Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Nancy Giacolone. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Nancy thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Often the greatest growth and the biggest wins come right after a defeat. Other times the failure serves as a lesson that’s helpful later in your journey. We’d appreciate if you could open up about a time you’ve failed.

In 2016, I made the very bad decision to bring on a potential partner and his administrative assistant into my agency. The intention is that once we valued both books of business, we would come up with a fair purchase price for him to buy in as a partner as his book was significantly less than mine.

Before long, it became clear that this would not be a good fit for my agency as our values did not align, and I sat down and had this difficult discussion with him. Needless to say, it did not go very well, and within about 24 hours, he announced that he would take his book of business and assistant with him and start his own agency.

This was fine with me as he owned his book at this point, and I felt it was in the best interest of both of us.

What was not fine was when he sent out a letter on forged letterhead with many false facts. This was followed up by a letter of clarification from me which resulted in the immediate loss of several of his clients.

Which ended up in a lawsuit claiming he was entitled to half of my business.

The lawsuit was settled, and I have since moved on, far exceeding what he supposedly brought to the table, but it was an expensive and harsh lesson on “trust.”

During the time period, I was consumed with the lawsuit, I suffered emotionally, physically, and financially because I was so ashamed that this had happened to me. It took some time to regain my confidence and to accept that sometimes bad things happen even when we are doing the right thing.

Nancy, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I landed in the benefits industry by way of the automotive industry at age 23 in the 1980s. To say that I was, and still am, somewhat of a “unicorn” would be an understatement.

Today, I use my life lessons and passion for helping employers overcome bad advice and improve not only their healthcare experience, but that of their employees as well.

I am the founder and President of Olympic Crest Insurance, a boutique benefits consulting agency. Two years ago, I started the popular podcast “Recipe for Success” where I focus on finding that special ingredient or technique that is critical to success for my guests.  In addition, I am honored to have been recognized multiple times within my industry, the most recent being named a 2020 Top Woman in Benefit Advising and as the “Most Creative Social Strategist” at the You PoweredSymposium.

My mission is to leave a legacy in the industry and provide employers with the tools to create a dynamic and inclusive culture, empowering them to realize it is okay to be different and as a result helping them become an “Employer of Choice!”

Outside of work, I love to cook, read, travel, spend time outdoors and with my family and 3 German Shorthaired Pointers, as well as volunteer time in the community.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

In the employee benefits industry, the first thing that any marketing or sales coach will tell you is to only focus on larger accounts and to let go of the smaller clients.

Nationally, 98.1% of employers have fewer than 100 employees, and 88% have 20 or fewer! That is a pretty big market to ignore.

And quite frankly, most smaller employers do not have a dedicated Human Resources team and need our services even more than the mega-employers.

I have ignored the nay-sayers but staying true to my passion of helping employers or ALL sizes, including small business get the coverage, guidance and help they need.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

My first job in insurance was as an administrative assistant at a small family-owned insurance agency. I took this job after relocating for my husband and leaving a sales position in the automotive parts industry.

After about six months in the job, I became very interested in the benefits side of the business and asked the primary partner if I could have the opportunity to sell.

Mind you, this was back in the 1980s, but he basically just laughed at me and told me I wouldn’t be very good at it because no one really liked me. Talk about a punch in the gut!!

Apparently, the rest of the staff “didn’t like me” because I worked too hard.

Finally, I convinced him to give me a shot by taking a cut in pay and still doing my admin duties for half the day.

Within a year and a half, when he was ready to retire, he offered his shares in the agency for me to buy.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.olympiccrest.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/olympic_crest/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/olympiccrestinsurance
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancy-giacolone/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/OlympicCrest

Image Credits
Nick Sandy Images