Women in High Gear: A Guide for Entrepreneurs, On-Rampers, and Aspiring Executives

Is high gear attainable for today’s women and the next generation? Yes! Women in High Gear is a first-of-its-kind look at how women in business, on-rampers, and aspiring executives can discern and discover a path to high gear. Whether that looks like financial independence, starting a business, ascending to the C-suite, securing a board seat, or making superconnections, high gear is clearly within reach. Entrepreneurs and small business owners Anne Deeter Gallaher and Amy D. Howell join forces in Women in High Gear to tell their stories of two divergent paths to reach the same goal. In 13 easy-to-read and easy-to-relate-to chapters, Amy and Anne lay out their own journeys to high gear and show how others can connect the dots for growth and success. They combine big business principles with small business DNA in hopes that their experiences will shorten the business learning curve of women. Living the realities of staying at home and staying on the fast track, Anne and Amy help women of all ages understand the necessities for emotional resilience, harnessing the softs skills, exhibiting leadership, mastering self-discipline, understanding the bottom line, connecting on social media, and building a personal brand. Wherever you stand in your business journey, Anne and Amy challenge you to charge ahead with confidence and fresh perspectives. The world needs what you have to offer—high gear awaits! Acclaim for Women in High Gear: “Anne Deeter Gallaher and Amy D. Howell are keenly attuned to the need for mentoring, guidance, and inspiration to help prepare current and future generations of women for leadership in business and society. In Women in High Gear, Anne and Amy have artfully woven their own high gear journeys to both mark a path for growth and to steer readers clear of roadblocks. They blend advice, personal experience, insight, and accountability in hopes of shortening the learning curves of other women.” Kim S. Phipps, Ph.D. President, Messiah College “In a business world steeped in too much self-help blather, Amy and Anne stand up for accountability, distinctiveness, mental toughness, responsibility, hard work, compassion, and appropriate compromise—the values that forge great leaders. This book is inspiring, true, and even better—entertaining!” Mark. W. Schaefer College Educator, Entrepreneur, International Speaker, and Author of Return on Influence and The Tao of Twitter “Women in High Gear is proof of the power of storytelling—at which Anne Deeter Gallaher and Amy D. Howell excel. They turn their hard-won personal and professional experiences into illuminating and engaging examples for others to follow. Early and mid-career professionals will find High Gear immediately useful, but even seasoned executives (like me) will see in Amy and Anne’s experiences new approaches to today’s challenges.” Kathleen A. Pavelko President/CEO, WITF, Harrisburg, PA “This book is for anyone wanting to soar to higher goals in business.” Philip H. Trenary CEO, Phil Trenary Associates; Former CEO, Pinnacle Airlines Corporation “After reading Women in High Gear, I immediately wrote out my high gear goals for the next five years. This book is for any woman with a big dream for her life!” Rachael Dymski Author “Wonder duo Anne and Amy provide valuable insight into how independent, driven women can dominate the professional business landscape.” Susan R. Ewing Director of Social & Digital Media, Hershey Harrisburg Regional Visitors Bureau “Women in High Gear is the modern guide to overcoming obstacles and achieving success without breaking a sweat—and doing it all in 4-inch heels. Anne and Amy have hit a homerun!” Kaitlin Sawyer Public Relations/Marketing Professional, Hawaii

Anne Deeter Gallaher is Owner/CEO of Deeter Gallaher Group LLC, a marketing/PR firm that combines traditional and social media to wield Powerful language. Smart marketing. Driven by measurable performance, Anne and her team create award-winning results for clients in mechanical contracting, engineering, IT, banking, commercial real estate development, legal, music entertainment, and the automotive industries. Serving on The Salvation Army Harrisburg Capital Region advisory board and the Harrisburg Regional Chamber/CREDC board, Anne is also a member of The Wall Street Journal’s Women in the Economy Task Force, the Nashville Chamber of Commerce, IABC, and the founder of Harrisburg Social Media Club. Anne is the co-author with Amy D. Howell of Women in High Gear: A Guide for Entrepreneurs, On-Rampers, and Aspiring Executives. Published in The Wall Street Journal, The Huffington Post, Ragan Communications, and a contributor to several blogs, Anne holds bachelor degrees in English and Communications/Journalism. Honored in 2007 as one of Pennsylvania’s Best 50 Women in Business, she is a frequent speaker and writer on entrepreneurship, women in business, social media, and PR/marketing. Connect with her on Twitter at @AnneDGallaher. With over 25 years of PR and marketing experience, Amy D. Howell serves as CEO of Howell Marketing Strategies (HMS). HMS is a PR and marketing firm that offers clients integrated and effective engagement and communications, brand monitoring, media relations, crisis communications and creative, strategic business planning – all while working to blend traditional with social media. Prior to founding HMS in 1994, Amy gained over 12 years of corporate experience in architecture, accounting, real estate and law, which provided her with a business-based springboard into marketing professional services. Since founding HMS, Amy has played pivotal roles in national projects and expanded her business to include industries such as aviation, technology and entertainment. Amy is the former Chairman of EmergeMemphis and remains active on the board. She has been an intricate part of the Memphis community by serving numerous nonprofit organizations. She is a graduate of Leadership Memphis and was named one of the Top 40 Under 40 by the Memphis Business Journal in 1999. In 2005, Memphis Woman Magazine recognized her as one of 50 Women Who Make a Difference. Follow her journey on Twitter at @HowellMarketing.