Laura Sturm NSSA® IRMAA CP™
Laura Sturm is the Founder, Independent Broker and Agent of Senior Educational Advocates, a firm dedicated to educating seniors on Medicare options and retirement wealth strategies. Throughout her career, Laura has focused on empowering clients to make informed decisions about their healthcare and financial futures. She is committed to providing education, guidance, and protection, ensuring that her clients fully understand their options and make confident choices rather than simply purchasing products.
Laura’s path into this field began when she witnessed her husband’s parents lose their financial security due to decisions they were unaware of. Over more than twenty years, guided by her faith, she cultivated her expertise in areas where people were underserved or misinformed. She began by helping her family, then expanded her work professionally, becoming a National Social Security Advisor to help clients, particularly teachers, understand and preserve their benefits. She later earned her IRMA certification, making her one of only a few planners in Texas equipped to help high earners navigate complex Medicare rules and avoid unnecessary costs.
As Founder of Senior Educational Advocates, Laura applies a comprehensive, tri-level protection approach to retirement planning that integrates Medicare guidance, financial strategies, and spiritual advisement. She hosts regular seminars and educational events, collaborating with a trusted team of financial and spiritual advisors across multiple cities. Most of her work is referral-based, moving millions of dollars in assets annually. Laura does not charge clients for her services; she is compensated by the insurance providers she represents, allowing her to focus entirely on education, awareness, and helping clients achieve long-term financial security.
• National Social Security Advisor
• IRMA-Certified Planner
• Stephen F. Austin State University – B.S. Business
• Lighthouse Award
• Tithing to church
• Feeding the homeless
• Providing free Christmas dinners at local restaurant
• Working with churches to facilitate programs
• Helping pastors with housing allowances and tax planning
What do you attribute your success to?
Being an entrepreneur and having the trust in God to know that where I'm at, I'm running my own race. I don't have to work at it - I just basically say I want to stay focused and do everything what is right. I'm not all about the accolades. God is my lighthouse, and if you allow Him to work in your life, you're going to become prosperous and of good health. I personally stepped in faith back in 2006 when I sat on the pond with my twin boys and my husband and said I'm going to change what I'm doing. Experience tells you what to do, but I didn't have the experience - I just took that step of faith. I had people telling me don't do it, don't do it, don't do it, and I said no, I'm stepping in faith because I know that I will be able to be equipped with everything I possibly need to be successful in what I do. I wanted to give it my best, and even if I fell short of winning, I always said I wanted to give it to my best. Everything I've done from the time I graduated from college all the way to where I am today, I always said I wanted to give it to my best. I was successful in everything, but not happy at anything until I found this. Now I am giving it my all and trying to reach as many people as I can and helping inform them on the changes that can impact their retirement.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
Stay in your lane. A lot of times we find ourselves wanting to jump out and try something else because you're disgruntled about whatever that day's objection is, and I've been told to stay in your lane and stay focused because that's where God has placed you. Stay in your lane, run your own race, and don't try to run somebody else's race. Find your purpose and stay in your lane. I was all over the map - I did this and that and this and that because I was always trying to find my purpose. But once you find your purpose and stay in your lane, that's what you're doing.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Look, it's all about preparation. Don't rely solely on your spouse. You need to bring an awareness and education for yourself, God forbid something happens in the future, and it also allows you to strengthen yourself by having that educational background. Be flexible and understand where you want your passion to be because people need to realize that women are very strong. They are very strong, and if they want to do what they want to do, then by God, go do it! Don't have somebody dictate what you need to do because that's not what you were meant to do in the first place. Learn to understand that everything is a gift, and if you realize that everything you do from the time you wake up in the morning to the time you lay your head at night, everything is a gift from God - from the breath you take to the people that He brings to you. If you have goals and passions and you have a vision, guess what? Go after it! Because God will tell you if it's not the lane you need to be in. You will become very successful, but don't rely on somebody else. Don't rely on somebody else, I don't care if it's a man or a woman or whoever it is. Don't rely on somebody else to fulfill your dream. You've got to fulfill that dream.
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
Time management. That would be managing my time to get to everyone because I give it everything I got and I literally sometimes struggle with it. I'm just trying to find time to get to everybody because most of my business is referrals. They'll call me and I go, who are you and where are you from? Because I don't know if I'm driving or where I'm going. It's just managing my time, micromanaging - not so much micromanaging because I let everybody do their thing, but I just want to make sure that everybody that works and is affiliated with our organization has that godly integrity. I want them to have big dumbo ears - I don't want you talking so much, I want you listening to what the concerns are with my clients.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Having the loving kindness in everything you do with somebody else. Be compassionate. Be transparent in what you do and say. Don't feel like you have to impress somebody because you think you're trying to tell somebody that you're everything - well, you're not everything. You are a piece of the puzzle. You are a piece of a puzzle that you work with other people, and if you learn how to work with others without having to be like somebody else and be yourself and have trust in God, just trust in Him that He has given and delivered everything possible for you to be successful. It's not by you looking at somebody else, but when you're inspired and you look at other people and say what they do, that's great. But you need to have a definitive purpose of trying to figure out what you want to do. It's a passion - just take time to find your own passion. When you have to struggle at something to try to think that this is what you want to do and it's not successful, it's because that's not where you're supposed to be. It's not your calling. Listen to people because there's something, there is a nugget, and there's a reason why they're in front of you at that moment.