Danielle Dinville

I've always been loyal - I've been at Sammons for 15 years - but I also know when it's time to move on to something new. If I've reached a point in a role where I feel like I've tapped out in terms of what I've learned, or if I don't feel like I'm in a position where I can grow anymore or teach someone something, I don't stick around very long. I will move on to a new endeavor, though I generally always look within Sammons rather than elsewhere. Even during COVID, when I realized I wasn't doing well mentally and my family wasn't doing well, I found a new system. I was reading books on productivity, mental health, and time management, but I ultimately took a little bit of each of these time management systems and made my own because not one of them was going to work for me. I'm always someone that's learning new things, learning how to apply them, and ultimately sharing with others. I don't gatekeep - that's just not me. Recently we did an exercise on our team where we learned our own brand, and the consistent feedback I got from others is that they learn from me in a way that's not preachy, not judgy, and that was really affirmative for me because that's something I'm always trying to do.

About two years ago, when I knew I needed to make a change, someone very important to me - Mary Buescher, who is very well-known at Sammons Financial - gave me advice that really stuck with me. She told me to make sure that I was chasing what feels right, and to ensure that I wasn't just running away from a problem. She wanted me to take the time to make sure that if I was going to make a change, I was following what felt right at the time. That advice ultimately led to a change that I did make, and I'm so grateful for her. She was very integral at that time, and I still to this day just thank her up and down. She's a very important person in my life. Another manager also gave me more tactical advice when I was feeling like I didn't know what was going on and would get to the end of the day feeling like I didn't do anything. She told me to do a time study, and at the time I didn't really know what that was, but it was so enlightening. It's something that still today I do every now and then, and I've shared it with people that reported to me too. If you're going to implement boundaries, do a time study because that can really help you figure out where you need to implement the boundaries.

Being 40 and having young children, I spent most of my 20s as that hustler, go-getter, and I'm very grateful for that - I wouldn't change anything necessarily. But by the time I got to my 30s and had experienced that moment of burnout, I now realize so much in terms of needing to create boundaries for yourself to avoid that from happening. I think I had such a good support system, and I worry, especially for women - though it's not necessarily gender-specific - but unfortunately I think a lot of moms are still put into very cliche roles. If you don't have the right support system and you don't create those boundaries, I literally worry a lot about people that don't have that, because I don't know how I would have gotten out of that on my own. Boundaries are probably the most important thing, especially going into the corporate world. Sometimes you think that every little thing you do matters, but it really probably doesn't, and the sooner you learn that, the better. I don't want to say do the bare minimum because I don't believe that either, but you just gotta find that right balance. You absolutely need to carve out the time and the space for you and life, because that ultimately is the most important thing. If you don't have that, nothing else is gonna matter. If you feel like you're spinning in circles and you don't know what's happening with your time throughout the day, do a time study - it can be so enlightening and help you figure out where you need to implement boundaries. Have a support system and find the balance in your work.

Definitely finding the balance, and this is something I'm probably still struggling with - being present and finding that balance. Self-care is a huge part of it. This last year, I have felt the most content I've probably ever felt, and I also just turned 40, so I think I'm understanding when people say the 40s are the best, and I would say that's definitely something I agree with so far. About 2 years ago, I got a late diagnosis of ADHD, and I've been getting some treatment with that, which has helped a lot. I'm fine being somewhat open about this because I want other women especially to know - it's very common for women to have a late diagnosis. One of the first things I felt when I went on the medication was that I was able to read and comprehend, and that was an area I always struggled with when I was younger. I read like crazy now - I read 80 books last year. I usually have 4 books going at once. That's where I can kind of balance the day-to-day stuff and the self-care. It's probably not the long-term plan to always be on the medication, but for right now, at this point in my life, that's been such a help.

Always learning is incredibly important to me - I'm constantly seeking to grow and develop. Support systems are definitely very important, and not only finding your support system, but being that for others as well. Authenticity is a core value - just being able to stay true to yourself and being your best self. It can be so hard to just get sucked into things, especially in the corporate world. I think things have actually gotten a lot better since COVID with hybrid schedules and working from home - things have loosened up a little bit. I've worked at Sammons for 15 years, and we used to have to wear business attire and couldn't wear jeans to the office at one point, and now I don't know if there's a lot of companies that do that anymore. Just trying to stay true to you and being able to speak up in meetings in a respectful way is important. Especially with AI, try to stay genuine to yourself and try to be you before you go to AI - that keeps me up at night sometimes, wondering when I read emails if we're even talking to people. So authenticity, always learning, finding your support system, and being that for others are my core values.