Like most working mothers, the hours of 6 – 9 in the morning are some of the busiest in the day. During that time, I make breakfast, iron clothes, leave notes for sitters, help find lost dinosaurs in the sofa, and negotiate playdates while applying makeup and responding to email. If I remember to dress after feeding my daughter Ekua, then I won’t have to blot oatmeal from my suit before I walk out the door. After I drop off my son at school and tell him to “create a good day,” I get on the train, where my hectic morning informs my other job—one that is just as important to me as being a mother. I am the new president of The White House Project, where we are developing America’s next innovation: women.

At their age, my children may not understand it, but I believe that working for women and girls is the reason I’m on the planet. I’m confident that women can help solve our nation’s toughest problems in an entirely new way:
•    Conversation and collaboration. The White House Project’s mission to advance women’s leadership across all sectors—in schools, boardrooms, elected or appointed office—is especially timely now, as our two major parties are pitted against one another, as civil discourse disintegrates, as current events and conflicts demand women’s propensity toward conversation and collaboration.
•    Diversity in leadership. Research shows that diverse decision-making bodies create better solutions than homogenous groups, even if the latter is more experienced. It’s time to rally and train women and men of all races, ethnicities, classes—and perspectives—who can come up with fresh solutions.  
•    Flexibility. When I fast-forward 25 years from now, I see a completely different kind of workplace. The pyramid model of leadership will be gone; the quickening flow of information will demand transparency. We need to prepare the next generation now and harness the power of women’s unique contributions and experiences now.

Having accepted the honor and responsibility of my new job, handed to me from the indefatigable Marie Wilson, I see more than ever the value of intergenerational leadership. Our foremothers have paved the way, bringing experience and wisdom to the table. Younger women, in turn, are empowered; we have been handed freedom that yields a unique perspective. While we may not yet know all the answers, we have the energy, imagination, and confidence to envision a solution—and we have the flexibility of technology and workplace to get it done.

Even still, our culture has strong messages about what women can and should be. When I was pregnant with my children in the early 2000s, numerous people asked me if I would continue working after they were born. Of course, they didn’t ask my husband that question. And when I discovered that my second child was a girl, my passion for keeping my job—to support her future—only grew larger and more urgent.

In many ways, I go to work for my children. I want to see the progressive change that can happen when we arm millions of women with the tools to effectively lead. I want to catapult the U.S. from 72nd in women’s leadership to #1 in our lifetime. And I want to do it by leveraging the technology that young people are using today, that my children will eventually improve, that they will teach me in the years to come.  

Between our mornings of rushing and routine, I see Ekua and Kofi growing older, becoming more of the people they will be. I am grateful for the opportunity to make concrete changes in our society, and I am confident they will do the same for me. Together, working across generations, we will give each other the gift of a better world.

Tiffany Dufu is the second president of The White House Project, founded by Marie Wilson in 1998 to enhance the public perception of women as leaders and to fill our nation's leadership pipeline with a richly diverse, critical mass of women. Dufu joined TWHP from Simmons College in Boston. She has built a career in non-profit and development work focused on women and girls.