By Monica Donias
The weekend of August 12th, my coworkers (Nolan and Raquel) and I were given an amazing opportunity to travel to Florida to participate in the Latin American Association of Insurance Agencies (LAAIA) convention. With this being my first convention ever attending, I was unsure of what to expect. Being able to interact with hundreds of people in person seemed like something but a dream given the past year we have all been through. Nervous, excited and even anxious – all words to describe how I felt days before the event.
The Latin American Association of Insurance Agencies (LAAIA) was founded in 1969 as “The Voice of Independent Insurance Agents.” They host the largest annual insurance convention and trade fair in South Florida. I was ecstatic that I was going to have a chance to speak with agents and potentially help out with their hiring needs.
Well rested, we head down Friday to get the day started for the 51st LAAIA event. I was most excited about being able to speak with a variety of different agents about how we can help with their staffing needs. Sure enough, I got to talk with hundreds of people all throughout the day about how IdealTraits can assist achieving hiring goals agents have set for the year.
Hearing their concerns in-person about the current job market is completely different from talking with them over the phone. I could actually read their body language along with being able to react in a positive way, offering reassurance that they – along with many others – are not alone. I can personally say that being a Latina there are times where I feel like there isn’t a group that can relate to some struggles I go through. LAAIA is about having a group of fellow agents in the Latin community that you can go to with questions and help. Knowing that IdealTraits is a vendor of such an amazing organization is very heartwarming.
The convention lasted about 8 hours and during that time I also got to go around and visit with some vendors. After the convention there was also a networking event that we were invited to. From playing corn hole to playing foosball – there was something for everyone to interact with. And that’s exactly what the IdealTraits group did! There were not many moments when I didn’t have a smile on my face. I have nothing but thanks for both the LAAIA community and IdealTraits for giving me the opportunity to help the Latin community with their hiring needs.
