Jeysha Cruz has only been in the credit union industry for just over a year and got her first sip of the conference kool-aid at Illinois' YP IMPACT Conference. We were able to chat with her about her experience and what she wants to do next!
Tell us a little about yourself. How you entered the credit union industry how long you’ve been here and what you want in the future etc.
I started in the credit union industry as a teller in September 2018 and I knew from my first day that I wanted to be able to help members to a further extent. A position became available for a member service consultant and after being a teller for about five months applied and got the position. I am now working as a Consultant and have been in the industry for over a year with many more to come. In the future I wish to be in a leadership position within my credit union.
This was your first credit union event. What were your thoughts going into the event, and what do you think now after attending?
I was a bit nervous going into the event since I did not know anyone but that’s the magic of it! I was nervous but at the same time super eager to meet new people that share the same mindset and motivation as myself. To be in a room full of other young professionals with great ideas to share with one another was very empowering. After attending this event I can’t wait till next year!
What was the biggest take away from the YP conference? Who inspired you the most etc.
Someone who inspired me the most with their words of wisdom was the President of the Illinois Credit Union League, Tom Kane. Tom spoke about natural hesitation and how to overcome it. I feel that many young professionals like myself have natural hesitation without realizing it. If you want to grow professionally and personally making yourself uncomfortable may be the key to it. Sometimes simply stepping out of your comfort zone can lead to many more opportunities. Tom also said “Learn to be a good employee before you can be a good leader” as someone that wishes to be in a leadership position this message was a lot more than just a sentence for me. Developing yourself is a process not an event. For some people it may be a fast process but for others it may take its time so appreciate all the lessons that you learn along the way and never give up.
Is there something that you heard or did that you are going to take back to your team?
We did a lot of interactive activities with one another and I believe it is something great to bring back to my team. Figuring out ways to better our branch and overall member experience together is important. It was also a pleasure to hear different ways that credit unions come together to help out one another and their communities. We also did a little fun activity inspired by the kindness rock project where we painted rocks with messages to put a smile on someone’s face when they find it. I actually took this activity back to my team and we created rocks to hide around our branch to put a smile on other employees.
Now that you have your first CU event under you belt what’s next?
CRASH! CRASH! CRASH! I will be applying for many crashers, attending chapter meetings, and volunteering in our community. I look forward to what the future holds and I am super grateful to have had the opportunity to attend the 2019 YP conference.
CUltivate is people helping people with our mission to spread the word, connect the people, and give an outlet to share your stories. Know someone in the industry we should interview? Drop us a line at CultivateYP@gmail.com
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