Her Story
About Heather
I've been in the insurance industry for 15 years now, with the first 7 and a half years as a captive agent with a dedicated company, and since 2019, I've been independent. At my brokerage, I handle all lines of insurance from personal lines like home, auto, motorcycle, boats, and renters insurance, to business lines including general liability, commercial auto, professional liability or errors and omissions insurance, and bonds for companies seeking contracts through the city, county, or state. I also work with life insurance on the level of whole life, term, and universal life insurance, and I assist businesses with health insurance benefit packages for their employees, ranging from health insurance to dental, vision, and long-term and short-term disability. I'm licensed in Texas, Louisiana, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. My typical day involves monitoring clients' policies to make sure there are no alerts, putting out small fires if clients need assistance with claims, checking with my team to see if they need help with quotes or general questions, and going to different outreach meetings within the DFW area for business.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Heather
01What do you attribute your success to?
I would say examples from my mother and my grandparents. My grandparents both were entrepreneurs, so this wasn't a new idea to me to be able to manage a business, day-to-day operation, and things of that nature, so I was privy to that as I was growing up. My mother always had a very strong commitment to education, learning, and never stop learning, and trying new things. I would say the combination of all of that together has contributed to my success.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
Don't be afraid of nos and not achieving something, because there are lessons and feedback that can be drawn from someone saying no to you for an opportunity, or you not getting a particular opportunity or business. If a no is given to me, or a not now, or something of that nature, I try to always circle back around and ask for feedback, like what didn't make my proposal the winning proposal, or what was I missing, or what I did not articulate in my presentation. I like to circle back around for feedback, so then, if I go back to that client maybe next year to try to secure their business, or for another client, I know to maybe add that piece that was missing into a presentation or a proposal.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say don't be afraid to be the only one, or the only female in a room. And learn your industry in and out, so you can be an expert in what you're saying and the industry that you're operating in.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
I would say the biggest challenge right now is small businesses getting to the point where they can actually bid on city and government contracts. A lot of contracts in the area that I have been seeing, small businesses aren't properly insured on the insurance side and the bonding side, so they can't compete. I see a lot of opportunities in that area. A lot of the cities in the DFW area want to work with all businesses, but if they're not properly insured or properly bonded, then they cannot, and they have to, by default, work with a medium or large company.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I would definitely say ethics, doing what you say you're gonna do, and just being a trusted source to people.
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