Associate Spotlight: Nick Sexton

Nick Sexton

Customer Acquisition Manager

Born and Raised

Indianapolis, IN

Biggest Fear

“When I was a young kid, I was absolutely terrified of water and I hated the idea of swimming. There are EXTENSIVE videos and pictures of my parents’ attempts at swim classes, needless to say they were quite entertaining to see, as I was the kid with 4 different arm floaties and a tube around my waist. I would not learn how to swim under any circumstances, I just screamed from the moment I was near a large body of water until we went somewhere else. One day, I was sitting inside my house, my family members were having a disagreement and nobody was paying attention to my baby sister, who was playing near the pool. She did end up falling into the pool and I was watching with terror at the fact that no one was around to help her, but me.

It took a few seconds for me to just think back to my swim classes and actually decide that I was going to try to apply what they attempted to teach me. I jumped in and moved my arms and legs in different directions, I finally got close to her and put my arm around her. Swimming for the first time and having to also pull someone was beyond difficult, but a few moments later we were by the edge of the pool being pulled out.

This story still often gets told at family get-togethers, but that day I realized something that I still hold to this day. If I didn’t HAVE to jump into the pool, I would never have learned to swim. But once I did face that fear, I realized that all the help I needed was there all along. It was up to me to just apply what other people had tried to teach me. Now, I remind myself often to really LISTEN to the mentors around me and attack my fears, because those fears only hold me back.”

What do people not know about you?

“ I enjoy reading about Greek mythology.”

Why SilverFern?

“Well, the people that have met me and know me are very aware that I’m not the most talkative person on the planet—I think the word used to describe me by others is ‘indifferent’."  He said with a chuckle. 

"That being said, I like the diversity here. The people, they are so different here and everyone’s experience is so vastly varied from person-to-person. The diversity here provides a great environment for people like me, who like to work with other people and not by themselves in a cubicle.”

What advice would you have given yourself a year ago?

Being the silent type that Nick is, he took a moment and answered with this simple statement.
“Attack everyday with a passion and a purpose. No matter what you are doing, just attack everyday with that passion.”

One day you just picked up your things and moved to Chicago, that must have been a hard decision—how did you just come to that decision?

“I grew up in Indianapolis and lived in Bloomington, IN for quite some time. I knew that I wanted more for myself and I’ve also always wanted to live in a bigger city. So I had a few interviews scheduled and when I found this position, I learned about the advancement opportunities it would provide and took the job. 

I just told myself that when I crossed the border from Indiana to Illinois, I wasn’t going to go back without getting a job in Chicago and making that next step towards my career. So, I packed up as much of my things as possible and made the move. Now I'm here and I think that decision was one of the best decisions I have ever made.”