Now that it looks like an even bet the White House may soon be occupied by a woman, it seems the perfect time to talk about female leadership and how it could differ from the perspective men bring to top roles in government, science and business.

But for Resa Lewiss, a Westerly native and co-author of a new book called “Microskills: Small Actions, Big Impact,” good leadership looks very similar on both sides of the sexual divide. And she says bad management practices, such as what’s become known as “mansplaining” (talking down to employees) is also a trap that sometimes finds both men and women using their power for negative ends.

“Everyone does these things,” she said in a phone interview Friday.

Often, it’s a behavior modeled from superiors. And yet sometimes it works, because men, according to Lewiss, can often mask their incompetency with a sense of confidence. Overconfidence in a woman, however, is treated more harshly.

But as more and more women grow into leadership roles, she said, these gender differences may change, and perhaps what is found acceptable of top brass today will morph as well.

Lewiss will be interviewed about her book at The United theater in Westerly at 6 p.m. Aug. 15 with award-winning journalist Soledad O’Brien asking questions. For tickets, $20 for admission and $45 to receive the book, visit https://unitedtheatre.org/.

Lewiss, an emergency-room doctor practicing out of Philadelphia whose family still lives in Westerly, said she was asked to moderate a panel on film and media at her alma mater, Brown University, on which O’Brien had appeared. A friendship formed based on common interests, the Brown connection and the fact that O’Brien’s husband’s family was from Rhode Island.

Lewiss said she and co-author Adaira Landry, also a medical doctor, wrote the “Microskills” book to help walk people who were not born of privilege through some of the small steps that can both improve their job performance and their overall work life. But she has been happy to hear from even mid- to late-career executives from prosperous families that they wished they’d had a similar book as they were starting out.

“You’re not even aware of your gaps,” she said.

Lewiss’ book starts out with three basic truths: time can only be spent (never saved, so don’t waste it); the world is not equal (some people have access to the “workplace playbook” while others will have to learn it); and learning is limitless if it is accessible (which it rarely is).

“It’s hard to achieve positions because of unconscious biases and systematic practices and norms,” she said.

The ascension of Vice President Kamala Harris to run for president after Joe Biden dropped out of the race, she said, has given a lot of people hope, a sense of possibility.

“A shroud of depression has lifted,” she said.

Citing famous workplace-improvement books such as “7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” “How to Win Friends and Influence People” and “Atomic Habits,” Lewiss said she and her co-author were looking to be more granular, offering step-by-step ways for people to address such issues as networking, navigating conflict and seeking and receiving feedback.

These are exactly the nuances that people with family members who have a background in management know in their bones, and yet are often not understood by first-generation executives, who often come from diverse backgrounds.

Lewiss is also a big proponent of using storytelling as a management tool, which sometimes means sharing personal stories that can make people feel vulnerable. But her experience is that these anecdotes are often much more relatable than general technical information, and can lead to better understanding of workplace issues.

“We all respond to stories,” Lewiss said, and as a doctor, “We receive stories of patients every single shift.” The key in diagnoses, she added, is to integrate these stories with other data such as heart rate, blood pressure and other measures of health.

Lewiss said she initially didn’t have any of her doctor stories in the book, but was encouraged by an editor to put in some anecdotes. “If I make a mistake, it’s a typo,” the editor pointed out, “if you make a mistake it’s someone’s life.”

Lee Howard is The Day’s business editor. To reach him, email l.howard@theday.com.