It’s not every day that you get to see someone who’s taken career shifts that are unlike the rest. Can you imagine starting young working in a goat farm and eventually finding yourself working in insurance? That is the story of Samantha Jean – a woman who grew up in suburban Minnesota and has experience ranging from milking goats at 3 am to graduating psychology and flying overseas to serve as a missionary in remote Haiti. Right now, Samantha has been working in the insurance industry for over seven years now. The common theme behind her efforts as a professional is putting passion into everything she does. She wants to empower others through education and experience to meet goals.
“It’s no secret that there is brokenness when it comes to our healthcare and insurance systems here in the US, but the light in all of it comes through education and options, she said.”
As someone who works with different enterprises, Samantha emphasizes the importance of employers understanding that benefits play a significant role in allowing a company to be competitive in hiring new talents and retaining them.
She exclaimed, “The truth is, many small business owners see it as a burdensome, expensive, time-consuming, and unattainable task… and depending on how you go about it, that can be true! It’s often one of those, “I’ll get to it one day when I can manage and/or afford it” tasks. Or maybe even, “I’ll address that once we have over 50 full-time employees and I’m required to offer them” tasks!”
Samatha Jean’s primary focus is partnering with local businesses and non-profits to offer customised, cost-effective, and competitive benefit packages to all size employers regardless of their size.
“I love partnering with growing organizations to understand their objectives and help insulate against and navigate through what can be some of the most costly parts of the business – losing key employees to a competitor, operating under-staffed or with poor employee-morale, work-comp fiascos, healthcare costs rising uncontrollably, and administrative mishaps or burdens”
She aims to offer her clients simplicity and straightforwardness in problem-solving, keeping sustainability in mind. She said, “There are many options for offering benefits, but not all are the best fit for every employer.”
Here is her process when offering solutions to companies:
- Learning of a company’s needs, concerns and objectives
- Use the viable information to establish and implement a benefit program that makes sense and is affordable
- Start a conversation and understand the current state of the company
- Set a vision roadmap
Currently, Samantha Jean works for Aflac, a Supplemental Insurance provider that provides additional financial protection for employees and their families in the event of a serious accident or illness. Here are some of their services:
- Major Medical
- Dental, Vision
- Life
- Disability
- Hospital Indemnity
- Cancer and Critical Illness Protection
- Accident Protection
- Retirement Programs.
Growing Up On a Goat Farm
As mentioned at the beginning of this article, Samantha Jean grew up on a Goat Farm and started working when she was 15. She believes that this part of her story played a huge role in molding her work ethic. She talks about responsibility, accountability, and learning from the get-go. Like the tasks we do in our office desks, goats require some tending and full attention. She said, “Whether or not someone is looking, this job must always be done the right way. And when you have animals, depending on you to feed and give them water, they can’t go get water themselves,” Samantha put it. Everything that she did in the goat farm requires a process and when you miss a step, it’s a big deal; and it has its corresponding consequences that are immediate and evident.
As someone who’s worked in different jobs, Samantha mentioned that she had roles where no one looked after her, which meant full responsibility.
Daily, Samantha would milk 48 goats with 12 different milking machines. In each milking machine, one is assigned for goats, and you must move it through the series right and down. She does it twice a day. Looking back, Samantha said that she would triple her shifts during the summer and spend double or single shifts when she’s in school. Samantha did this until she finished her psychology degree in College and flew to Haiti.
Life in Haiti
In 2011, Samantha’s mom was introduced to an organization called Healing Haiti. Her mom didn’t want to go alone so she asked Samantha and her friend Angie if they would want to go, and obviously, they both agreed. “It changed my worldview in the best way and it broke my heart in the best way possible,” as described by Samantha. Most of us know Haiti is considered one of the countries severely affected by poverty. Through seeing the situation in Haiti, Samantha reflected on how some of us can sometimes become ungrateful.
She realized how people in Haiti can live with joy and smiles despite their difficult living conditions. That made her decide to move to Haiti for some time. With her experience working on a goat farm, Samantha relocated to a remote area and established a malnutrition center. It was a tough battle for her; she needed to find a farm and put the animals. In the remote mountainous area in Haiti, she found a way to set up a goat farm because she knew that goats are resilient and that their milk is second best to use for nursing, with the absence of formula in the area.
Samantha’s main challenge while living in Haiti was the language barrier. Like charades, she had to start acting out to communicate with the locals. But that barrier was never a hindrance to her goal, which was to help the locals—she eventually learned how to communicate more efficiently and explore their culture.
Working With Aflac
Moving on, Samantha has been working with Aflac (American Family Life Insurance Company of Columbus) for seven years now. Aflac is considered a Fortune 200 organization and started as a family-owned business in the 1950s. The business started with life insurance policies. The business saw a gap in the market and a common challenge faced by people going through cancer diagnosis. This is where Aflac started a Cancer Protection program that is currently the front-runner product of the business. Samantha described this as “The pioneer in building a product that pays cash to people as they’re going through a cancer battle.”
Samantha started the business with a goal: Recruit and transition people into business ownership. She saw great engagement from people with college experience looking for opportunities outside. A two-step interview process included a face-to-face conversation asking questions about what they were looking for if they sought freedom and independence. The other is if their values align with Aflac. Having said all that, Samantha took many steps to convince people to believe in themselves enough and try to sell insurance. She always taught people the power of taking follow-ups and building client relationships. Through that, she can push forward and go beyond what they are selling in Aflac but focus on the lifetime value it offers, which is financial security.
The Importance of Financial Security
Nowadays, people entirely spend their money out of day-to-day necessities and miss out on the future aspect of finances. Some are even in debt, and some are saving money for the future. Individuals and businesses have the same goal in mind: How can they be able to achieve financial security? But sometimes, this gets missed out and left behind the picture. Financial security remains a spot in everyone else’s brain as something that is unsure, not taken care of, or an anxiety. It is missed out, but we sometimes need education and awareness on achieving this.
To expound further on what Aflac is doing, Samantha gave us a few points on the importance of Financial Security especially for employees supporting families. In the event of an accident, death, or illness, it is important to have a fall-back or financial blanket for families in case of a loss of income due to incapacity or long-term hospitalization.
This is why Samantha always works hard to talk to employers who are business owners. It is essential to include insurance as part of their benefits package. This creates added value and enhances employer branding, attracting top talents and retaining employees.
Wrapping It Up
Samantha Jean’s professional journey is incredibly moving. It includes growing up on a goat farm, working in Haiti, and transitioning to life insurance. Her work demonstrates how she serves humanity at its finest. Life moves quickly; sometimes, we forget to reflect and see what matters most—our health, safety, and loved ones.
“I love contentment in life. I think that’s very important. But I think it’s just like never giving up. No matter what life throws your way, you just continue moving forward one step in front of the other, no matter what even visions you might have as crazy or far-fetched as they seem. You just go for it and put one foot in front of the other. Well, and there’s a level of content that comes with having the confidence to figure it out the rest.”
Samantha’s journey isn’t linear. It took her moving continents, engaging in different cultures, and self-discovery to find where she was meant to be. Her journey made a mark, creating a steadfast hold on her values and work ethic. Her heart is indeed gold.
If you want to contact Samantha Jean, her number is 651 – 497- 9514.
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