Not mistaking a detour for the end of your story
How unexpected career changes and life's detours shaped my greatest professional strengths.
The Detours Become Your Greatest Strengths
When I was younger, I imagined my career would look very different.
With a degree in communications studies and plans to work in journalism, I was dreaming big about my future career opportunities. Right out of college, I worked my way into a part-time position at a radio station in Indianapolis, Indiana, believing this was the beginning of the career path I had always envisioned.
But life had other plans.
A Career Pivot I Didn’t Plan For
As a young married couple in the early 2000s, my husband’s career took center stage as he was also building his professional path. We moved frequently for his career, and my journalism dream quickly came to an end.
A second option presented itself: starting a career in the insurance industry.
The lack of knowledge and experience I had in this completely different field felt overwhelming. The path seemed far outside my comfort zone, and honestly, it scared me. But I jumped in.
It was the same industry my husband worked in, and he seemed to enjoy it. I felt confident in my ability to learn, and it offered stability and portability wherever we moved.
At first, I was honestly disappointed when I learned I would be starting in rating. My husband and I had earned the same four-year degree, yet he had started right out of school in underwriting.
Looking back, however, this was one of the greatest gifts my career ever gave me.
As a rater, I learned the foundation of insurance. I learned how underwriters think, how policies are built, and why details matter. Eventually, I worked my way into underwriting, and I believe I was better prepared for that role because of the foundation I built in rating.
Stepping Away to Raise My Family
Just as I was becoming established in my career and beginning my CPCU courses, life brought another pivot.
We were on the move again, and this time it happened shortly after my second child was born. With this move, I decided to step away from my career to raise my family and be home with my children.
They had already experienced so much change through our moves, and I wanted to give them consistency and stability at home.
Rediscovering My Own Professional Identity
Years later, as my children grew older, I was ready to rediscover my own professional identity.
I intentionally searched for something different—something that belonged to me and not just a career path I had originally chosen because my husband was in the industry.
I chose commercial real estate.
Although I was succeeding on this new path, life pivoted again when my marriage ended after 15 years together. I needed a career that could financially support myself and my family.
I returned to insurance—not because it was my original dream, but because it was the industry I knew best. I had an established background, valuable experience, and a level of comfort and confidence there.
I remember a headhunter telling me that, with an eight-year gap from the workforce, I would likely have to start over at the bottom.
At the time, it was difficult to hear.
But I did exactly that.
Starting Over at the Bottom
I accepted a position at a small agency. I resumed my CPCU studies after starting and stopping them several times over the years.
I kept learning.
I kept growing.
Eventually, I accepted a position with one of the world’s largest commercial insurance brokerages.
I thought I had finally reached the place where my career would stay.
I had recently earned a promotion and was feeling confident again. But this time felt different because I had chosen this path. I knew the hard work I had invested had brought me to that moment.
I felt proud of myself and my career.
Another Unexpected Opportunity
Then another unexpected opportunity presented itself.
One of the producers I worked with called me out of the blue. One of his clients, a Norwegian aluminum manufacturing company, was looking to fill the role of Insurance and Risk Manager for North America. He asked me to consider the opportunity.
Once again, fear immediately crept in.
What if I wasn’t good enough?
What if I didn’t know enough?
I didn’t even fully understand what the role required.
He reminded me of where I had started—the small agency—and reminded me that I had expressed the same fears years earlier when transitioning to the large brokerage. At that time, I worried that my limited agency experience and insurer background would not be enough.
He was right.
Every transition I had faced felt intimidating at first. But each time, I said yes. And every time, I proved to myself that I could do it.
Every Role Prepared Me for the Next One
Today, I manage the North American Insurance portfolio for Hydro Extrusions in my role with Hydro Extrusion USA.
This year, I also completed my CPCU.
When I look back, it is incredible to see how my career has taken me through every side of the industry—the carrier (insurer) side, the agency/broker side, and now the client side.
Every role prepared me for the next one, even when I couldn’t see it at the time.
Finishing my CPCU after starting and stopping so many times was not just about earning a credential. To me, it represented perseverance and proving to myself that I could accomplish something I had committed to.
I proved that I was capable.
I proved that I was smart enough.
And, perhaps most importantly, I learned that progress is not linear. It is not about perfection.
Sometimes, progress is simply refusing to quit.
The Detours Become Your Greatest Strengths
There were years when I worked in commercial real estate, waited tables, and drove for Lyft just to make ends meet while still creating meaningful experiences for my boys.
None of those jobs defined me.
They were simply chapters in my journey.
One of the greatest lessons I have learned is that sometimes the detours become your greatest strengths. The skills you gain during life’s unexpected pivots often become the very things that open doors you never could have imagined.
Today, I finally feel like I am exactly where I am supposed to be.
But if life has taught me anything, it is that there will probably be another pivot someday.
This time, instead of fearing it, I will welcome it.
Because I know now that every chapter, every challenge, and every unexpected turn has been preparing me for what comes next.
