We’re thrilled to welcome Martine Lellis, CPA®, CFP In The Suite. In this episode we talk about making those big changes and bold moves in life. Martine recognizes that these decisions can be challenging at times.
Martine says, “The biggest decisions in my life are often made quickly.”
She recently celebrated her one-year anniversary at Mercer Advisors as Chief Talent & Business Solutions Officer. In her role, she oversees talent management, human resources, compliance, and cross-functional initiatives aimed at improving the offering for Mercer’s clients.
Not surprisingly, the emerging themes of this interview with Martine Lellis, a National Technical Official for USA weightlifting, a level-two coach, an overall volunteer for the USA Weightlifting team, and a foster mom to a fluffy furbaby, touches on making a bold changes and the drive to help the next generation. We also talk about traveling around the world and knowing when is the right time to do so.
5 months before the COVID-19 pandemic approached the world, she left her position at a company that she had been with for 17 years. She left the company, and decided to take a sabbatical, by traveling the world. She had faith and confidence in herself, and knew that she would find her next bold move.
This self-proclaimed “adventurer,” tells us that she has traveled to all 7 continents. Throughout her years of travel, she gained connections within the industry, which fostered growth and led to a small group of individuals becoming her “travel friends.” Creating these connections for Martine was instrumental in calling upon them for advice on how she should transition to the next phase in her life.
“You don’t need a formal mentorship program within your organization to be mentored,” Martine says.
Martine shares the importance of having mentors, informal mentorship, reverse mentorship, and helping others to achieve their goals. Sometimes, it’s just about being more relatable and getting others to open up about their situations.
Don’t miss Martine’s tips throughout the episode if you’re searching for encouragement to make the next bold move in your life. Listen to Martine Lellis’ episode and utilize these three strategic concepts to help you excel and find the next step in your life.
- Surround yourself with the right people. Having colleagues, friends, and family that we can turn to in critical moments in our careers is crucial. Martine reminds us that it’s okay to rely on those people for support, especially during those critical times.
- Set incremental goals. Setting yourself up with smaller goals will help with the upcoming, inevitable changes 2021 is bringing to all of us. Use this as an opportunity to reset and bring you back to where you are supposed to be.
- There are gems around every corner. Whether it’s traveling to a new city, or finding a new job, it’s important to keep an open mind. Explore what’s around you, so that you are able to find your true passions and what drives you.
Show Notes:
Today’s episode of In The Suite with Martine Lellis, CPA®, CFP is all about making bold moves.
5 months before the COVID-19 pandemic entered into the world and changed our lives, Martine took a deep dive into uncharted territories. She decided to leave her previous company after 17 years of being a partner. Martine left the company without another position in mind and decided to take a sabbatical to travel the world and search for answers.
Martine says, “I didn’t have a job before I decided to leave. But I had confidence in myself that I would figure it out.”
She made a bold move to change the direction in her life. Not only did she change her professional position, title, and company. She also changed her geographical location. That’s right, she moved from the state of Virginia to Colorado.
What she had in her, was faith and confidence that she would find the next best thing. Through calling upon her network of industry friends and having faith and confidence, she found herself in a new position as the Chief Talent & Business Solutions Officer at Mercer Advisors.
In this episode, Martine shares her story about entering into a new position, becoming a National Technical Officer for USA Weightlifting, setting goals, and traveling during the pandemic. We talk about taking a chance, having trust in yourself, and how to make the bold moves in life.
She trusted her gut feeling, and had confidence in herself that she would excel in the next steps in her life. Martine says, “Sometimes you just have to take that chance, and you just have to trust yourself.”
Join the conversation to hear about:
- Making adjustments to working from home (00:45)
- Celebrating one year at Mercer (03:45)
- Making big changes in life and considering bold moves (10:10)
- Taking the chance and trusting yourself (13:00)
- Relocation from Virginia to Colorado (15:30)
- Being open-minded during the job search (16:45)
- National Technical Official for USA Weightlifting (18:35)
- Martine’s motivation to becoming a stronger woman and Crossfit (23:30)
- Making a C-Suite level shift in her life (26:55)
- Reverse mentorship (34:55)
- Social media giving insights into life (36:00)
- Traveling during a global pandemic (40:10)
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