How important is empathy in your life? In today’s dog-eat-dog world and our cutthroat society, it’s refreshing to meet someone who just wants to spread love, kindness, and generosity and fulfill her purpose by helping others dream their dream and reach their full potential. You’re in for a treat today as I introduce you to today’s guest.
Claude Silver is the first ever Chief Heart Officer at VaynerMedia, a full-service digital agency where she cultivates the hearts and facilitates growth in over 800 employees. In this episode, Claude and I talked about her unconventional job title and how it plays out in the day-to-day of her work overseeing and transforming the corporate culture of a very rapidly growing digital agency. We also chatted about the role of empathy and kindness, and how Claude is helping deliver on the mission of VaynerMedia to build the most human-centric organization on the planet.
Tomboy Claude, who dreamed of playing for the Mets
Claude’s tomboy tendencies were something she and her mom had to work through for a long time. Her mom never realized that she would have a tomboy for a daughter, and she definitely wasn’t prepared. It has been something they worked through and unraveled over 30 years. Living in NYC, Claude learned to play baseball and dreamed of playing for the Mets, all the while rebelling against the dresses that little girls were expected to wear. Her family moved to Santa Fe, being one of only a handful of Jewish families there. Life there was slower, with many outdoor opportunities. She had a wonderful life, even though she struggled in school, excelled in sports, experimented with drugs, and struggled to find her personal identity. Through it all, she always tried to push the limits and felt as if she was trying to escape from something.
Developing herself
Claude was lost as a young adult. She knew she had to figure out who she was, and it took a lot of therapy and seeking to do that. She dabbled with many methodologies and resources to satisfy her curiosity. Even when she didn’t believe in herself, though, she kept a high empathy level and always believed in others. She had a long career in advertising and a keen interest in human behavior and learned to see the world with emotional optimism and possibility.
Finding principles
We, as humans, have similar stories. These stories allow us to find our principles. They are what sums up our human existence. Claude teamed up with Gary Vaynerchuk in NYC, became fascinated with team-building, and came to VaynerMedia to follow her purpose, passion, and joy.
A girl named Claude
Her name was given to her by her parents to honor a French friend. It took young Claude a long time to learn to wear her name with pride, but now she loves it! She is grateful that her parents gave her an unusual and unique name that embodies her free spirit and personality.
Infusing empathy into others
Claude lives a life of day-to-day empathy. She infuses it into the culture, teaching life skills to others. She helps them find their barriers and remove them. She makes sure that “her people” are fulfilled. She holds space for them, takes in information, and takes action. As Chief Heart Officer at VaynerMedia, she understand the heartbeat of the organization, which is to cultivate the growth and development of her people.
Live in love
Claude lives by a mantra that teaches that fear and love cannot coexist. We need to live in love, and not in fear. There are only those two choices. Claude sees us all as one, no matter our race, status, occupation, or intelligence. We are here to bring out the greatness in others. Claude has lived a privileged life, being put here to spread love, kindness, and generosity.
Big changes coming
Claude opens up about what’s coming up in her life. When she reached her 40th birthday a few years ago, she did some soul-searching to see if she wanted to have a baby. The fact that it never became a priority for her told her that she wasn’t ready. She later met her partner, Andrea, on an airplane. Having a child was a must for Andrea, who is several years younger than Claude. They found a doctor who helped them and now Andrea is due to give birth to their baby girl in just a few weeks. This time in Claude’s life is full of learning, but she feels good about herself and where she is in life. The future is bright and promising, and it’s the right time for her to take the leap into parenthood.
Highlights of the Episode:
- 6:50 – Why experimenting with drugs seemed normal at the time
- 8:33 – Changing paths
- 10:20 – Becoming Chief Heart Officer at VaynerMedia
- 14:00 – Teaming up with Gary Vaynerchuk
- 15:39 – Deciding what she needed to do
- 18:59 – The little girl named Claude
- 20:20 – The duality of the tomboy with the gender-neutral name and the tender-hearted empath
- 22:30 – Infusing the agency with empathy
- 28:33 – Making sense of the world
- 38:20 – Fem Five
Resources Mentioned:
- Crushing It: How Great Entrepreneurs Build Their Business and Influence and How You Can Too by Gary Vaynerchuk
- The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
- You Are A Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living and Awesome Life by Jen Sincero
- Find Claude Silver on Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn
The Fem Five:
1. Favorite book for women?
- You Are A Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living and Awesome Life by Jen Sincero
2. Favorite self-care hack?
- “Listening to music and getting massages at least every 3 months.”
3. Best piece of advice and who gave it to you?
- “My boss one time said when I get a heated email, to get up and walk around for 3 minutes before coming back to it.”
4. Female CEO or thought leader you’re into right now?
- Mindy Grossman of Weight Watchers and Oprah Winfrey
5. One piece of advice you’d give your five years younger self?
- “Don’t say no to your purpose and your joy. Go after it with every bone in your body.”
Last Time on The NextFem Podcast
Quitting as Your Superpower – with Dr. Lynn Marie Morski
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