When I began my career in the legal field more than 30 years ago, I was drawn to the people.  As the oldest of 6 children growing up in the Twin Cities, leadership came naturally to me. Fascinated by the legal field, I enjoyed being surrounded by smart and energetic people. My connection with people and the desire to help others led me to leadership roles at the law firm where I later became certified in human resources. After obtaining my PHR certification from the Human Resource Institute, my roles continued to increase in responsibility.  In 2015, I accepted a position as Office Administrator of a national law firm with an office in Minneapolis, where I oversaw operations in a broad role with varied responsibilities.

Until 2018, I spent most of my career in the legal field, which was what I knew and where I was comfortable. However, I had the strange sense that there was something else out there, although the details were unclear. Then, something interesting happened.

In 2018, I met a professional development coach who introduced me to an assessment called the “Kolbe™”.  As a life-long learner, I always enjoyed assessments, which provide insights about people that isn’t always obvious at the surface. I was completely unaware, however, of how those 4 numbers would change my life.

In viewing my Kolbe™ results, I received clarity regarding my "superpower” as an 8 “Quick Start”.  However, what moved me (literally to tears) was the insight I received in viewing my 2 Follow-Thru. While there are no “good or bad” measurements with Kolbe, I immediately flashed back to multiple times in my career which required a high degree of follow through and how I struggled through those tasks.  I recalled numerous times in my career that I spent  “swimming upstream”, working against my instinctive talents. As a Quick Start, my “superpower” was the ability to strategize solutions and thrive in chaos, with energy to spare.  However, those tasks which required dotting the I's – crossing the T’s left me exhausted and depleted. I made the intentional decision to “bless and release” those areas – and instead decided to delegate those tasks (and strategically recruit) team members who have instinctive talents with Follow Thru.

My journey to understand the power of conation (Kolbe™) was like peeling layers from an onion.  I researched, studied, talked with colleagues, and pursued my own self-discovery conation journey.  I hired my Kolbe™ consultant to conduct Kolbe™ assessments with my two sons (who were then in college).  I didn’t want them to choose a career and waste valuable time without understanding their instinctive talents. It was a relief and empowering to see and understand information I didn’t even know I was missing. 

After continued study and application of how Kolbe™ can be used as a strategic tool with organizational people initiatives, I was convinced. With an opportunity on the horizon to present at a national legal conference with my fellow colleagues, I was passionate about the opportunity to share my discoveries. In January of 2022, I flew to Arizona to study with Kathy Kolbe™ (creator of the Kolbe™) and learned other ways to utilize this fascinating and powerful tool.