likely to keep them. But if they fail to distinguish themselves,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/star-performers-are-very-likely-to-attract-sponsors-and-loyal/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) > [“Sponsorship, done right, is transactional. It’s an implicit or even explicit strategic alliance, a long-range quid pro quo.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/sponsorship-done-right-is-transactional-it-s-an-implicit-or-even/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) > [“It is executive presence—and no man or woman attains a top job, lands an extraordinary deal, or develops a significant following without this heady…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/it-is-executive-presence-and-no-man-or-woman-attains-a-top-job-lands/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) > [“Do your job well, make sure your boss is fully informed, and don’t be afraid to ask for help,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/do-your-job-well-make-sure-your-boss-is-fully-informed-and-don-t-be/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) > [Recently we've been hearing a lot about women "having it all." Myself, I think that is not really an accurate description of female lives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/recently-we-ve-been-hearing-a-lot-about-women-having-it-all-myself-i/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) > [There are six elements of gravitas critical to leadership: grace under fire, decisiveness, emotional intelligence and the ability to read a room, integrity and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/there-are-six-elements-of-gravitas-critical-to-leadership-grace-under/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) > [“how you act (gravitas), how you speak (communication), and how you look (appearance) count for a lot in determining your leadership presence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/how-you-act-gravitas-how-you-speak-communication-and-how-you-look/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) > [The feedback women are getting at work is amazingly ineffective or vague. You need to signal to your boss or senior colleagues that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/the-feedback-women-are-getting-at-work-is-amazingly-ineffective-or/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) > [Quite simply, promotions are not just functions of ability, values, or the numbers you hit, but also rest critically on how you are perceived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/quite-simply-promotions-are-not-just-functions-of-ability-values-or/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) > [“classic female mistake. I thought that it was all about doing my job extraordinarily well. If I put my head down and worked as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/classic-female-mistake-i-thought-that-it-was-all-about-doing-my-job/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) > [American feminists have generally stressed the ways in which men and women should be equal and have therefore tried to put aside differences… Social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/american-feminists-have-generally-stressed-the-ways-in-which-men-and/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) > [Modern women are squeezed between the devil and the deep blue sea, and there are no lifeboats out there in the form of public…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/modern-women-are-squeezed-between-the-devil-and-the-deep-blue-sea-and/) [Sylvia Ann Hewlett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) [Explore all 21 Sylvia Ann Hewlett quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/) ## More Bigs quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [It is said that history turns on small hinges. A human career, too, results from an accumulating series of decisions about large and small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/it-is-said-that-history-turns-on-small-hinges-a-human-career-too/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [I'm a true believer in prayer, a big believer in prayer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-jackson/i-m-a-true-believer-in-prayer-a-big-believer-in-prayer/) [Janet Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-jackson/) > [The biggest change for me as a mom was realizing I needed to put someone else before me. Now the hardest part about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-alexis/the-biggest-change-for-me-as-a-mom-was-realizing-i-needed-to-put/) [Kim Alexis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-alexis/) > [I'm a big fan of all the Boston guys that are acting - Matt Damon , Ben Affleck, Mark Wahlberg - they made a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-wormald/i-m-a-big-fan-of-all-the-boston-guys-that-are-acting-matt-damon-ben/) [Kenny Wormald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-wormald/) > [The only regret I have in my career, is my managers wanted a big payday, and I wanted four or five more fights before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-cooney/the-only-regret-i-have-in-my-career-is-my-managers-wanted-a-big/) [Gerry Cooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-cooney/) > [It goes to show you how we in the press so often miss the big stories that are right under our noses. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ebert/it-goes-to-show-you-how-we-in-the-press-so-often-miss-the-big-stories/) [Roger Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ebert/) > [Okay, so I'll admit I'm curious. Big deal. We both know what that leads to. Dead cat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elizabeth-phillips/okay-so-i-ll-admit-i-m-curious-big-deal-we-both-know-what-that-leads/) [Susan Elizabeth Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elizabeth-phillips/) > [I don't want this to be a distraction. This has been distracting enough. I'm not going to rehash this going forward. I'm sure other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jayson-werth/i-don-t-want-this-to-be-a-distraction-this-has-been-distracting/) [Jayson Werth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jayson-werth/) > [I didn't get how big it was until I went home, turned on the television and saw it on all the news, and later…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/i-didn-t-get-how-big-it-was-until-i-went-home-turned-on-the/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [It’s a small thing to help one animal, but to that one animal it’s a big thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-baur/it-s-a-small-thing-to-help-one-animal-but-to-that-one-animal-it-s-a/) [Gene Baur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-baur/) > [Since I was a little child, my nose - I think it's too big.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celine-dion/since-i-was-a-little-child-my-nose-i-think-it-s-too-big/) [Celine Dion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celine-dion/) > [People forget that there is a big difference between coercion and persuasion. The idea that evangelism is coercive is nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/people-forget-that-there-is-a-big-difference-between-coercion-and/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [I turn a lot of stuff down - big, big movies, the kind I wouldn't want to go to the cinema to see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-fox/i-turn-a-lot-of-stuff-down-big-big-movies-the-kind-i-wouldn-t-want-to/) [Matthew Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-fox/) > [I got in trouble my whole life for having a big mouth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-tyler/i-got-in-trouble-my-whole-life-for-having-a-big-mouth/) [Steven Tyler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-tyler/) [Browse all 15,539 Bigs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bigs/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Women have made enormous progress on the lower and middle rungs of the career ladder, but we are failing to make the leap into senior positions. Everyone jumps to the conclusion that it's motherhood that holds women back, but often the big roadblock is the lack of executive presence.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sylvia Ann Hewlett" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/women-have-made-enormous-progress-on-the-lower-and-middle-rungs-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bigs" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/women-have-made-enormous-progress-on-the-lower-and-middle-rungs-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/sylvia-ann-hewlett-26752_bigs_women-have-made-enormous-progress-on-the_1653931.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/sylvia-ann-hewlett-26752_bigs_women-have-made-enormous-progress-on-the_1653931.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd6/sylvia-ann-hewlett-26752_bigs_women-have-made-enormous-progress-on-the_1653931.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Women have made enormous progress on the lower and middle rungs of the career ladder, but we are failing to…” — Sylvia Ann Hewlett", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Sylvia Ann Hewlett", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-ann-hewlett/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Women have made enormous progress on...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/women-have-made-enormous-progress-on-the-lower-and-middle-rungs-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-ann-hewlett/women-have-made-enormous-progress-on-the-lower-and-middle-rungs-of/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```