Why I love the Life Insurance Industry
No one cares about your race, resume, or if they know you or not.
My experience here in West Virginia, when it comes to job hunting, has been wild. I didn’t really notice the red flags about this state until I started getting job offers in other states.
My background: I have not completed a college degree, but I have worked since I was sixteen years old. What have a done? My first job was as an accounting assistant. I have worked in retail, healthcare, office administration, sales, and now in insurance. I have gained a lot of experience, knowledge, and professionalism.
When it comes to my resume, I do not put all experience on there. I may only go back five to six years of job experience. I always list my skills and ALWAYS start with an about me/objective section. A saturated resume can be just as bad as a scarce resume.
Why am I blabbering about this? West Virginia.
In West Virginia, employers that are local to this area do not hire you unless they know you. They complain that people do not want to work but will have a stack of applications or resumes, they said no to. Then you have managers who fear losing their job, so they will not hire someone who is more educated than them. The mindset here is so warped.
I’ll never forget at a previous job, the manager told me they didn’t like to hire black women because they are so much drama. The look on my face was purely discussed, I couldn’t hide it. I’m a black woman. The managers rebuttal to me, saying that was, I was “different”. I didn’t act ghetto or caddy. Still to this day, I do not talk to that person. People are openly racist but then act like they are not in this state. They will say some off the wall shit like that, and then turn right around and say oh I have a friend who is black or oh, I have an adopted sibling who is black—
There is the other side of the coin: I’ll never forget this. I walked into an interview one time with my resume in hand, business suite on fleek, and my smile just heating up the room. Literally, I was feeling myself, and no one was going to ruin my day. The interviewer looked at me and then looked at my resume, and before we even got started, said to me, “You are not going to want this job, it only pays $30,000 annually”. Mind you, I had already done my homework, and I wasn’t interested in the pay. I needed the experience and a network of people in that industry for later down the road. She did not want to interview me at all. I left that interview knowing that I wasn’t going to get the job, and I was okay with that. It was a learning experience that woke me up and made me realize my worth and value.
The insurance industry has given me a safe space as a black woman, and I am here for it. The first three years are the hardest, and I’m still in the beginning stages. I would rather struggle now than be at a job in West Virginia that sees me as less than or too good.
My next step in my journey is to get out of this state. My brother finally left, so now it is my turn. One state over will make a difference in my environment and success.
I will update you all soon!
XOXO, Muah!
Rookie Agent 