“Where are you headed next?”

The question that hangs in the air as new graduates take a well-earned victory lap and greet relatives at summer gatherings.

“Seriously, what’s next? Have a job?”

And while today’s job market is undeniably uncertain, according to a Job Prospect Survey from Project Management Institute (PMI) the class of 2023 is decidedly unruffled.

Indeed, a staggering 80% of students are confident they will find a job within three months of graduating, reports PMI, and among those who feel confident, 47% feel qualified for the role and 47% have a relevant degree specific to their career or industry.

When I first learned about Nia Asemota she was in the midst of final exams and getting ready to graduate from New York University. Completing her degree in Computer Science and Biomolecular Science while interning at NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration as a Software Engineer, this self-taught programmer was already wildly impressive. But when I heard that in her spare time she had created a coloring book to spotlight and celebrate Black women in STEM, I had to know more.

It’s time we had a grown-up Board, I told myself in the mirror as Être neared its seventh anniversary. Seriously, it's time.

When do we know we need a Board?

When, as founders, do we decide we need more than smart family members and friends, more than monthly meetings with unofficial advisors, and more than annual meetings with legends who graciously lend their time?

At first you can’t believe it.

You sit, mesmerized, as you absorb the fact that Gloria Steinem is in your living room, drinking tea and chatting about soccer and hackathons.

But then you start to listen, and the shock falls away.

Because the wisdom she is exchanging with tomorrow’s leaders – young women in their teens and twenties – is all at once timely and timeless. Of the moment and evergreen.

This Memorial Day weekend, as we bow heads to remember the fallen, we're also tossing caps in the air to celebrate new graduates. With commencement speeches and proud toasts ringing in their ears, the Class of 2023 is eyeing today's workforce with excitement, energy and just a touch of apprehension.

How do I know which companies really recognize good performance?

Which organizations not only say they are inclusive, but actually mean it?

Where are the nation's best employers...and how do I find them this early?

Lucky for everyone carefully wrapping up that diploma, Forbes has the answers. Keep reading so you can pass the notes to a friend.

May is Mental Health Awareness month…and next gen girls are painfully aware.

Aware of the February 2023 CDC report that noted a dramatic increase in the number of girls feeling persistently hopeless or sad.

Aware of the growing need to find mental wellness strategies that are working…and share them.

Aware that now more than ever - connection is key.

She is still my first phone call.

From what would you do to what should I wear...from do you remember to can you believe...Linda is my first call.

She is often the first call for my kids - I called Nana and she said - and the ultimate authority on art, fashion, law and ethics for many of my friends. We called Linda.

I love birthdays. Anyone who knows me will tell you this.

I love all of the celebrating – the cake and candles, confetti hurled in the air, the hats, full hearts, and hope that comes from bringing a new year of goals to light.

This birthday – watching The Epic Mentor Newsletter cross the 1 year mark – is a big one for me. Launched last May 8th in response to The Epic Mentor Guide’s success, I was warned that starting a weekly newsletter would be a huge time commitment. Maybe too much.

Oh, but it wasn’t.

Instead, it sparked a new conversation between next gen girls and LinkedIn’s leading women, collecting authentic workplace questions and getting them answered by women who know. And the best part? It feels like we’ve only just begun.

The morning view over Hudson Yards was breathtaking.

Light streamed in through floor to ceiling windows at SAP’s offices as guests sipped coffee, took photos against the New York City skyline, and exclaimed over the speaker agenda. The 2023 Women & Worth Summit was here, and the sold-out crowd was ready.

Milling through the crowd of over 200 women and taking careful notes were seven high school and college-age Être girls, engaged by Worth Media Group to be junior correspondents.

The opportunity was surreal.

Nothing could have been more perfect for Earth Day.

Girls swarmed into the Robin Williams Theater screening room in New York City, chattering animatedly and gaping at the floor to ceiling movie poster ahead. Staring back at them was the image of a girl about their age, flanked by a friend, a chimpanzee, and a tiger the size of a Manhattan taxi.

Instantly, they were hooked.

With World Book Day right around the corner on April 23rd, and with reams of new releases hitting shelves and announcing preorders this spring, picking ten must-reads for a lightning round list isn’t easy.

Nonetheless, with next gen readers in mind – those eyeing and entering the workforce for the first time – here are ten hot-off-the-press books we can’t wait for you to read, complete with author links so rising leaders can connect directly.

When a movie trailer like Barbie drops and a filter goes viral, girls take notice. When the company behind the main character has been highlighting cool jobs and elevating female role models for decades, girls wave their hands wildly and demand to know more.

Être sees you, and we’re here with some answers.

Because modern-day Barbie? As the film says, “She’s everything.”

Only four women have ever directed Robert De Niro, and at 40 – only eight years out of film school -- Laura Terruso is now the youngest. When I asked her what she wants other young women to know when eyeing careers behind the camera, Terruso says simply, “Pursue it, because we need to hear your stories.”

And just like that, I was hooked.

When Lady Magic, Olympian and Basketball Hall of Famer Nancy Lieberman gave a shout out to The Epic Mentor Guide during Women’s History Month, I was touched. Exactly one year since the book’s morning release on The Today Show and evening launch with Veronica Beard on Madison Avenue, it is always a joy hearing from the 180 extraordinary women who participated in the book.

It got me thinking – what have these extraordinary women been up to over the last year? The answer turned out to be – a lot! As we close out Women’s History Month, join me in a fast review of 40 of the phenomenal women from The Epic Mentor Guide – what they’ve been up to and what’s next.

The room buzzed. Pulses quickened. As women stepped through the heavy doors of Forbes on Fifth, we knew that something big was happening.

Convening change-makers, activists, and founders from a variety of backgrounds, the Forbes Equal Pay Day Forum asked action-oriented women to approach the haystack of equal pay - and move the needle.

Why do we watch?

Why, every year, do we scramble onto couches with remotes or laptops to glimpse the fashion, predict the winners and comment on the speeches? What is it about the Academy Awards that continues to hold our interest?

We asked girls at Être, and while answers like we like to see talent recognized and it makes me want to see more movies in theaters bubbled up, today’s teens actually added to our list of questions with more of their own. Here are a few things that next gen girls wanted to know about the 95th Oscars on the morning after…

I'm back in class. And I couldn't be happier.

As a corporate lawyer-turned-founder, I was an unlikely entrepreneur. But when I launched a mentorship platform for girls called Être, designed, as our French name suggests, to bring girls directly into companies to see what it is possible to be, I knew that everyone I met would have something to teach me. My two main jobs, I told myself, were to listen and learn.

According to CDC data released this time last week, nearly 3 in 5 (57%) teen girls in the U.S. “felt persistently sad or hopeless in 2021—double that of boys, representing a nearly 60% increase and the highest level reported over the past decade.”

The numbers left us stunned.

It started with a fly-over.

For the first time in NFL history, the Super Bowl pre-game flyover was piloted by all women, in honor of 50 years of female US Navy pilots. Led in diamond formation by Lt. Peggy Dente, Lt. Arielle Ash and Lt. Saree Moreno, the group of seven paid homage to those who preceded them and gave an encouraging nod to girls watching.

Who’s winning Best New Artist? What will Lizzo be singing? How many new categories are there, even? Will Beyoncé make history and win the most Grammy Awards ever?