Yesterday I had breakfast with Arianna Huffington (part of a DAS speakers program).  If you’ve seen her on Bill Maher then you know what a straight shooter she is, proud to be a mix between high-brow and low-brow.   What you may not know is how obsessed she is with sleep (she put in nap rooms in the her new AOL offices), COMMENTS (that’s what inspires her), brands who align with causes, and women finding balance in their lives.   I want to be her when I grow up.

Sheryl Sandberg
Chief operating officer, Facebook
Barnard College

Women almost never make one decision to leave the work force. It doesn’t happen that way. They make small little decisions along the way that eventually lead them there. Maybe it’s the last year of med school when they say, “I’ll take a slightly less interesting specialty because I’m going to want more balance one day.” Maybe it’s the fifth year in a law firm when they say, “I’m not even sure I should go for partner, because I know I’m going to want kids eventually.” These women don’t even have relationships, and already they’re finding balance, balance for responsibilities they don’t yet have. And from that moment, they start quietly leaning back.

So, my heartfelt message to all of you is, and start thinking about this now, do not leave before you leave. Do not lean back; lean in. Put your foot on that gas pedal and keep it there until the day you have to make a decision, and then make a decision. That’s the only way, when that day comes, you’ll even have a decision to make.

He’s my bosses bosses boss.  Which means that if you are reading this, he is probably your bosses bosses bosses bosses bosses boss.  He is CEO and President of DDB Worldwide.  And  I sat next to him at dinner last night during our Global Shopper Marketing Summit in Dallas.  He looks 40.  But luckily I did a quick Google check on him in the Ladies (as our Brit constituency calls it)  and found out that he is really my age.  After that, it was easy... we got our first American Expresses the same year and I think I convinced  him to add a Chase Sapphire card to his roster. And though he attended a private Black Eyed Pea concert with the VW client the night before,  I was relieved to find out that The Stones remain his favorite all time group.   So thank you, my bosses boss, for sitting me next to him.

They came from nine countries.  For our Global Shopper Marketing Summit.  From DDB Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, Mumbai, London,Paris, Columbia,and The Latina Region.  They traveled between 9 and 32 hours, all speaking the same language based on the desire to bring insightful shopper marketing solutions to clients.  Carole from Shanghai told me about the Fendi Fashion Show she pulled off – on the Great Wall of China.  Pammeer told  about "Karanas"- the indivually owned mom and pop stores that dominate the retail environment in India.  Now there’s a POS challenge.  Ideas flew by as fast as fast as those Latinos speak.  And then there was all that double -cheek kissing.