What does it take for women to succeed in a male-dominated world? The grit factor. At age nineteen, Shannon huffman polson became the youngest woman ever to climb Denali, the highest mountain in North America. She went on to reach the Summits of MT. Rainier and MT. Kilimanjaro and spent more than a decade travelling the world. Yet it was during her experience serving as one of the Army's first female attack helicopter pilots, and eventually leading an Apache flight Platoon on deployment to bosnia-herzegovina, that she learned the lessons of leadership that forever changed her life. Where did these insights come from? From her own crucibles of experienced from other women. In writing the grit factor, polson made it her mission to connect with an elite pack of tough, impressive female iconoclasts who shared with her their candid stories of combat and career. This slate of decorated leaders includes Heather penney, one of the first female F-16 pilots, who was put on a suicide mission for 9/11; General Ann dunwoody, the first female four-star General in the army; Amy McGrath, the first female marine to fly the br