Let It Go: The Memoirs of Dame Stephanie Shirley
by Stephanie Shirley
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A moving memoir from a woman who made a fortune in a man's world and then gave it all away...soon to be turned into a film In 1962, Stephanie 'Steve' Shirley created a software company when the concept of software barely existed. Freelance Programmers employed women to work on complex projects such as Concorde's black box recorder from the comfort of their own home. Shirley empowered a generation of women in technology, giving them unheard of freedom to choose their own hours and manage show more their own workloads. The business thrived and Shirley gradually transferred ownership to her staff, creating 70 millionaires in the process. Let It Go explores Shirley's trail blazing career as an entrepreneur but it also charts her incredible personal story - her dramatic arrival in England as an unaccompanied Kindertransport refugee during World War Two and the tragic loss of her only child who suffered severely from Autism. Today, Dame Stephanie Shirley is one of Britain's leading philanthropists, devoting most of her time, energy and wealth to charities that are close to her heart. In Let It Go, Shirley tells her inspirational story and explains why giving her wealth away - letting it go - has brought her infinitely more happiness and fulfilment than acquiring it in the first place. Co-written with Richard Askwith, the former Executive Editor of The Independent and the award-winning author of seven books in his own name, including biographies of Emil Zátopek and Lata Brandisová. 'An extraordinary tale of creativity and resilience' - Guardian 'This engrossing story of an extraordinary life is filled with lessons in what it means to be human' - Financial Times show lessTags
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An uplifting life story of a very talented and driven person, who built a very successful computer services company, in the days before computers were mainstream, whilst dealing with a child with severe autism. She overcame these twin challenges and devoted herself to philanthropy, where both her skills and money could combine to boost organisations ability to develop and become self-sustaining. Her particular focus has been supporting research into the causes and treatment of autism, based on her own harrowing experience. A template of how to give back to society, using both your skills and money.
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Author Information
1 Work 27 Members
Common Knowledge
- People/Characters
- Stephanie Shirley
Classifications
- Genres
- Nonfiction, Biography & Memoir, Business, General Nonfiction, Technology, Sexuality and Gender Studies, History
- DDC/MDS
- 361.74092 — Society, government, & culture Social problems and social services Social problems and services Private Charity & Philanthropy Private Philanthropists
- LCC
- F865 .S348 — Local History of the United States, Canada and Latin America United States local history California
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 27
- Popularity
- 1,007,925
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (4.83)
- Languages
- English, German
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 9
- ASINs
- 1


























































