Show up for Yourself!!
From the Mailroom to Self-Advocacy: A Journey of Growth, Resilience, and Believing in Yourself
I did not begin my career with a perfect plan.
I started in the mailroom.
From there, I worked my way through reception, administrative support, technical roles, and client service before earning my Property & Casualty Producer License. Each step taught me something different, but the most important lesson I learned was not about insurance.
It was about learning to show up for myself.
Early in my career, I believed hard work would speak for itself. I thought that if I stayed loyal, learned as much as I could, took on more responsibility, and consistently gave my best, the next opportunity would naturally come.
Sometimes it did.
But eventually, I learned that hard work and self-advocacy are not the same thing.
You can be dependable, capable, and committed and still need to speak up for what you want. You still have to ask the question, pursue the opportunity, have the uncomfortable conversation, and sometimes remind people of the value you bring.
That realization changed the way I looked at growth.
For me, confidence has never meant walking into a room believing I know everything. In fact, some of my biggest growth came from being willing to say, “I don’t know, but I’ll figure it out.”
I believe everything is figureoutable.
That mindset has carried me through every stage of my career. I learned by asking questions, staying curious, accepting feedback, watching how others worked, and being open to learning from people with different experiences than mine.
I also learned that success is rarely built alone.
Some of the most valuable things I have gained in my career came from conversations, mentors, coworkers, and people who were willing to share what they knew. That is one of the reasons I believe so strongly in networking and supporting other women.
There is enough room for all of us to succeed.
We do not lose anything by sharing knowledge, recommending someone for an opportunity, celebrating another woman’s success, or helping someone find her confidence.
If anything, we all become stronger because of it.
My career has also grown alongside real life.
There have been incredible highs, including becoming a mother to two beautiful children, and there have been difficult seasons of loss, grief, and change. Like so many women, I have learned that personal life and professional life do not exist in two perfectly separate boxes.
Sometimes you are building a career while also carrying things no one else can see.
That perspective has made me more resilient, but it has also made me more compassionate.
Recently, I explained something to my daughter that I realized I needed to keep reminding myself of, too: It does not matter how many times you stumble. You will stumble. What matters is that you get back up every single time.
That is what growth has looked like for me.
Not perfection.
Persistence.
My path has not been straight, and I would not change that. Every position, mistake, challenge, setback, mentor, and opportunity has added something to my story.
If I could tell another woman one thing about building a career, it would be this:
Show up for yourself.
Keep learning. Ask questions. Build relationships. Take the opportunity. Advocate for your value. Do not confuse humility with making yourself smaller, and do not wait for someone else to decide when you are ready for more.
Sometimes the biggest step forward is not a promotion, a new title, or a raise.
Sometimes it is the moment you finally realize you are allowed to want more, ask for more, and believe you are capable of more.
