Career Forward: Why Your Job is Not Your Career — with Christiana Smith Shi
We all know work-life balance is a lie. But how can we build fulfilling careers without sacrificing our lives or leaving our jobs in the process?
In this episode, Lucy is joined by Christiana Smith Shi, a retail executive and management consultant formerly of Nike and McKinsey who is now the co-author of Career Forward: Strategies of Women Who’ve Made It — which just came out in paperback last week!
Together they dive deep into how to take control of your career, build your professional equity, and cultivate your 360° life. Christiana also answers your questions about how to handle lay-offs, ways to avoid career breaks, and places you can find support when your company’s values don’t align with your own.
Tune in for a powerful pep talk on getting your needs met while staying in the game. Then join us for an upcoming immersive in Montana, Spain or Kenya where you can get the support you need to design what’s next for your work and life!
Jump into the conversation:
[6:00] Creating options and opportunities for your career
[9:30] The story of how Christiana wrote Career Forward with Grace Puma
[15:00] Why your job is not your career
[18:00] How to build rapport with recruiters and why LinkedIn matters
[25:15] Building your professional equity
[34:45] The power of staying in the game
[38:15] Why work-life balance is a lie and how to cultivate a 360° life
[51:00] How to steer into the skid and make career pivots
[56:45] How to handle a lay-off or being fired
[63:00] The pros and cons of being a “strong contributor”
[69:20] Why it’s worth it to build a successful career
Stay connected:
Check out The Murmuration Collective
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Buy Christiana’s book Career Forward: Strategies from Women Who’ve Made It
More about our guest:
Christiana Smith Shi is the former President of Nike, Inc. Global Direct-to-Consumer. Ms. Smith Shi joined Nike in 2010 as the Chief Operating Officer for Global DTC. In 2012, she was named VP of E-Commerce, responsible for driving the integrated global e-commerce strategy and business for Nike, Inc. In 2013, she became President of Nike’s Direct to Consumer business, leading Nike’s retail and e-commerce businesses globally, and growing the business from $4bn to $8bn during her tenure.
She retired from Nike in 2016, and is currently serving as a director on the boards of Columbia Sportswear and UPS Inc. Christiana has also served on the boards of William-Sonoma, Inc., Mondelez Int’l, and West Marine, Inc. Ms Shi is the founder and Principal of Lovejoy Advisors, LLC, an advisory services firm for digitally transforming consumer and retail businesses. She came to Nike after spending 24 years with McKinsey & Company, Inc., where she was a Senior Partner and recognized thought leader in the retail sector.
Philanthropy is an important focus area for Christiana. She is a member of the Board of Directors of Habitat for Humanity, International and has participated in many Habitat building efforts in the US and abroad. She is also a recipient of Stanford University’s Governor’s Award, which she received in recognition of her volunteer leadership to the school and alumni, including serving as co-President of the Stanford Association of Oregon.
Christiana recently co-authored the national best-seller Career Forward: Strategies from Women Who’ve Made It, with Grace Puma, the former COO of PepsiCo. Christiana is a graduate of Stanford University and has a Master in Business Administration from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Business, where she graduated as a Baker Scholar.
