In 2024, I was feeling a bit lost in my career.
I felt stalled. I didn’t feel challenged. I’d been with the same company for 11 years at that point, and unless my director of operations left, I had no other upward mobility in the set career ladder.
I mentioned that to my direct boss. That’s when she told me she was stepping down from the leadership team of our company’s women’s Employee Resource Group. She asked if I wanted to take her spot.
I joined in October 2024, happy to meet new people, not expecting too much. But one of the first things I told the leadership team was that I wanted us to do more than just host an event, meet a few folks, and go on our way.
I said I wanted something “beyond the cupcakes.” Surface-level networking wasn’t filling my cup, and I suspected other women at the company felt the same way.
In February 2025, one of the co-chairs left the company, and I was asked to fill her spot. I was honestly surprised. I had the shortest tenure on the team. They assured me that my networking in the Utah community and my ideas for the ERG were the reason I was being asked. I was humbled and grateful for the opportunity to do more.
But I also felt a strange tension.
I’d been with the company since 2013, so in some ways, I had deep tenure. But our division used to have its own office, away from headquarters, and we didn’t close that office until 2021. I hadn’t really interacted much with other departments until then. So even with over a decade at the company, I felt disconnected—like I was behind in some ways, despite the years.
I didn’t know if someone with tenure but not the “right” experience or exposure could actually do this role.
I said yes anyway.
The women’s ERG completely changed in 2025. We rebranded. We set larger, more ambitious metrics. We changed our programming. We beta tested and piloted a mentorship program.
We created a space for the women of Ancestry to actually connect on a deeper level—to problem-solve, support each other, and encourage real growth. Not just cupcakes and small talk.
Our employee engagement survey saw multi-digit growth in how women viewed their career development opportunities. I firmly believe we played a part in that growth.
Here’s what gets me, looking back: There have been several times in the past few years when I didn’t apply for a role because I didn’t think I was qualified. Then I’d read the resume of the person they hired, and we weren’t all that different.
Getting the encouragement from my direct boss and the ERG leadership team to jump into this role was amazing. But more than that, it taught me something bigger: I need to jump. I have ideas worth sharing that could help others. Waiting for someone to convince me I was ready almost cost me this entire experience.
I felt very, very lost in 2024. I’d tried several projects and initiatives, and none of them filled my cup. Looking back, I understand something now that I didn’t then: As you grow, you’ll feel friction. You’ll feel resistance.
And you have to figure out if that resistance exists because the thing isn’t actually in alignment with your goals—or if it’s just growth, and you’ve simply never experienced it before.
Really listen to what your intuition tells you.
In the case of my ERG leadership journey, it was just something new. But it was in full alignment with who I am and what I want to do.
I want others to experience that kind of growth too.
If you’re feeling stalled, feeling that friction, feeling like you don’t have the “right” background or enough tenure or exposure—pause before you count yourself out. Sometimes the resistance you’re feeling isn’t a sign to stop. It’s a sign you’re growing into something new.
— Elizabeth Miller, Sego Leading · 2026