Julie Turpin Shares Insightful Perspective on Navigating Change

When Everything’s Changing, Here’s What Doesn’t

Earlier this summer, we announced something big: Brown & Brown has entered into an agreement to acquire Accession Risk Management Group, bringing more than 5,000 talented teammates into our organization.

For some, that news sparked excitement. For others, it may have raised questions or even anxiety. That’s normal. Because the only thing people dislike more than change is the uncertainty that comes with it.

While this moment is specific to our company, the experience of change and emotions behind it aren’t.

I’ve worked through a lot of change in my life, and one thing I’ve learned is that change isn’t just a logistical shift. It’s layered and touches people differently depending on where they sit, what they’ve experienced and what they value.

No matter the context — whether you’re joining a new organization, stepping into a different role or navigating something entirely outside of work — the same tensions show up: control, clarity, fear and growth. When they do, we have a choice: resist the discomfort or learn from it.

Change feels hard. That doesn’t mean it’s bad.

When we go through change, we often crave control. We want to know what’s next, how it will affect us and where we’ll land. But control is a myth. The only thing any of us can truly control is ourselves: our mindset, our response and our ability to stay open.

When I talk to teammates, interns and even close friends about navigating uncertain moments, I always come back to a question: What’s this change here to teach me?

Some of the most defining experiences of my life — watching my family lose everything, learning to build financial independence early, navigating the loss of a 19-year marriage — didn’t come with immediate clarity. But they did come with growth. And in every case, I became someone stronger on the other side.

That’s what I hope for all of us in moments like this — to not just get through the change but use it. To let it stretch us, sharpen us and ultimately move us forward in ways we may not have expected.

How to stay grounded in the middle of change

The truth is, change doesn’t always wait for us to feel ready. But we can choose how we show up for it. We can choose to be reflective instead of reactive. Curious instead of closed off. Rooted instead of rigid.

Here are a few practices that have helped me, and many others, move through change with greater clarity and confidence:

• Get honest about what you’re feeling. Write down what’s worrying you. Then ask: Is this really true? Often, our fear grows in the gaps we don’t examine.
• Stay close to the change. When we feel disconnected, it’s usually because we’re on the outside of something we don’t yet understand. Ask questions. Join a workstream. Learn how the process works.
• Know what steadies you. That might be a backup plan, a routine, a mentor or a phrase you repeat when things feel uncertain. Create a foundation you can return to.
• Lead with transparency and consistency. If you’re in a position of influence, what people need from you isn’t perfection. It’s steadiness. Say what you know. Say what you don’t. Say what you’ll find out. And say it more than once. In times of change, repetition builds trust.

At Brown & Brown, our current chapter of growth means welcoming new teammates, new perspectives and new potential. But no matter the setting — organizational, personal or somewhere in between — transformation brings the same opportunity: to become more connected, more resilient and more open to what’s next.

Because while change is a constant, so is our capacity to grow through it — with clarity, intention and each other.

PurposeFULL Leadership
by Julie Turpin, Chief People Officer

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