"In our agency, we have owners in different generations, and sometimes it can be challenging but oftentimes it’s such a blessing," says young agent Kristi Sizemore. "Hearing everyone’s different views and perspectives is so important."
Kristi Sizemore
Owner and Agent
Holgate, Ohio
Age: 35
Go-to drink order: Coffee in the morning, cabernet at night
No. 1 item on bucket list: Travel to Morocco
Favorite candy: Skittles
Art carryover?
I think my personality is fun and creative and spunky and different. I don't think in black and white. I think that's why I can relate to people on a different level than others, and that's why I've been successful. I'm also doing marketing for our agency. I did end up getting a business degree.
Role model or mentor?
My Aunt Judy, who is actually my husband's aunt, worked at Nationwide. I always admired her and her work ethic, and especially how she presented herself. She wasn't a woman trying to be in a man's position. She proved herself with her actions—from the way she walked and talked to the way she built her knowledge.
I struggled with finding a mentor early in my independent insurance agency career because I was so young. When I became an agent, I looked around the room; there weren't many other women around. As I've grown older and more comfortable networking, and as the amount of women agents has increased, I've found more of a community. I've also become very close to one of the partners that owns the agency with me, Rachel Moll. We can relate to obstacles that we deal with within the industry.
Work-life balance?
As a mom and a business owner, being a mom is No. 1. Work-life balance is huge, and something that's really important is that I have a husband who is supportive, and we can lean on each other. We're both in sales, and we understand that some days one of us may come home and be super spent and need a rest, and then the next day that person can pull their weight a little more.
What do you love about insurance?
It's ever-changing, it's challenging, and you never know what it's going to bring. So, I always know each day that I'm going to have to come in and work hard. Another thing that I love about insurance is that I get to meet so many different types of people and develop relationships with those individuals, and then in turn I get to help them with some of their biggest purchases or decisions in their lives.
Pros and cons of multiple generations in the workplace?
In our agency, we have owners in different generations, and sometimes it can be challenging but oftentimes it's such a blessing. Hearing everyone's different views and perspectives is so important. Not everyone thinks the same due to the different experiences they had within their career. As an agency, we've made strides within the past couple of years listening to each other and making decisions based on everyone's opinion versus “This is how we've done it for years."
AnneMarie McPherson Spears is IA news editor.
