Ep. 07 - Don't Let Them Steal Your Joy w/ Judy Lambert
Inside this episode of Work Hard. Be Nice., host Sheri Horvath sits down with insurance broker, longtime accounting professional, former restaurant owner, and entrepreneur Judy Lambert for a candid conversation about business, leadership, money, resilience, and learning not to give the wrong people too much power.
Judy shares how a difficult experience navigating insurance during her husband’s serious illness eventually inspired her to help other families understand and prepare for the financial realities life can bring. Her approach has always been less about selling a product and more about helping people make informed decisions before they find themselves in a crisis.
This conversation goes far beyond insurance.
Sheri and Judy talk about owning and operating a restaurant, leading employees across generations, knowing when a team member simply isn’t the right fit, building systems, embracing new technology, and the challenge business owners face when they keep doing work themselves because handing it off feels harder than just getting it done.
They also get into one of the harder parts of building something you care deeply about, which is learning not to let one negative voice outweigh a hundred positive ones.
Judy shares the story of a single customer review that stole the joy from an otherwise incredible day inside her restaurant and the lesson she carried forward from it… when we allow criticism, negativity, or other people’s opinions to take up too much space, we give away our own power.
Together, Sheri and Judy talk about surrounding yourself with people who will remind you who you are, standing up for others when they aren’t in the room, and why the people willing to tear someone down with you will eventually be willing to do the same thing to you.
At the heart of the episode is a brilliant reminder for anyone building something meaningful:
Work hard. Hold yourself to a high standard. Treat people well. And don’t let someone else steal the joy from what you’ve worked so hard to build.
An honest conversation about business ownership, leadership, financial wisdom, hard lessons, resilience, and protecting your ability to keep moving forward.
Intro & Outro Music Credit: "Bottleneck" by Neon Beach
Connect with Judy on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JudyInsures
Connect with Sheri Horvath via Operator's Edge Co.:
https://www.facebook.com/OperatorsEdgeCo/
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Operator's Edge Co. Website: www.OpsEdgeCo.com
Free Assessment mentioned in this episode: www.OpsEdgeCo.com/assessment