Own It: Your Success, Your Future, Your Life

Women today are bombarded with exhortations to "lean in" and break through glass ceilings-but we are only encouraged to do so as long as we don't forget our "primary" duties, such as running a household or providing caregiving for children and aging parents. While trying to meet unrelenting demands in both professional and domestic arenas, we struggle to succeed in a system that has not yet fully adapted to our needs or our perspectives, even in this modern age.

Despite these obstacles, we can indeed control our lives and define our own success according to our passions, our talents, and our ambitions. Coming from a poor, rural childhood in Saskatchewan and rising to an executive-level career in the nation's capital, author Clare Beckton forged her own path to empowerment and success by trial and error along the way. With a balance of pragmatism, candour, and insight, Own It speaks to women everywhere while demonstrating how to truly lay claim to life on your own terms.

Clare Beckton is Executive Director of the Centre for Women in Politics and Public Leadership at Carleton University where she leads research, facilitates workshops, coaches and mentors, and speaks at many events. She is a former law professor and retired senior executive in the Government of Canada where she held roles such as Assistant Deputy Attorney General in Justice Canada and deputy head of Status of Women Canada.

The author of a number of articles on Freedom of Expression and Equality, she has received wide recognition for her work, including being named by the Women's Executive Network as one of Canada's top 100 most Powerful Women in Canada in 2008 and 2012. She was also a Fulbright Scholar attending Harvard to obtain a MPA in 2005.

The mother of adult children, she is an active volunteer in her community and nationally, participating on a number of boards. In her leisure time, she enjoys outdoor activities, farmer's markets, reading, travelling, and spending time with family and friends. She resides with her husband in Ottawa.