Published inThe Shadow·PinnedMember-onlySwiftynomicsNOTE: This story first appeared online July 16, 2023 in Fast Company and the original can be found here. Misty L. Heggeness is an expert on gender and the economy and is the author of the upcoming book Swiftynomics: Women in Today’s Economy. We are obsessed with Taylor Swift. Swiftmania…Swift6 min readSwift6 min read
Nov 24Member-onlyToxic Masculinity and the OpenAI Saga*An earlier version of this article was published in Fast Company. We have all been watching the high velocity turmoil over the future of OpenAI, but I was much more interested in what the events said about women and leadership. I was at the Boston Federal Reserve’s Economic Conference on…OpenAI5 min readOpenAI5 min read
Oct 15Member-onlySwifties vs. NFL fansNOTE: This story was first published in Fast Company on October 8, 2023. The National Football League (NFL) brought in a whopping $18.6 billion in revenue last year, with an average of $5.1 billion per team. Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour is on schedule to gross over $2.2 billion. Her current…NFL4 min readNFL4 min read
Aug 9Member-onlyThe Time I was Fired from a Women’s Committee for Advocating for WomenLife is complicated, and so are politics. Which is why at the end of the day, I was told “thanks, but no thanks, we won’t be renewing you in this volunteer service position” on a women’s committee around the same time I was on the verge of successfully acquiring funding…Women3 min readWomen3 min read
Jul 22Member-onlyBarbie v. OppenheimerI have now seen both movies, and I cannot ignore the obvious. I went with my son to a Barbie matinee the first day it was out. We were so excited; we had been waiting for months. I couldn’t wait to see a reset on the old stereotypical, illogically shaped…Barbie3 min readBarbie3 min read
Published inThe Shadow·Jul 11Member-onlyI Did It. I went to the Eras Tour.I have a story to tell. One that evades logic and circles crazy, but one that needs to be told none the less. I am one of the invisible Gen-Xers, riding on the coattails of the sometimes loud, overly confident, and aging baby boom generation. …Taylor Swift4 min readTaylor Swift4 min read
Published inThe Shadow·Mar 31Member-onlyWomen’s SecretWe are ok. That’s our secret. In fact, we are doing fine. Some might say, even thriving. We have a secret club. You don’t hear about it. Why? Because the women of my generation have been trained by our feminist baby booming mothers, and the training is paying off. …Gwyneth Paltrow3 min readGwyneth Paltrow3 min read
Published inThe Shadow·Feb 16Member-onlyWe’re Just Gonna Work, Work, Work, Work, Work, WorkThe future of the economic woman has never looked brighter. She is bold and beautiful and has come out of the shadows and onto your LVII Super Bowl halftime stage. This past Sunday, her name was Rihanna. Rihanna’s pregnancy did not hold her back from performing on platforms high above…Rihanna4 min readRihanna4 min read
Published inThe Shadow·Dec 11, 2022Member-onlyMy Deeply Personal Hell — The School Pickup LineEvery weekday minutes of my precious time are nefariously sucked up by the school drop off/pick up line elves, and I can’t take it anymore. This summer we moved across country, and when people ask me what the biggest difference is in our new environment, I tell them — the…Schools3 min readSchools3 min read
Published inThe Shadow·Oct 21, 2022Member-onlyWhat Are You Going To Do About It?We all walk through this one life we have to live with the best of intentions (…sometimes). I’m not going to sugar coat it, interacting with humans is hard. What do they actually want? What do I want? What do I think they want? What do they think I want…Women3 min readWomen3 min read
