Leadership and Power

Leadership is the overarching theme of the book, tying together all the components of power as well as Abrams’ personal story of achieving many of her ambitions. Throughout the book Abrams uses her own experiences as well as those of others to extrapolate lessons, advice and tools for how to become an effective leader as a member of a marginalized group. Her lessons of leadership center on the understanding of how power operates in American society. By breaking power into its components, “ambition, fear, money, failure, opportunity, and access,” Abrams ultimate goal is to inspire and empower a whole generation of minority leaders who will rise up and create a more inclusive vision for leadership in society (xxix). Abrams frames all her considerations of power and positive change around leadership, arguing that “leadership stands at the crux of how we get to power” (xxvii).

Abrams’ own...