What Will Tim Cook’s Impact Be?; New York Times, 10/30/14

Anna North, New York Times; What Will Tim Cook’s Impact Be? :

"At Time, Daniel D’Addario writes: “Tim Cook has set a new paradigm, describing his sexuality as not merely a small aspect of himself that he needs to get through talking about, but as central to his identity.” And, he adds:

“It’s a sign of how much society has changed even since 2012 that Cook is finally able to present the somewhat revolutionary idea that being gay is not just the same as being straight — that it is not a simple aspect of one’s makeup. It changes the way one views the world, as Cook writes. It also compels one forward to take part in a cause larger than oneself.”

At the Harvard Business Review, Dorie Clark writes:

“Even for those like Tim Cook, who was out to colleagues but not to ‘the world’ at large, the stress of downplaying one’s identity can take a toll. Research by the Deloitte University Leadership Center for Inclusion showed that 83% of gay employees ‘covered’ at work — i.e., even if they were technically out, they still felt the need to minimize their differences by, for instance, not bringing their partner to work functions, or not displaying family photographs at the office. Cook’s coming out demonstrates powerfully to executives at Apple — and elsewhere in the corporate world — that covering is no longer required to succeed at the top.”"