Teresa comes from an "insurance family” with her Dad (Frank Bilder) and mother working in the insurance industry as she was growing up. She initially decided to pursue something outside of insurance and after earning a degree in Elementary Education, she taught 5th grade English in the DeSoto ISD until staying home to raise her children for nine years. In 2003, Frank wanted to pursue opening an independent agency and Teresa agreed to be the agency principal/agency owner. She actively participated in the agency while raising her two children. Now, she has the privilege of coordinating the Sterling Insurance Team, developing agency technology and implementing the vision for the agency. She has a passion for mentoring and speaking which is apparent in her YouTube videos, social media posts, podcast, and her speaking opportunities around the country. She also coordinates a “mastermind,” where she shares her time and talents with other insurance agency owners to help them achieve success in the industry and in general.
The pivot (whether in life or business) is often the hardest. What happens in life affects business. What happens in business affects life.
From the start, Teresa wanted to orchestrate her agency differently. She had VAs and VOIP well before most and continued to make changes and adjustments along the way.
Goal: Team of people who love their job and love what they do but also have the personal freedom to be the people they want to be.
As you reach certain milestones in your career and agency, your vision is going to completely change. You always think, “Oh, (fill in the blank) is when I’ll be happy.”
Let go. We are not the Queen of everything.
Expectation for Team Members: How did you already try to solve this (before coming to me)? She expects that they'll go back and fix it (and learn from it).
Began asking her team and children, “Do you want advice, do you want me to listen, or do you want me to be your champion?”
You do you, Boo. Release responsibility of others and just be there when and how you’re needed.[0:01] Who is Teresa Kitchens
[2:17] Jumping into the Insurance Industry
[4:35] Selling the CRM System
[8:42] Apologize for mistakes
[10:28] What's Teresa's vision?
[16:06] Creating a different vision for yourself
[24:25] Life is a series of seasons
[28:25] How to avoid burnout
[32:41] The importance of prioritizing self-care
[38:36] Helping people find their own way
[42:09] Redemption in all areas of life
[44:45] The importance of letting go of control
[48:23] Finding what is significant to you
[52:18] Advice for people who are just starting an agency
[1:01:56] Grief is not just about death of a Mother
[1:05:22] Taking time to process and heal
[1:08:25] Advice on how to deal with grief
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Website: https://www.sterlinginsnow.com
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