New York Review of Books Review

In "The Confidence Code," Kay and Shipman train a gimlet eye on an unspoken problem among women at all levels of achievement - nagging self-doubt Jay-Z would prescribe swagger. Kay and Shipman prescribe confidence. The pair embark on an engrossing trek through interviews with an array of successful women and seek the counsel of behavioral experts. We journey into rat brains, DNA tests, Christine Lagarde's daily schedule and even her purse. We are invited to contemplate Title IX legislation and its effect on young women's prospects to lead and to win. We become privy to the formidable journalism careers of Kay and Shipman, including their own moments of wavering confidence. Throughout their exploration of the anatomy of a winning attitude, the authors never quite put their fingers on what, exactly, women need to do to unlock the code, or whether it's even worth unlocking. Women should be more like men in their willingness to take risks - but not so much that they cause a global financial meltdown. Women should believe in their own abilities - but not so much that it prevents them from seeing how they might improve. While Kay and Shipman's encouraging words on breaking negative thought patterns are helpful, I felt more reassured by their many examples of successful women who have struggled to do just that. If occasional bouts of self-doubt are good enough for Lagarde, the first woman to lead the International Monetary Fund, they're probably good enough for the rest of us.