When Forbes magazine released its ranking of the 100 most powerful women in the world last week, the list reflected more than a few changes since 2004 — mostly less politics, more business.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Wu Yi, China's minister of health, still came in at No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, but after that, all bets were off. Getting sacked from HP knocked Carly Fiorina from the list completely, but other female executives more than made up for the gap, including Meg Whitman (eBay), Brenda Barnes (Sara Lee), Anne Mulcahy (Xerox) and Sallie Krawcheck (Citigroup). Public sector stars Sonia Gandhi, Laura Bush, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Sandra Day O'Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg were all pushed down to make way for these moneymakers.

But this doesn't necessarily mean there are better opportunities for women in business than in politics, said Jo Miller. The women's leadership coach has clients in a variety of jobs, such as software developers and rabbis. More likely, it's that business is what has been on our collective minds this year. "It's not been a big year in politics," she said.

Besides, it is a business magazine.