Shalimar Gonzales built her career at the intersection of storytelling and community advocacy, working as a communications strategist and marketing leader who helps organizations connect authentically with the people they serve. She's passionate about making sure underrepresented voices are heard and has channeled that belief into work spanning public relations, content development, and community outreach. For students figuring out how to turn a love of writing, people, and social impact into a real career, Shalimar's path shows that communication skills can open doors across industries while still letting you give back.
Their story
How I turned failure into success... Social change leader
21 min
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Key quotes
“I probably failed more times than I've actually been successful. But each one of those failings, being able to learn, to grow, to say, okay, I failed, but this is probably the reason why it worked out.”
Shalimar Gonzales, Executive Director
“When I stopped listening just so I can come up with my answer — which means I'm not really listening to someone because I'm really thinking about what I'm going to say — it made everything so much easier when I stopped doing that.”
Shalimar Gonzales, Executive Director
“Lead with cause and lead with passion. In anything that you do, make sure that you're showing up and that you're 100% invested. Don't do anything half time, go full throttle.”
Shalimar Gonzales, Executive Director
“My mom always told me, you have to go to college. If you decide to be a philosophy major or an English major, that's fine, but just make sure you get another form of education.”
Shalimar Gonzales, Executive Director
“Liberal studies — the major they give you when you've taken so many classes but they don't actually add up to one particular emphasis.”
Shalimar Gonzales, Executive Director
Career highlights
You don't need a traditional business degree to run an organization — but you do need to keep learning on your own.
Shalimar has a liberal arts background but filled in the business knowledge gaps by reading leadership books recommended by mentors and attending trainings continuously.
Say yes to opportunities even when you don't feel fully ready — your career path will make sense in hindsight.
Shalimar stumbled into the YMCA through a friend's suggestion and a part-time job posting, and ended up spending his entire career there because he kept following his curiosity.
Fail fast, fail often, and don't get stuck — every failure teaches you exactly what not to do next time.
Shalimar says he's failed more times than he's succeeded, especially as a first-time supervisor, and credits those failures for making him the leader he is today.
Listening — truly listening, not just waiting to respond — is the most important leadership skill you can build.
He describes a shift in his leadership when he stopped formulating his answer while someone was still talking and started actually hearing people out, which helped him stop conflicts before they started.
If you want to move up to executive-level roles, finish your degree — and start thinking about a master's sooner rather than later.
Shalimar notes that while some executive directors don't have four-year degrees, a degree becomes non-negotiable at the senior leadership level, and many are now pursuing master's and doctorates.
Be visible and present — strong leaders aren't hiding in their offices, they're on the floor with their people.
Shalimar and his directors do their admin work from home so that when they're at the branch, they're fully present — fixing things, talking to staff and members, and leading by example.