TL;DR
- In “SkillUP! (EM)Power Your Career – Part 2,” Media’s official Unofficial Cartographer Evan Shapiro dives even deeper into our exploration of the Business of You, explaining why you are more than your bio, and just how powerful that idea can be.
- Shapiro offers actionable strategies for navigating the current media landscape, urging professionals to explore new sectors like video games and to pivot away from traditional models to ensure a sustainable career.
- He highlights the importance of personal branding, both online and in-person, and strategic career planning, including setting goals and Key Performance Indicators based on personal values and priorities.
- Shapiro instructs professionals to craft their elevator pitches and become category experts, urging them to join trade organizations and seek volunteer opportunities to further their careers beyond mere job auditions.
Your bio tells a story, but is it the whole story? Evan Shapiro doesn’t think so. In this second installment of Evan Shapiro Amplified, media’s official Unofficial Cartographer dives even deeper into our exploration of the Business of You, explaining why you are so much more than your bio, and just how powerful that idea can be.
Packed with even more actionable strategies for navigating the current media maelstrom towards a sustainable career built around your innate superpowers, “SkillUP! (EM)Power Your Career – Part 2” is aimed at professionals at every stage. Watch the video at the top of the page to gain a fresh perspective on personal branding and career development with insights that will help you face the realities of today’s media ecosystem and create opportunities that align with your personal values.
You Are More Than Just Your Bio
In the ever-changing landscape of Media & Entertainment, job titles and bios can be limiting. Shapiro emphasizes that every individual possesses unique abilities that transcend mere labels.
As Media’s unofficial cartographer, Shapiro is also a master of the career pivot, a process countless people have asked him to help them understand. “Part of that,” he explains, “ is my ability to create a brand that is larger than my individual bio, or anything that I’ve done. And that’s one of the lessons that I try to impart to people when they’re thinking about how to advance their own career.”
There’s a misconception, says Shapiro, “that you’re going to be able to work for the same company for the next 25 years. That used to be true. It’s very unlikely to be true now,” he warns.
That’s because companies that are relevant today won’t necessarily be relevant tomorrow, and sectors — like what he calls old-school television operations — are shifting to new areas.
Video games are one sector Shapiro advises anyone working in M&E to explore. “If you work in media, and you don’t know enough about the gaming industry to investigate it as a potential future for your career, then you’re doing yourself an enormous disservice,” he warns.
Being more than your bio means recognizing that your abilities are not confined to a specific role. It’s about embracing the full spectrum of your skills and how they can be leveraged in different scenarios.
“A lot of us in the media ecosystem, our skill sets are not necessarily tied to an individual thing,” he points out. “They are very transferable.”
The best thing we can do to further our careers, says Shapiro, is to change our mindset from traditional models and instead set our sights on what would be most personally satisfying.
“When you look at the chaos in the ecosystem, right now, there is no safe place to work,” he says. “But for a lot of us who are in our mid or late careers like I am, building a portfolio of skills, going out and selling our superpowers day by day, that’s likely going to become a solution.”
A Winning Formula
Shapiro highlights the need for a strategic approach to career planning, including setting short and long-term goals and Key Performance Indicators based on your own personal values and priorities. This means taking the time to understand your personal superpowers and investing time and money in your personal brand, as well as auditing your performance on an ongoing basis.
The work you do for your personal brand, both online and in-person, “are the most important investments you can make for the safety of your career long term,” says Shapiro.
“There’s only one you. No one’s going to be better at being you than you. Now figure out what the f– that means and put it into 25 words or less,” he instructs.
“One of the challenges I try to give people is write your own elevator pitch. Know how to pitch yourself in a cocktail conversation, know how to pitch yourself in an elevator, when you have three floors with a somebody who can change your life. Understand, and spend time on becoming a category expert so that you have more to talk about than yourself when you’re at these networking events.”
But personal branding goes far beyond the elevator pitch. Shapiro urges people to join relevant trade organizations and seek out opportunities to volunteer, “because the best version of yourself that’s going to further your career is happening when you’re not auditioning for a job.”
Stay tuned for the next installment of Evan Shapiro Amplified, “Rebuilding the Industry,” when Shapiro returns to break down the current media apocalypse and chart the path ahead, identifying today’s biggest challenges and revealing his plan to help redefine our workflows and business practices.
Evan Shapiro to Predict “What’s Next” for M&E at NAB Show New York Keynote Address
