36. On Embracing the Messiness & Success of Career Journeys with Will Schafer

Overview

It was so wonderful to be in conversation with Will Schafer, VP of International Marketing at Beyond Meat, where he's been for 7 years through the company’s early growth and IPO. While you might assume in seeing Will’s current title that his career had a straight line, it’s instead been a journey mixed with corporate stints, sabbaticals, business school, consulting, and intentionally putting himself on a path that aligned with his values and would give his work meaning.

There are a lot of nuggets of wisdom in Will’s journey, including accepting the messiness of career paths, embracing a growth mindset, and proactively managing the jumping from lily pad to lily pad to get you where you want to be. I also love the final quote he mentions from Martin Luther King Jr.: “You don't have to see the full staircase, just take the first step.” It’s a great reminder from Will: change only happens step by step.

Thanks so much for being on, Will, and being open with your journey. It’s an inspiration!

More about Our Guest

Will Schafer is currently VP of International Marketing at Beyond Meat, where he’s been for 7 years through the company’s early growth and IPO. Will is a scrappy and free-thinking brand and business builder, with a focus on driving next-level growth for mission-driven, consumer-led companies. He is also a champion of wellness, education, and empowerment initiatives, as well as related impact investing. Will has an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management and graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a BA in Humanities from UT Austin.

Topics Covered

  • We start with hearing where Will went to school at UT Austin and how he had a major that allowed him to explore. He dug into understanding meaning and motivation, which would serve him well on both his career journey and in his marketing career even though he said that he wasn’t thinking about his career at the time of selecting his major.

  • After college, Will worked in real estate and saved up money to take time off to backpack before landing in consulting. While taking time off can seem glorious and glamorous, Will shares how it wasn’t an easy decision to make and really stressed him out. And yet he admits that while he might give his younger self the advice to not stress and trust that it will all work out, it wouldn’t have landed well with him. The counsel that did help sway him to take the leap was to think about if he’d regret not doing it. What also made him feel more comfortable with the decision was it being informed by his values. It’s helpful to hear that despite it being a difficult decision, Will is grateful now that he took that “sabbatical” at the time that he did.

  • Before landing in marketing, Will shares that he did different career testing. One core tool he mentions that supported him in that exploration was the book, “Do What You Are,” which is anchored in the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator.

  • Will’s journey to Beyond Meat wasn’t a straight line, but he put himself on the course and into the current that would take him there. Drawn to having more meaning in his work, Will left Corporate and after some divergent exploration, including song writing and a song sold to a major artist, found himself consulting and deepening his commitment to plant-based products.

  • Will is not the only person to be on the podcast who speaks to his corporate experience both with appreciation and a recognition that it wasn’t the best fit for him and perhaps he should have had more courage to move on sooner. I find it to be an interesting dance to accept taking such traditional roles and embracing the benefits and skill and knowledge building they provide, while at the same time using the experience to learn more about oneself to find the next step on one’s career journey to a more aligned fit.

  • Will brilliantly reminds us that we don’t all have to find “meaning” in our work, despite the belief that all humans want to feel like they matter. But that meaning can come from building a family, volunteering, or other activities. If you want to and can find meaning in your work, great, but don't let that limit finding meaning elsewhere, too.

  • When Will was doing his own exploration to find what was next, he found “networking” (he’s just not a huge fan of that word) to be highly effective. And what makes it feel less “yucky,” is to lean into relationships and shared interests. Will smartly reminds us not to forget our alumni networks, as well.

  • We talk about adopting a growth mindset and how powerful it can be. Will shares that mindset wasn’t innate to him, but Carol Dweck’s work and book made an impression on him to fuel his growth journey. He continues to challenge himself to demonstrate to himself that he can grow and learn new things.

  • How did Will sustain himself working at a hyper growth company (Beyond Meat) and going through an IPO? Importantly, he works under a CEO who prioritizes family. That helps a ton! But Will also gets himself out into nature and exercising to recharge. He also shares how during the pandemic the time gained back from not having to commute 10 hours a week, as many experienced, helped provide space for additional sustaining activities.

  • His final counsel, although like others on the podcast who don’t love the idea of giving advice out of context: conduct experiments through talking to people. Will notes research that finds you can learn a lot from people who are like you and doing the work you want to do—are they happy? This is apparently very predictive of you liking that path, too.

  • And I love the final quote he shares from Martin Luther King Jr.: “You don't have to see the full staircase, just take the first step.” As Will notes, change only happens step by step.

  • We close with Will sharing what’s next for him as he continues his journey, and, based on what you hear about Will in this conversation, it’s not surprising that what’s next is multi-faceted.

Resources Mentioned

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36. On Embracing the Messiness & Success of Career Journeys with Will Schafer

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