It was 1985, and much of the third floor of the Vermont building was filled with paper records. Among the stacks of files, 19-year-old Doug White helped train Amy Douglas, also 19.
As National Life grew along with their relationship, Amy and Doug moved though different parts of the company. Doug transferred from Mail & File to the Disability Contract Change team.
Meanwhile, Amy moved, along with all of those physical files, to the new Records Center (now called the Dewey building, on the north side of the parking lot), where one of her jobs was to load the microfilm camera in the dark. She eventually came back to the main building to serve the Billing, Contract Change, Claims and New Business teams.
Doug went on to be integral to the Variable Products Services team and brought his experience back to the Contract Change team.
Deeper Roots
But 1985 wasn’t the start of Amy and Doug’s connection with National Life. Doug explains:
Eight-year-old Doug (pre-beard) and his father, Gene
Both of my parents were Quarter-Century Club members. My mom was there for 25 years and my dad was there 38, and they were husband and wife. I was born into the National Life family. I’ve only been there 36 years, but National Life has been central to my life, all of my life.
My dad started in 1949, and in fact, you’ll find his name on the bronze plaque in the cafeteria of Korean War veterans. I actually have a sister who started at the home office and went on to the Nashville agency for probably a dozen years or so.
So, between, Amy — she has an uncle Mark who worked there 20-plus years — and myself and my immediate family, we’re going to be closing the doors on about 150 years of service.
Deeper Relationships
Besides meeting each other, Amy and Doug worked with countless others across the business. Doug noted, “you develop so many good relationships at the personal level and you get to interact with them outside the office. At this point, many of our friends are older and have already taken the retirement route. Maybe we’ll get in the swing of seeing them again.”
One person from her past stands out to Amy: “Bob Brown, for sure, my very first boss. He was the person who set my expectations for managers going forward because he was adaptable, he was personable, and there was no job that he felt was beneath his pay grade. He did not believe in delegating work without knowing how to do it and jumping in himself. I just love him.”
Doug’s standout teammate happens to be his past and most recent manager, Kathy Laughlin:
Doug in one of his legendary Halloween costumes: “I freaked out Ruth Smith with an evil leprechaun costume one year…I came in dressed up as Alice Cooper, with a top hat, whole head mask, boa constrictor…one year I did go way overboard. I spent about three weeks out in my shed building an oversized school bus out of cardboard boxes and came up with the idea of being a blind school bus driver. That one finally won me first place.”
For most of my career it has been the person I report to now, Kathy Laughlin. I worked with her to an extent while I was originally in contract change. She eventually gave me the base disability insurance knowledge that I’ve carried all along.
When I went over to the Variable Product Services unit for eight years or so, I wanted specifically to get back into contract change and Kathy was one of the reasons because she’s such a knowledgeable person and she’s been here so long that she’s got that history. She can tell you why things are the way they are. She’s just an encyclopedia of knowledge.
On top of that, she’s always been extremely supportive. I’ve said this on Gallup surveys in the past: there’s nobody that I would rather report to.
Amy and Doug’s own partnership has always been intertwined with their work as well. Amy says, “It’s actually more of a bonding point than anything because we completely relate and understand each other’s job. Our two areas intersect quite a bit with workloads and tasks. We know where we both need to be and can schedule around it.”
“We’ve gotten a high level of support for each other” Doug adds, “because we’re in areas that interact with each other so closely. A lot of the times I’m getting questions from my team about what a process should be when interacting with Amy’s side of the floor, I’ve got that inside line.”
What Hasn’t Changed
Amy and Doug with other Quarter Century Club members
Amy and Doug have been part of massive change over the past 36 years. While Amy may not miss having to handle microfilm in the darkroom, they both lament a reduced emphasis on cross-functional teams and cross-training that had helped them develop their acumen and careers.
One important thing has not changed, however, according to Amy:
The people they’re bringing in. Whether it was 1985 or this year, every single person I’ve worked for has wanted to do the best they could do for the job they were hired for. Then they learned a little bit about other areas and a little bit more about business acumen, and then they may find a particular area interest for them and they eventually may migrate there. I think that’s the best way to know what you love the most. Because if you love something, you’re going to do it well.
Parting Advice
Amy and Doug’s experience runs deep into National Life. But their greatest takeaways transcend any function they have served.
Amy offers,
Make sure you give each other grace. For example, everyone is going to have a bad day. Everyone is going to make a mistake. Just give people grace and the room to breathe because you never know what someone else may be going through on a personal level. As long as people are supporting each other in any way they can, that is huge.
Also, be a willing learner. That is how I was able to participate in job shares and job shadows. It brings a very different perspective if you can sit in someone else’s seat to see what they do every day, because you can then translate it to your current area.
“Seek out learning,” Doug says, “Learn as much as you can. Even if you don’t feel like you want to go into a different line of work, any opportunity is going to help you improve. That business acumen is a big thing to have.”
Thank you, Amy Douglas and Doug White, for improving National Life for 36 years. They retired on August 20, 2021.