Home: Los Angeles, CA. Age: It's a state of mind, so 23 - 94, depending on the day I’m having. Birthplace: Nebraska. Profession: Employee benefits and risk management advisor. Organization: USI Insurance Services. Title: Vice President. Preferred pronouns: She/Her/Hers.
Recent recognition: Being told that I have mastered what it is to truly be a “Servant Leader”. Recent professional development: Panelist speaker- Women in Insurance Leadership: How to Talk About Mental Health, Wellbeing and Set Boundaries at Work. What’s been your big (or biggest) leap? Learning how to always bet 100% on myself and the people I believe in. Hobbies: Interior redesign, revamping vintage furniture pieces. Recent travel or adventure: Skydiving over the Rocky Mountains to get over my fear of flying and heights. Outcome: it worked for about three flights and ten days. Wine and Tylenol PM were a contributing factor.
Personality profile: Empathetic, sincere, humorous. What one word would your closest friend use to describe you? Determined. Moral compass: Always chose the most difficult “right” over the easiest “wrong”. What is your greatest joy? Being the cool, calm, fashionable and fun “Auntie” of fourteen nieces and nephews. What is your greatest fear? Leaving this world without letting the people I love know how much I truly l cared about them. What occupation, other than your own, do you most admire? Being a full-time parent. I commend all of you! I babysit my nieces and nephews for three hours and feel I should be rewarded with 3 - 4 days of uninterrupted sleep and two personal assistants.
What three emojis best describe you? 🧡😏🙄.
Who has had the greatest influence on your life? My sister Lisa. She is a selfless and fierce mother of six, with a full-time job helping kids with special needs, and still manages to make time to be my “sounding board” every single day. What is the best advice you received in your career? No matter how old you are, or how successful you’ve become, there will be days when the office feels like walking into a junior high cafeteria or the “They’ve Gone Wild” scene from Mean Girls. What world event has had the greatest influence on your life? The current conflict between Russia and Ukraine. It has brought the past, present and future before my eyes in one, very humane view.
What change are you working on to effect in your profession or field? To make DEI more than just a hashtag or the latest trend. What message do you want to send out into the world? Regardless of whether you are the leader of a company, a country, or simply your own trajectory, the decisions you make are affecting real-life human souls, and their loved ones. So, choose wisely and lead with compassion. What widely held belief do you reject? Success is defined by material measures.
What actor would you choose to play you in the movie about your life? Lisa Kudrow (in her Friends character). Who would you like to spend an evening with, in heaven? My mom. As a kid, what did you first want to be when you grew up? A lawyer; a dancer on In Living Color, an actress. None of those happened, so naturally, an insurance advisor is born, and full-scale blossoming. What object would you first save from your burning home? My dog, Dax. Also, my passport and a hand-painted “We love you Auntie Mary” picture custom-made by my nieces and nephew. What advice would you give your younger self? There’s an easier way; let me show you a shortcut. What advice would you give others now? Bring your full authentic self to your seat at the table. Your struggles are just as important as your successes if real change is going to occur. Anything else? Yes. It’s okay to take people at face value. Not everyone has a hidden agenda.
Personal motto: You can be anywhere you want in the world in around three days or less. Let that sink in when you think that your dreams and goals are unachievable. Favorite quote: "You make a living by what you get, you make a life by what you give" (Winston Churchill). Desired epitaph: Where fierce and kind produced a beautiful chaos in a disastrous storm.
