Many of you know that for several months now, I’ve been working with Bernadette Boas, the author of the new book, “Shedding the Corporate Book”. I was referred to her (pre-publication), and upon reviewing her website, my first thought was “oh no, it’s a self-help thing.” Let’s just say I’m not into the self-help movement! I’ve read a few books over the years, but found myself more drawn to novels, etc. That’s not to say I couldn’t work with her, but on first impression, I wasn’t sure this was a perfect match.
However, at the top of her website was a link which allowed me to download the first chapter of her book. After reading it, I was hooked. This was no typical self-help book… it was a novel, a story. The first chapter describes the day she was fired, and was laced with so many details you’d have thought she had written it that day. It was fascinating.
Truthfully, I was taken aback by Bernadette’s honesty. If most of us were ever to publish an autobiography, we’d want people to see the best version of ourselves. After all, who wants to admit, “I was ruthless, nasty and people were scared of me.” With this book, Bernadette threw herself under the bus and wasn’t screaming for somebody to save her. She was putting herself out there for the whole world to see, the good, the bad and the ugly. She was literally calling herself a BITCH.
I quickly signed up to pre-order her book and felt no hesitation about working on her project. Bernadette and I agreed to meet to discuss how we could work together. On first glance, I met a woman who was wearing a purple flowery, flowing top. Where was the corporate shark? Could this possibly have been the woman who struck fear in the hearts of her team members and staff? She was open, warm and friendly and oh so smart. I couldn’t wait for the book to be published so I could learn more about her story… the woman I had met and the woman portrayed in that first chapter seemed to be completely incongruous.
Upon receiving an autographed copy, I couldn’t wait to dive in. I just had to know what made this woman portray herself in such a negative light. After the first chapter, Bernadette went through a cathartic period where she mourned the end of her corporate career and wondered what her future held for her, and then began to realize she didn’t like the person she saw in the mirror. But how did she get to this moment in time?
“Shedding the Corporate Bitch” tells the story of how Bernadette grew up as one of 12 children in a close-knit family in Philadelphia. I marvel that she had such close relationships with her parents… some days I don’t have time to give equally to my two children, but 12? That seems impossible. Nonetheless, the messages her parents gave her, as they tried to instill good work ethics and values in all 12 of their children, were clearly twisted around in Bernadette’s head upon her arrival at Florida Atlantic University and the world of the privileged.
Bernadette took her experiences at FAU and used them to work her way up the corporate ladder. At first she discovered the riches involved in clawing your way to the top and not caring who she left behind. For 25 years, she became that person that we all know (and can’t stand) at the office… that woman you come home and tell your friends and family, “Oh my gosh, she needs to get a LIFE!”
In this economy, so many of us are being laid off. The gamut of emotions are truly all-encompassing… denial, depression, fear, uncertainly, financial insecurity… you name it. However, Bernadette turned her firing into a life-altering experience full of self-introspection and realized that the life she’d been leading was one she didn’t ever want to touch again with a ten-foot pole.
Bernadette calls her book “an apology to the road kill I’ve left behind.” Even just talking to her, you can tell this is a woman who never wants to go there again. But more than that, Bernadette is taking her experience and turning it into a positive… she wants people to see that the way she lead her life pre-firing is not a good way to be. And others like her should take a hard look at themselves too.
To those people who object to her use of the term “bitch” as just perpetuating stereotypes, all I can say is, “No, she’s not.” Although yes, she refers to herself as a bitch, in her vernacular, a “bitch” is an angst, attitude or negative mindset that each of us has (male or female) which is holding us back and preventing us from success. She has over 50 bitches (which she’ll start unveiling on her new website, bit by bit), such as the “divorce” bitch, the “corporate” bitch, the skinny “bitch.” My personal bitch is the “diet” bitch.
If Bernadette is willing to look inside herself and begin the journey to self-improvement (yes, that term I can’t stand), then perhaps you could too. She has a lot to teach us, even if she had to throw herself under the bus to do it.
To buy her book, click here: 
