Marty entered the Navy in 1968 for what she thought was going to be a two-year break between college and graduate school. "The opportunities in the Navy, for both men and women, are pretty incredible," she explains-so incredible that she extended her short stint to nearly thirty years, when she finally retired as a rear admiral.

As she moved up the ranks, Marty played a key role in advancing several initiatives that have improved the role of women in the Navy, including reversing the law that prevented them from serving on combat assignments. "I had the opportunity to address issues relative to the fair and equitable treatment of women," she continues. "It was really interesting to be in those path-forging situations."

While taking a personal growth course, I discovered a remarkable and effective method of visualizing my dreams and goals, and I offer it to you! Called "Treasure Mapping," it has changed the lives of entrepreneurial women across the country, personally as well as professionally. The process involves going through old magazines and cutting out images, words and expressions that represent what you want to manifest in your life. Then you paste them into a journal or, as in my case, onto a large piece of oak tag. Hang it some place handy and be sure to look at your "wishboard" often.

Linda Spradley Dunn speaks about strong ideas in a powerful voice and she never, ever minces words. This time she is talking about women of color in corporate America. "There is a particular issue with women of color in corporate America. And it does add to our impatience, because when you're trying to change corporate culture, you are also trying to change a microcosm of society's attitudes on race. That can be very frustrating.

In the early 1990s, when Susan found out that her roommate from college had died of breast cancer at 36, she couldn't sit by quietly. She was working for Bristol-Myers Squibb at the time, and the news caused her to urge the company to get further involved in more patient advocacy programs. She also schooled herself much more about breast cancer.

Susan was shocked to find out that the disease was a main cause of death among women in their middle years. "I figured that if I didn't know it-and I had a graduate degree in health and worked in an oncology department-chances are the public didn't know it either," she recalls. "I got pretty fired up about finding the best ways to help change the course of breast cancer and the public's understanding of the disease."

Lisa believes that career success is a consequence of having a dream and making it a reality. Ever since she was twelve-years old, she knew that she wanted to become a lawyer and never let anything stand in the way of her achieving this goal. She advises, "A lot of times people have an idea of what they want to do, but they allow events around them to shape their path instead of being proactive." Having strong convictions and faith in herself, Lisa has attained her dream. Today, she holds the highest legal position at Spherion Corporation.

Women are transforming the face of business and society, moving into leadership roles as business owners and in corporations. What are the characteristics that set successful women business leaders apart? Research and experience suggest that these top ten characteristics are key for women business leaders to maximize success the 21st century.

1. DEFINE SUCCESS IN YOUR OWN TERMS

It is so easy to let others -- usually very well intentioned friends, family, mentors and business associates -- define your goals. Take control of your destiny by deciding how you define success.

Mother knows best, as they say, and Margaret's mother is no exception. Margaret still can recall her three main lessons:

• 1. Go, go,go!

• 2. P.P.T. (the Power of Positive Thinking)

• 3. M.O.M (Mind Over Matter)

Today, as Vice President of Corporate Research, Quality and Technology at Kellogg, Margaret brings this wisdom into the office, where even her staff can recite these axioms by heart. "I think mind over matter is important because you must think positively of a situation, of others, and of yourself. If you go into something with a cynical attitude, you're going to create a bad dynamic immediately," she explains.

Everybody talks, but how many people really communicate? Here are some tips for making your communications stand out in a world of continuous cacophony.

Introduce Yourself. Don't wait for people to talk to you, particularly if they are potential clients or more senior colleagues. When I asked my most connected friend how she knew so many people, she said, "When I see people I want to meet, I introduce myself." Could it really be that simple? Yes, as long as you make the most of people's attention after that first handshake.

Melphine Evans' 15-year-old daughter calls her mom her hero. That's probably because with all her work responsibilities, this single mom manages to sing songs with her children first thing in the morning and make it to their games later in the day. On the job, as Controller of Centralized Functions at BP's corporate offices in London, she manages business costs and impacts from a global perspective.

Adaptability is a trait that comes naturally to Melphine. Prior to BP, she worked in Alaska for 13 years at Telecom and three years at Alyeska Pipeline Service Co., where she became the first woman and person of color to call herself CFO at both companies-even before diversity was a hot topic. Melphine believes that her migratory youth as "an air force brat" provided essential training. It enabled her to quickly evaluate situations and people, understand corporate politics and nuances, and predict behaviors.

By being open-minded and well prepared in her twenty plus years of experience as a lawyer, management consultant, and banker, Akosua Barthwell Evans has demonstrated an ability to take risks and explore new possibilities. As a divorced single mother with a six-year-old son, she changed careers mid-stream, attended Yale Law School, and was ultimately recruited by J.P. Morgan Chase. Akosua forged her way in the financial arena while being mindful that her success should not be at the price of happiness.

My sweet little grandmother used to advise me all the time, "Judy darling, remember: If you don't ask, you don't get."

For too many years I did not take Grandma's sage advice. Building my business, I was busy being all things to a small group of people (clients, family, friends) and some things to a larger group of people (everyone else), with little left for myself. Admitting that I couldn't handle everything myself? Not this juggling fool. I especially didn't think to ask other women business owners for help. I was too used to going to the boys, not the girls.

Negotiation is the currency of business. It's the way we resolve conflicting priorities or manage multiple demands on our time. In fact, whenever we need something from someone else-a job, more cooperation, more time, or more money-we negotiate. It pays to hone your negotiating skills.

Do your homework. With the right information at your fingertips-such as comparative salaries, market trend data, or performance evaluations-you can build a solid case, confident that the demands you are making are reasonable and that you have the ammunition to support them.

We all want to succeed in our businesses! We want to be financially independent. We want to make a difference, find fulfillment and use our gifts. But we also want to be there for our kids. What most of us don't realize is that we can have both: an opportunity to make a huge difference in the world and to be a great positive influence in our children's lives. And it all starts with being a role model for our children.

If we want to inspire our children to greatness we, ourselves, must dare to be great. If we want them to experience lives that are full of fun, joy, fulfillment, challenges and rewards, we must make an example of our own lives.

For Judith Shapiro, life has been an exciting voyage filled with unexpected turns-and that experience has led her to believe that women's career paths should be less rigid. Judith did not have a thirty-year plan that included becoming the President of a leading women's institution; she began her career as an anthropologist, working with a group of relatively isolated indigenous people in South America. In fact, Judith's transition from academician to administrator came only when she was asked to create the position of Provost at Bryn Mawr College after serving for a year as Acting Dean of the undergraduate college. Yet, she is more than content with how her life has unfolded.

As a young woman from the South, Linda never imagined that she would someday start and lead a global organization. Now Habitat for Humanity, the non-profit she founded with her husband, Millard, is expected to build 700,000 homes around the world by the year 2016.

Personal and professional fulfillment didn't come easily to Linda and her husband. Their early years in Alabama were filled with challenge and heartbreak. At nineteen, already married with her first born, she pursued a degree in elementary education while Millard launched a successful marketing firm. But success came at a high price. There was little time for the family to be together. "I became very lonely and miserable. I thought we were headed for divorce. I told my husband that I was leaving for New York City to undergo counseling for a couple of weeks," Linda says. "That shocked him into realizing that he didn't want to lose his family."