MEET KAREN PAYNE
WHY BUSINESS LEADERS NEED TO ASK FOR HELP
“Can you give me a hand?” Asking for help is a simple request. Most people do it every day, whether they’re getting a second opinion on a paint color or asking a stranger to hold the elevator. Asking for help is important; the ability to work as a team is one of mankind’s greatest strengths. But if the act of asking for help is so essential in our lives, why do entrepreneurs have such a hard time with it? This struggle often comes from pride, the idea that if you admit you can’t do it all, then you can’t do anything. But this mindset often leads to ruin. In a survey by 99 Design, most entrepreneurs claimed the worst mistake they ever made wasn’t a poor financial decision or bad planning — it was simply not asking for help early in their careers. Having to ask for help isn’t a sign that you’re unable to achieve what you set out to do. In fact, when you ask for help in business, you may find you’re able to achieve more . This is because asking for help is a form of networking. You’re actively reaching out to experts, learning how other people solve problems, and broadening the awareness of your name and brand at the same time. If you struggle to ask others for help when you need it, start by changing your mindset. You don’t have to do it all; you’re just one person, and sometimes one person needs to delegate tasks to others to get more done. Asking for help is also easier when you know what you want to ask for. If you are overwhelmed by a big project, take a moment to write down your goals for that project, along with a list of action steps and resources needed to get there. Then think about who you can reach out to in order to tackle these steps. If you’re still uncomfortable with asking for help, make a point of helping others when you can. Being helpful changes the way you perceive receiving help and builds a positive reputation with others. When you are viewed as being helpful, other people want to help you in return. Asking for help means admitting you can’t do it all alone. But why should you have to? Doing it all alone can be pretty lonely, and asking for help means you have a team to support you wherever you go.
One of the Best Account Managers in the Biz
At Risk Services/Insurica, we pride ourselves on delivering the highest standard of service to every one of our clients. Every member of our team is personally invested in the work we do — which may be why a few of us have stuck around here for decades, and why many of our clients have been with us for nearly as long. Karen Payne, who’s been in insurance for more than 40 years — half of that time spent at Risk Services/Insurica — perfectly embodies this spirit of service. She loves getting the best deals for her clients and ensuring that they’re never left out in the cold without all key assets insured. “My favorite thing about the work I get to do every day is just taking care of the clients. Making sure they’re satisfied with the results and that they’re really getting what they pay us for is consistently rewarding,” she says. “At the end of the day, all that matters is that what the client needs done gets accomplished in the most efficient way possible.” “People entrust us with their assets, their buildings, personal property, and their liability,” she adds. “I get pleasure out of assuring them that they’re in good hands and in doing everything I can to protect all they’ve worked so hard to build.” Anybody who knows Karen knows how reliable and genuinely invested she is when it comes to the well-being not only of her clients, but of other people in general. It’s one of the reasons she’s proud to work with Risk Services/Insurica. “We may be stationed in a relatively small community, but we handle accounts all across the state,” she says. “It’s all because of the reputation we’ve developed for being a top organization and for truly caring about what happens in our clients’ lives and businesses.” Like Sherry Burgener, who was featured in last month’s employee spotlight, she cites “integrity” as one of the main reasons she’s stuck around with us so long.
And we’re glad she has. We’re lucky to have someone as compassionate and hardworking as Karen on our team, and our clients are too!
2 • www.insurica.com • Specialized Insurance Programs for Specialized Industries.
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