Success Without Stress: Jennifer Shapiro's Wisdom on Calmness and Effective Problem-Solving
“This is the advice I give to junior colleagues on my team: It’s all going to work out and be okay.”
I asked Jennifer Shapiro to share some advice she’d give her younger self during our photoshoot. This is what she shared:
“I wish I could go back and give myself that advice. Throughout my career, I did so much worrying about the future and how things are going to turn out. But if you stay in the moment, do what you love, and find your purpose, it will probably turn out alright - with less worry.”
“It is also about giving yourself peace and learning from any situation. When you face a problem or situation, you can either solve the problem or freak out and then solve the problem. I’ve found focusing directly on problem-solving helps me to enter any situation with a clear head and heart.”
“Freaking out doesn't do anything but drive anxiety and worry those around you so I always try to bring patience and calmness. I don’t believe yelling helps you solve problems. Once a client asked me why I didn’t seem stressed about a large event we were producing but I was like a duck in water – calm on top and paddling furiously underneath. I didn’t yell at anyone and I produced the biggest event in their company’s history. When issues arose, I opted for a calmer approach to problem-solving. Yelling at someone wouldn’t fix anything. Sometimes there’s just a job to be done to move forward.”
“I use this approach in my personal life, too. I used to travel internationally with my cousins and they would always laugh because I would say “Okay!” whenever there were moments that could cause tension. But it's how I responded in situations that did not require creating chaos– like ‘Okay what are we going to do about it?’
“The calm before the launch or event is how I fell in love with brand activation, marketing, and events. I love marketing – when you're thinking about your audience and what makes them tick. When you can unlock a human insight – an aha! moment, and then build an idea or connect them to their community.”
“My last photo was a picture from when I got engaged. I wasn’t married yet, didn’t have kids, was still more junior in my career. I needed a headshot that represented the additional 8 years of experience that I now carry. You can read the growth in the photos Alissa took—it comes through in my eyes, smile, skin, hair and everything behind that.”
Thanks, Jennifer, for trusting me with capturing your growth.