My Top 3

During my years at CHOP, I have received wonderful advice from managers and colleagues that has helped me advance my career in ways I never imagined possible when I was starting out as a young nurse. I strongly believe the most important part of my job is to develop...

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The Upside of Vulnerability

Vul·ner·a·bil·i·ty [noun]The quality or state of being exposed to the possibility of being attacked or harmed, either physically or emotionally. We live in a culture with an ever-increasing focus on perfection. Whether it’s at home or in the workplace, we put so much...

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Own Your Financial Literacy

Own Your Financial Literacy  With having just celebrated another International Women’s Day, I wanted to write about a topic of key importance to elevating women – not just in the workplace, but in society as a whole. There is almost no issue more important to...

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Knowing Your Bandwidth

I began thinking about this post a few weeks ago, on a typical Sunday evening. My husband Lou and I had been traveling and we’d just returned home. I intended to use the evening to get the kitchen ready for our remodel that was about to begin, pack up everything that...

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How We Speak

Vocal Fry. Up-speak. Nasal. Too loud. Too high-pitched. Too quiet. Shrill. We talk a lot about women’s voices. I have even written about the ways we can modulate our voices to appear more confident and capable. The truth is, there is scientific research that supports...

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Women on Boards

Having women represented on corporate boards adds incredible value to a company yet it remains a big challenge. According to the Forum of Executive Women’s most recent research, from 2016 to 2017, overall board seats held by women in the Philadelphia region only grew from 16% to 17% and out of the 100 companies surveyed, 18 still did not have any women on their boards. While this issue is getting more attention (California recently passed a controversial law mandating that every publicly traded company based in the state will need at least one woman on the board by the end of 2019) we just aren’t seeing the advances we should be.

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When A+ Work Isn’t Enough

I often tell women I’m mentoring that doing A+ work is simply not enough. If someone is excellent in their role but keeps their head down and doesn’t stretch themselves, their hard work can go unrecognized. Successful careers, promotions, and the type of recognition I...

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The Fifth Trimester: Guest Blog by Kaitlin Cleary

With one in four women having to return to work less than 10 days after giving birth, we have a real problem in this country when it comes to giving women the time they need to recover and bond with their babies. However, even for those who are able to take 12 weeks...

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Women Supporting Women

I recently had the pleasure of attending a Women’s Leadership Luncheon hosted by Jacobson Strategic Communications and the Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce. It was a wonderful afternoon connecting with other leaders, listening to a discussion with Secretary Leslie...

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This Has Been Difficult to Ignore

This past month has brought up many memories from my years as a young woman. With the controversy surrounding Brett Kavanaugh having subsided from the news a bit, it’s left me reflecting on my own experience and has led to conversations with my high school and college...

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Is Sitting the New Smoking?

We’re all aware of the health benefits of exercise, but lately I’ve been hearing more conversation around the risks of NOT exercising among friends and co-workers. You’ve probably heard the research citing how terrible sitting over eight hours per day is for your...

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Introducing Breaking Through with Madeline Bell

I define myself in many ways – a former nurse, an advocate for children, a mother, a grandmother, a female executive and a mentor. I feel that my life experiences have given me a unique perspective that can inspire others. My goal with this blog has always been to...

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Are We Still Invisible?

This is an interesting question to ask in the midst of so many women coming forward with stories of sexual harassment in the workplace. Sexual harassment and sexual assault is a huge problem in our society, and it is interconnected with so many other instances of...

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Leaders Are Always Watched

As I have mentioned in previous blog posts, leaders are watched. Whether you realize it or not, followers listen to you, even when you don’t intend to send messages. It is for this reason that I am often very cautious about staying focused on messages of leadership...

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