Some Women Wait Years to Lead a Major Media Brand, Shira Lazar Just Created Her Own

Originally posted on Forbes.

We are coming back strong heading into the holidays here at More Seats with one of the industry’s most involved and tenacious web hosts, Shira Lazar. Not only is Shira a powerhouse in her own right, but she is also a pioneer in the field. Many have dabbled in vlogging, but few have stuck it out and brought immense value along the way. When I think of the modern correspondent, I think of Shira.

Like early More Seats interviewee Svetlana Legetic, Shira is building her own media company and reporting on the way media continues to evolve all at the same time. Just days ago, TIME named a woman as their CEO (Laura Lang) and MDC named a woman as their first managing director (Anne Bologna); just over a month ago IBM named a woman as their CEO (Virginia Rometty). I see Shira as not the next class of media / tech executives, but as a young woman inspiring future generations of women in their field. Let’s learn about how she’s making it happen.

Forbes_ShiraLazar

Background Information:

Name: Shira Lazar

Hometown: Montreal, Quebec

Current City: Los Angeles, CA

Employer & Job Title: Host/ EP WhatsTrending.com – Co-founder Disrupt/Group

Educational Background: BA Communications (TV/Video Production), Emerson College

Previous Work Experience: Online host/vlogger/blogger extraordinaire including the Grammy Live 2010/2011 and Oscars 2011 digital experience

LB: What is up next for you?

SL: We’re busy continuing to build What’s Trending into a bigger platform and show. We want to own the mindshare around the stories and topics everyone is sharing online with a layer of editorial from influencers and celebs we follow around those subjects. Beyond the blog, we are continuing the show I host, What’s Trending, live every Tuesday at 1pm et/10am pt. We would love to go daily at a certain point, and build shows and blogs around other verticals including politics, tech, music, fashion, etc.

I also host a weekly show called Partners Project, which is like “Inside the Actors Studio” for YouTube stars. We’ve shot practically 50 episodes over the past year. As YouTube becomes a bigger platform for content creators big and small, we want to become the place where people can discover who’s hot and who they should be subscribing to.

LB: What has been the most meaningful project you’ve done in the last six months?

SL: Definitely What’s Trending has been the biggest project I’ve ever taken on as talent and an entrepreneur. I now have employees and people who work hard and are just as passionate as me to see this grow. That reminds me of how special it is every single day. We built the entire HD live streaming studio from scratch ourselves in April and launched the show and blog over one month. The entire project is very much our baby! Whether it be through our weekly live show, specials like #StopBullying in October or events with the Webby’s and the Emmy’s, we want to be a hub on and offline that engages in a real way with the community and creates a global impact. One of our viewers described us as “CNN meets MTV”. There’s definitely a gap in media and broadcasting right now that we are filling. Now it’s just about working hard to grow it into something bigger.

LB: What have been the most memorable interviews you’ve done and why?

SL: One of my favorite things to do is interview people. Through my “work” I’ve had the opportunity to interview everyone from YouTube stars to entrepreneurs, musicians and movie stars. One of my favorites on What’s Trending was rapper, Lupe Fiasco. He’s passionate about his music and its message. He basically said on our show that he thought Obama was the biggest terrorist in America. That created a firestorm of media response around the interview. He was even brought on O’Reilly to talk about the statement he made on our show. Snoop Dogg was also a highlight. He was so cool and thoughtful about where music is headed and engaging with his fans using social media. He even had his 12-year old daughter, Cori B, perform for the first time on our show. When Perez Hilton picked up the video, he said it was her first “TV appearance”. That was a big deal for us. In the future you won’t know or be able to distinguish what content was made primarily for the web, mobile or TV. It will be platform agnostic. Good content is good content!

LB: Who do you look to in the field for inspiration and mentorship? Is there a gender trend in who you look up to?

SL: I didn’t necessarily look towards role models based on whether they were male or female. My father, step-dad and step-brother who created American Apparel, were all entrepreneurs. They all created their own job titles and companies from scratch. Being around that growing up, definitely gave me an entrepreneurial edge. When I’m passionate and feel that instinct to move forward on a project, I listen and learn but don’t take no for an answer. My mother was always a big influence on my life as well. She still works full time as a coordinator for children with special needs. She always emphasized the importance of learning and adventure no matter what stage you’re at. My parents divorced when I was very young, and she would always remind me to do my own thing and follow my own path (independently as a woman as well).

There are some incredible women who I follow consistently, look up to and sometimes even get to reach out to for advice right now in my life: Porter Gale (former Virgin America CMO), Debbie Landa (founder, Dealmaker Media) Suzanne Stefanac (Founder/curator, AFI DigiFest), Randi Zuckerberg (founder R to Z media), Amanda Rose (social good online guru, founder of Twestival), Amy Jo Martin (social media/marketing expert), Leslie Bradshaw (co-founder, JESS3 nothing to do with this post!), Claire Diaz-Ortiz (Social Innovation at Twitter), Maggie Doyne (Blink Now Foundation) and Kara Swisher (co-founder AllThingsD.com) among so many others!

