Hannah Trueblood- Be able to take the plunge

Overview: Native to northwestern Indiana and the city of Valparaiso, Hannah is a realtor who also ran for the mayor and garnered 42% of the votes despite running a grassroots campaign. Throughout our talk, she stressed the importance of authenticity, flexibility, and the ability to be able to ask for help when needed.

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On childhood: As a kid Hannah did a lot of bike riding, skateboarding, snowboarding, and building tree forts. She also discussed her love of being outdoors in general and how she would classify herself as a “tom-boy” when she was younger. These early life inclinations helped turn her into a person who is very outgoing, hard working, and forges her own path

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On books (generally): After starting with fiction books such as Harry Potter as a child, Hannah began her great interest in real estate and entrepreneurship after reading Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki. In addition, she also highly recommended Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill, How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie, The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas Stanley, and The Third Door by Alex Banayan.

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On being “playful”: Despite being very hardworking and determined, Hannah highly stressed that she does not take things too seriously and has a very open natured attitude. Instead of putting on floaties to enter the ocean of life, Hannah enters without any barriers. 

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On imposter syndrome: When Hannah was running for mayor, she felt very much like she did not belong. Many people close to her said that she was not ready “yet” and that she should wait her turn. However, Hannah greatly followed the principles of Alex Banayan from the Third Door and decided to go for it. For Hannah, the best way to get over imposter syndrome is to take immediate action and to not get drowned out by indecision.

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On the surprises of a campaign: The most surprising part of the campaign was how much was involved throughout the process: from the promotions, to the interviews, to handwriting postcards, there was so much to do. In addition, Hannah also mentioned how it sometimes was difficult to balance the campaign with her real estate business and her kids at home. However, despite all of this, Hannah was able to close 20 deals that year which was the most for her at the time. 

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Advice to her younger self: Don’t let the expectations of society derail you and don’t be afraid to truly become yourself.

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My takeaways: Hannah had such an authentic character to her and I loved her attitude about taking action in life. It is incredible to see Hannah do so well running for the mayor of Valparaiso despite facing an uphill climb. I think that is something that I can improve on: my willingness to take the initial action because as Hannah demonstrates, the sky's the limit.

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