BBPW scholarship recipient … to a college graduate … to a new career …in the year of Covid-19.
In September of 2019, I had received a scholarship from BBPW in my last year of college at Berkshire Community College. With that honor came a year of free membership and a mentor, Linda Dulye, CEO and creator of Dulye Leadership Experience, also a member of the BBPW. Having a mentor helped me navigate my upcoming graduation from Berkshire Community College and the need to look for a new career. My mentor, Linda, helped me prepare my resume and did mock interviews with me until I felt I was ready to interview. I feel it’s extremely important to have a mentor, especially for someone like myself who had not been familiar with this process for many years. BBPW has a great mentorship program that I was able to take advantage of. Upon graduating it was time to market myself with an Associates of Liberal Arts degree, and sell myself based on my experiences that I would bring to that job. Those experiences were lived experiences. Experiences gained from my ten years of living in Pittsfield and giving back to my community in various volunteer positions. I was banking on getting a career that I would feel comfortable in. That would benefit from my skills and knowledge and experience from working with people that would outshine having expertise in one certain area. I sent out a few resumes and received a few call backs. I interviewed with Cross Insurance Agency in Pittsfield, MA. I had no previous experience in insurance except that I’ve bought car insurance in the past. What I was hired for was my people experience, lived experience and my ability to navigate all sorts of situations.
Nine months later I am proud to share that I am a licensed Commercial Account Account Executive at Cross Insurance. I have always been quite nerdy and a quick study in academics as long as it doesn’t bore me. In this short time I have excelled at completing the education requirements required for my commercial license, and I have taken advantage of certifications offered by the various carriers. I am now furthering my education in pursuit of my Life and Health Insurance license. I have come up with creative ways to find new customers while supporting other local businesses. I have successfully closed on over 40 new accounts in commercial lines while organizing a book club at work for the One Book, One Community project. I have created Insurance 101 webinars and been hosting them, FREE, for the local businesses. This is to provide businesses with valuable information about what insurance is recommended for their business, in language they can understand. I love the work I do here, every day is different, every client is different and it is never boring! It’s like working on a unique puzzle every second of every day. Never would I have thought I’d be in insurance but somehow it just fits.
Where can you find me?
On the weeknights, home helping my children with homeschooling, making dinner, running a newly bought home, helping out with Berkshire Dish on Thursday nights, a local cooking show featuring local chefs and local food sources, and studying for my next insurance license.
On the weekends, I’m preparing for a run for School Committee in November (details coming soon), perfecting Gluten Free, Dairy Free, and other allergen-free baking goodies, getting my motorcycle, bike, and kayaks; ready for the warmer weather, and finding a boxing coach!
