I’ve been a little hesitant to share some of these details of the past few months, but have been feeling more open since it might be interesting/helpful to some of you…
But a couple months ago I quit my VP of Finance job cold turkey - nothing else better lined up and no crystal-clear business plan to replace the income.
Wise? Probably not.
Should you do that? Definitely not without serious consideration.
But I couldn’t shake the feeling inside that I needed to take a leap of faith and start a new chapter.
Since quitting, I’ve really enjoyed time with my family the most. It’s been amazing time this fall to rest and reset as I step into this next season of life.
Which begs the question, what’s next??
To be honest, I’m still not sure. It feels like this is a time of trying different things to see what sticks.
A very unexpected but interesting one of those things has been paid consulting calls from “investors in NY” who are willing to pay $200/hour to ask me basic questions about the insurance industry.
I joined a few network consulting firms (GLG, Alphasights, etc.) that have been reaching out almost non-stop about opportunities for me to share my insurance expertise with random people who value it.
It’s not life-changing income but has been both affirming that my industry experience is valuable to someone (in this case, mysterious hedge fund investors) and helpful to keep the schedule full.
Never before in my life have I truly been walking by faith and trusting God for provision for me and my family.
I have a lot more to share on this topic but didn’t want to write my whole life story in this newsletter. More to come and I’m hoping this slight break from the usual is interesting for you.
Back to business:
Last week I hosted my first LinkedIn Live training on FP&A Transformation: what it is and how to do it. Over 150 people joined from accountants to CFOs and I was super energized to find an outlet for my teaching passion. I’ll be doing more of these.
Next week’s LinkedIn Live will be about how drivers are the unlock to adding value in forecasting, analysis, and reporting. Shoutout to Ben for the inspiration!
I had an interesting call with a former colleague of mine who is trying to figure out why work and life no longer feel like they fit together. I think a lot of finance professionals are frustrated with achieving career success but feeling like it’s at the cost of family/fitness/values. The advice I gave him: start a Fractional CFO firm serving Insurance Agencies…
… which made me reflect and think “why don’t I follow my own advice?” So I’ll be testing if starting a Fractional CFO firm serving Insurance Agents is right for me. Stay tuned!
How we can help:
Thanks for hanging with me through this transition. It’s fun to share all of this and invite you for the ride.
If you are a finance, business, or insurance leader in need to deep finance expertise (consulting, education, fractional support) then reply to this email and we can talk through how I might be able to help.
Brett Hampson, Founder of Forecasting Performance