Madeleine Albright made history as America’s first female Secretary of State. But like many women, she has at times struggled to speak out confidently, especially in meetings where she’s been surrounded entirely by men.
“It was intimidating,” Albright, 80, recently told me. “You listen carefully, think you are going to say something and you think, ‘No it’ll sound stupid.’ And then you don’t say it. And then some man says it and everybody thinks it’s brilliant. And then you’re mad at yourself for not saying anything.”
Albright advises young people to practice “active listening” and to be prepared to interrupt.
“If you are planning to interrupt, you have to make sure you know what you’re talking about … and decide that you are going to be a part of the discussion. But it has to be active,” she said.
When asked what she would tell her younger self, Albright said, “The main thing I would tell myself is to have confidence and to recognize I really can do anything I want if I work hard.”









