College: Western Kentucky University '00

What are your main priorities as a young agent?

For me, taking care of family—whether it is my home family or my work family. I also prioritize community involvement and have served as a board member for non-profit organizations. I have been involved in or am involved on the board of the YMCA of Central Kentucky, The Makenna Foundation, The Lexington Charity Club, the Lexington Young Professional Association and our local church.

What legislative issues interest you?

The main issue I'm focused on right now is the Affordable Care Act, something that's front and center in the insurance industry. It will be interesting to see how the trickle-down effect impacts employees' benefits and workers' compensation.

How have you addressed your professional weaknesses?

Delegating tasks to teammates has always been tough as I want jobs done right the first time. I have come to realize that if I want to grow our office or my personal book of business, I must delegate. I am building a team that I can trust. Without that trust, delegation is nearly impossible.

Where do you hope to take your career?

I want to continue to build and grow the Neace Lukens Lexington, Ky., office. In the past few years we've added a number of new employees, and now have 36 agents and employees on staff. Along with that, I want to continue to focus on building my personal book of business while still providing excellent service to my existing clients.

What sales strategies worked for you this past year?

I have been focusing on introductions from my key clients in niche markets. Red-hot introductions, or referrals, have a much higher closing ratio. After 11 years in the business, I've honed my strategy to include working smarter and improving my hit ratio.

What advice do you have for millennials struggling at work?

I am seeing the younger generations get too caught up in social media—so much so that some are losing the human touch in our business and in life. I firmly believe that talking on the phone or in person is vital to relationship-building. Unfortunately, tone, intent and the actual message can be misunderstood through texting, emails and social media. Social media is the future, but it's important to keep the human element alive.