Jasmine Singh, General Counsel at Ironclad, redefined success by walking away - from a big law job that didn’t align with her values - to rediscover purpose and power on her own terms.
Teaching fitness classes helped her reconnect with what mattered most: making an impact, inspiring confidence, and working with purpose. When she returned to law, she brought that clarity with her, and never looked back.
Her advice? Ask for what you want. Choose work that excites you. And know that worth isn’t defined by perfection or approval, it’s defined by you.
Read more from Jasmine here…
What has been your career defining moment as a woman in business?
My career defining moment is actually the moment I decided to quit my job as a litigator at a big law firm, with no plan for what was next. I was working gruelling hours and was unfulfilled, values misaligned, and knew that I needed a major change.
I quit, put my things in storage, drove from SF to Las Vegas, where my fiancé was living at the time, and thought long and hard about what was next. I had always been passionate about fitness and wellness, so I decided I would train to become a fitness instructor.
A few short weeks later, I started teaching indoor cycling classes. At the time, it was the best job I had ever had. It helped me learn that my values and my purpose in life had to somehow appear in the work I was doing day to day.
I needed be making a difference, to be inspiring people around me to find their strength and confidence, and to feel like I was a part of a team that was working towards a greater cause. About a year later, I found my way back to being a lawyer, and this time, I was a much better one.
"I had failed and learned that failure was the precipice to my success."
I was better because I sought out companies whose missions inspired me, so I was more excited about and connected to the work. I was better because I was less desperate to be perfect; I had failed and learned that failure was the precipice to my success.
This awareness helped me bring more of myself to work, take more risks, and demand more of my environment (not just more of myself).
Were there any obstacles you had to overcome as a woman in business?
I have often been the ‘only’ woman or the only woman of colour in many circumstances - trial teams, depositions, mediations, major negotiations, executive meetings. The obstacle associated with being the only is that I was constantly navigating how my identity, assertiveness and my point of view was being received in so many different circumstances.
I shape shifted and code switched, even when I didn’t mean to or realize I was doing it. I have been told I am too nice and also too aggressive. I have been told to dress down and also to dress up. I have been told to leverage my position as a woman to get deals done with other women.
I could write an entire book about the ridiculous things people have said to me, ranging from someone telling me that I look like their dog to someone telling me to wear a tight dress the day of a settlement conference.
The underlying obstacle here was this: my position as an only often made me question my worthiness or belonging in a space. And the more I felt like an outsider, the more I relied on my ability to read a room, to people please, to put the needs of others before my own, to self sacrifice in the name of grit and resilience.
In other words, to fight my mind telling me that I was so lucky to be in the room and that I needed to find every way possible not to mess it up, I made it so I would never get outworked, and I would always be well-liked, available and committed.
This is not an easy place to live, personally or professionally. I continuously work through this obstacle day and day out: to know who I am and bring that to bare; to not lose sight of who I really am: a badass mother who don’t take no shit from nobody.
What advice would you give to a younger woman looking to join your industry?
It’s easy to take what you are given and do what’s asked of you, especially if you come from a place of extreme gratitude to be where you are. It’s important, though, to get what you need out of your work as well. Go after work that excites you.
Ask for things you aren’t sure you can ask for. Be intentional about what you want and go in that direction. Make active choices about your career, don’t just let it unfold around you.
If you could do one thing to accelerate the pace of change for gender equality, what would it be?
One thing I am actively doing is telling my story in hopes that it sheds light not just on things that need to change, but how we can all be involved in changing them. I talk about my struggle, my imperfections, my failures all in an effort to inspire people around me to disrupt the narrative that only people with certain experiences or credentials are worthy of success.
"Gender equality requires that we disrupt the gendered expectations that shape our reality."
Gender equality requires that we disrupt the gendered expectations that shape our reality - expectations that demand perfection and stamps of approval by certain institutions. The more of us that stand up and say we are different but equally talented and deserving, the more we can change who holds and sits in positions of power.
What compelled you to attend a Panelle event?
Panelle is amazing community of women who are supporting one another and shifting the way we pursue achievement and success as women. I wanted to be a part of this event because I am excited about the ways I can help advance this cause in community with like-minded women.
What advice would you give to your younger self?
Do not tie your self-worth to the value to deliver to others. It is ok to disappoint people, to draw boundaries, to protect yourself. The world is relational, but it’s also not a one-way street.
What’s your go-to advice for preventing burnout?
Create moments that matter. Find joy and wonder in the glory of a blooming flower or a fluttering leaf in the wind. Don’t be so distracted that you cannot see how beautiful the world around you is. Retain perspective, even when it’s hard to.
Why do you think it’s important for women to help other women win?
We are uniquely positioned to understand one another struggle and use our positions to advocate for one another. Early in my career as a manager, I thought that this meant I had to protect other women on my team, even when they didn’t ask me to.
"Helping other women win means asking them what they need and what I can do to help them."
Now I realize that helping other women win means asking them what they need and what I can do to help them. My experience is that women go above and beyond to pull those around them up.
There is infinite space for us all to shine, and the more we bring people up along with us and behind us, the more space is created for everyone.
Finally, please put the spotlight on another woman in business who either inspires you or has pulled out the seat for you...
Jess Finkelstein is one of the most amazing managers and lawyers I have had the pleasure of working with.
She was my boss at Pinterest and in our time working together, I was constantly amazed by her ability to garner the respect of her colleagues, focus on what was most important (which sometimes was relationships over work), noodle through incredibly complex legal issues, and champion her teammates, day in and day out.
Jess pulled out the seat for me and it was not until I met her and had the honour of being managed by her that I knew what great potential I could have as a lawyer.