LB: Who has influenced you most?

SL: Professionally, I’ve been influenced by a myriad of people. There are definitely individuals like Oprah, Barbara Walters, Katie Couric and more recently Ryan Seacrest who have become the great broadcasters and storytellers of my generation.  They also used their voice to evolve into bigger brands and a platform for other talent. I’m also inspired by leaders and entrepreneurs like Arianna Huffington, Richard Branson, Tim O’Reilly, Zappos.com‘s Tony Hseih who have changed industries and created movements and communities through their work.

LB: What drives you? What motivates you to get out of bed, stay late and / or work on the weekends?

SL: There’s this deeply connected passion and oneness I have with what I do. It’s how I express myself. It’s my art. When you take that away from someone, they aren’t whole. When I do what I do, I feel whole. That fire is what keeps me doing what I do no matter the ups or downs. Before I became friends with Tony Hsieh, I saw his keynote at SXSW in 2009. Connectedness and being part of something bigger than yourself was featured on one of his slides based on frameworks of happiness. That really resonated with me. I don’t do what I do necessarily for myself, but to hopefully inspire, entertain and make someone feel good or happy. Using video and words to do that is awesome and powerful. Technology now allows me to tell stories and connect with people in so many different ways- that constant evolution is something that excites and inspires me to continue challenging the medium and industry.

LB: What values are you committed to?

SL: Hard work, patience, endurance, openness, integrity, empathy, loyalty, smiles and fun!

LB: Where do you turn to for insights? Any particular pieces of content resonate with you?

SL: Fast Company, Harvard Business Journal, TheDailyLove.com, Mashable, AllThingsD.com, Seth Godin, Malcolm Gladwell, New York Times, The Wallstreet Journal and Time.

Videos from awesome women everyone woman should watch and because I’m a TED junkie:

How to succeed? Get more sleep by Arianna Huffington

Make love, not porn by Cindy Gallop

We have too few female leaders by Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg

LB: What, if any, distinct traits have you seen fellow female coworkers bring to the workplace? Do you yourself exhibit them? (Why or why not?)

SL: There are recent reports that more women are on social media than men.  I believe that’s because women are inherently communicators and social media plays perfectly to that. We’re also naturally inclined to multi-task, having to take care of family, home life and work as well. I like to say I exhibit those skills. While some may call it DADD (digital attention deficit disorder), I call it multi-tasking!

I think it’s a responsibility once you’re in a decision-making position to give advice and be a mentor to other women who have questions and need help. The fact is, that currently there are more men making those decisions and signing the checks. Arianna Huffington and Sheryl Sandberg has really broken that mold. I want to see more women there. When I’m looking for investment for my next project, it would be awesome to say that I spoke to a lot of female VC’s and entrepreneurs who helped me get to that next step. Right now, unfortunately that’s not the case.

LB: What was your first job? What did it teach you that remains with you today?

SL: Way back when I was 15, I was an “animator” for parties, like Bar and Bat Mitzvah’s. I had to get people to have fun and get on the dance floor. People laugh when I tell them that. I had to be able to connect with people of all ages and get them motivated to be engaged and have fun. You can say I do that a lot now too!

LB: Did you make assumptions when you first started your career that subsequently proved to be wrong? What sort of insights did you gain?

SL: At every point, you think there’s a certain path or strategy to take. Whenever you reach that certain goal, you look back and realize you would have never predicted that path necessarily. It happens time and time again. You need to go into situations and strive for the best with a goal in mind, but be open to whatever may does come your way. My good friend Duke Stump, who was the CMO for Seventh Generation, taught me the whole concept of putting things through your own personal filter, which allows you to easily say yes or no to certain opportunities and decide which fit your overall vision. He has also describes the people and businesses that really connect as Bonfire Brands—a brand that has soul, builds community and draws people in, like a bonfire, encouraging them to sit around that fire to discuss their shared experiences, values and desires.

LB: Have you ever encountered the “Glass Ceiling”? Was it possible to overcome it? How?

SL: There have definitely been so many highs and lows. The social media community and my own staff who support my original vision every single day, remind me how important what we’re doing is. No leader has ever accomplished or innovated without hearing no’s and hitting adversity. You need to feel that, let go, move on and push forward. The aha moment doesn’t come when you’re sitting back waiting, it comes while you’ve allowed yourself to embrace where you are and do what you love.

LB: What’s the worst business advice you’ve ever received?

SL: Be patient is the worst and best business advice I’ve ever received!

LB: What three pieces of advice would you offer young women looking to create a career similar to yours?

SL: Work hard! Keep learning. Be a constant student of your craft. Hustle and stand up for what you believe in.

To keep in touch with Shira, follow her @shiralazar

Forbes_ShiraLazar2



Tags: , , , ,

Join the Conversation