How to stop being overlooked! (warning this one is High Octane)

·46 min·4 clips

Emily Marola built her coaching business for the isolated pandemic mom she once was.

The episode begins with host Heath Shearon introducing sponsor messages for Goalie Nutrition, Canopy Connect, and Mav before welcoming guest Emily Marola. Marola recounts starting her insurance career in 2003 in New York City as an underwriter intern at Chubb during the post-9/11 rebuilding of Lower Manhattan. She describes moving through trainee programs at Chubb, CNA, and Gen Re, then relocating to Pittsburgh in 2009 where her career shifted. Marola explains she had to 'go inward' to find clarity, leading her to get licensed and enter the wholesale and brokerage spaces, working with major firms like Jenry, Liberty Mutual, and Surdex Global. She identifies the throughline of her career as building trust through communication and getting closer to clients. Marola discusses the challenge of being a 'non-camouflaged' person in a conservative industry and her decision to share vulnerably to serve others. The host probes about mental health and industry instability since 2020, and Marola emphasizes the importance of an 'unshakable identity' amid AI changes. She reveals her top values: faith, family, connection, freedom, and fun. Marola details her coaching business, The Blazer Society, designed for women leaders aged 30-40 who feel overlooked, using a presence framework based on values, self-regulation, and embodiment. She shares a personal story of nervousness before a big presentation and how a leader's blunt advice helped. Marola talks about her ADHD and academic struggles, and how she learned to craft a empowering personal narrative. She expresses gratitude for being part of John Maxwell's team, citing it as a major blessing. The episode concludes with Marola advising listeners feeling stuck to get a coach, do inner work on values, and seek positive environments, and she mentions her role as Client Director for North America at the ISC Group.

As heard by us

A candid leadership talk about proving value and saying it clearly without sounding braggy.

Insurance Town turns an insurance leadership conversation into something broader: proof, identity, and the way value gets communicated when the room is skeptical.

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Why you'd press play

Hear a straight-talking case for owning your value in a room that keeps testing it.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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