Wallowing this week in the colds and flu that descended on our little household, it’s been hard to stop thinking about Sheryl Sandberg and her family. The tragic and sudden death of Sheryl’s husband, Dave, last weekend, is unbelievable. I had the privilege and great joy to spend a morning with Sheryl at BlogHer a while back, where she spoke so fondly and lovingly of the man she describes as “her rock” and to whom she dedicated her book Lean In.

In Chicago, Sheryl’s advice to us was clear: who you choose as a life partner will be the most important decision of your career (incidentally this was reiterated by Liz Broderick last night, in her conversation with Anne Summers). And in Sheryl Sandberg’s opinion, she chose very well.

My thoughts go out to Sheryl and her young son and daughter. They have a long road ahead and it really is a reminder that nothing in life is certain (except death and taxes, as my Dad always said).

This Sunday, being Mother’s Day, I’ll be thinking of my own Mum, and admiring the courageous and warm and especially kind woman you are, Mum. And enjoying the company of my favorite little man and my big man too. Together. Just being. Our little family.  Who could ask for more?

Now if you’ve forgotten to send a card to your mum, it’s not too late!  I would encourage you to log on to the Lean In Together site and send one of their arty e-cards in honour of Dave Goldberg as a thanks to the men who support their partners and for inspiring many other men to lean in too.

And finally, to end on a very positive note, the highlight of my week was attending the launch of Avril Henry’s new book, Leadership Revelations III: How We Achieve The Gender Tipping Point. Congratulations go to Avril on a wonderful achievement!

I’m sure you all know Avril, I met her almost a decade ago through our mutual friend Matt Church and was immediately struck by her thorough, forensic and detailed approach to analyzing business issues and especially leadership. And also by her warm, generous and collaborative nature. Avril is the kind of person who wraps her arms around every person she meets, and this book is Avril personified, on every level.

Featuring the stories of 91 women from 10 countries across 4 generations (myself included), Revelations III was officially launched on Wednesday by Lieutenant General David Morrison AO who many of us know for his blistering YouTube speech (if you haven’t seen it, you must watch it here) and who described Avril to the audience as his friend and mentor. Lt Gen Morrison’s opinion? This is a game changing book that every businessperson – male or female – must read.

A practical handbook for organisations and individuals, men and women, who want to change the status quo for themselves, their wives and partners, sisters, daughters and friends, this book includes tools on exactly how to achieve this.

So, for every male leader – please read this book and bust the myths of what women want and need at work…

And for every businesswoman – please read this book and understand how other trailblazing women have achieved their success…

AND… just because this book is so important, I’ve purchased a copy that I am giving away to one lucky reader!

This is going to be the first of new Friday Freebie offers being made available to readers of The SheEO Blog, because… well… just because!

So to be in the running for the very first Friday Freebie –a signed copy of Avril Henry’s new book Leadership Revelations III: How We Achieve The Gender Tipping Point valued at $55 – simply jump across to my facebook page, like it and post your own story about the most important life lesson you’ve learned from a mentor.  We’ll announce the winner next Friday!

Over to you, good luck in our very first Friday Freebie and happy Mother’s Day to all the mums out there!