Don't Give up Your Day Job: Leslie Bennetts on the Feminine Mistake (Interview‪)‬

PRIOR TO JOINING VANITY FAIR, where she has been a contributing editor since 1988, Leslie Bennetts spent ten years at the New York Times. Bennetts started as a writer for the Style section and went on to cover national politics, metropolitan news, and City Hall, becoming the first woman ever to cover a presidential campaign for the Times. In her new book, The Feminine Mistake, Bennetts asserts that women's decisions to abandon their careers may save them stress in the short-term, but the repercussions are enormously dangerous--and women often fail to understand this until it's far too late. Further, she argues, the financial and psychological benefits of working outside the home are enormous. Bennetts herself serves as a prime example of this assertion, having crafted an enviable journalism career over the past thirty years while simultaneously raising a family. She spoke with the Humanist in March, shortly before her book's release, to discuss the urgent message she wants to impart on today's younger women. The Humanist: What do you consider the main points you want readers to take away from your book?