Tennessee Young Agents '23 Future Leaders Spotlight

We are pleased to introduce you to Tyler Massey, who is employed as a Client Executive with RSS Insurance located in Chattanooga. His career in the insurance business started just three and half years ago when he joined RSS. Tyler noted that he began his insurance career just as the Covid-19 Pandemic started presenting unexpected challenges to a young producer just getting started in the insurance business. Nevertheless, he was productive and made good use of his time. He learned as much as possible about the insurance business from a macro perspective while also focusing on learning about the various policy forms and the details of personal and commercial insurance coverages. Tyler understood quickly that insurance is a knowledge driven business, and that ongoing insurance education and professional development was key. Tyler credits agency principal Dave Allen with serving as his mentor and always being present to answer questions and provide guidance as needed. He is very appreciative of the support he received and continues to receive from David and other members of the RSS team.

Tyler’s path to an insurance career was unique in that after playing baseball in high school at Chattanooga Baylor he was drafted to play professional baseball by the Colorado Rockies. After a great deal of thought, he decided to put his college plans on hold while he pursued his dream of playing professional baseball. Tyler’s professional baseball career lasted more than nine years playing primarily in the Colorado Rockies minor league organization with teams like the Triple A Albuquerque Isotopes and others. Tyler played right field and learned a tremendous amount about baseball at the professional level and about life. In 2016, his professional baseball career came to an end. After baseball, Tyler completed his college degree at Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee earning a degree in finance following through on the goal he post-postponed to pursue his baseball career.

When asked about what he learned over those nine years in professional baseball that carries over into his insurance career, Tyler states, “I learned a great deal about

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perseverance, pushing through failure and trusting the process”. He remarks, “Baseball is a sport where if you hit the ball 30% of the time as a batter you are succeeding, so you must get used to failing 70% of the time and learn how to push through that mentally.” Tyler described how at all levels of professional baseball, the talent of pitchers makes hitting the baseball a real challenge, so you must have consistent mechanics, be able to track the baseball and maintain mental focus to perform at a high level. Many of those same principles hold true on the defensive side of baseball as well. One of the most important elements Tyler learned in baseball that overlaps in business is knowing how to be a part of a successful team where everyone is moving forward with enthusiasm to accomplish a goal or set of goals. Tyler states, “It is very rewarding when everyone is pulling together as a team to overcome challenges whether it is winning a baseball game or hitting agency goals as a group."

Tyler grew up around athletics since his father, Phillip Massey, was the head football coach at Chattanooga Baylor High School for sixteen years where his teams advanced to two state championship games. His father is among Tennessee's top 12 active coaches in career victories and has a 184-112 overall record. He is now the head football coach at Briarcrest Christian School located in Shelby County.

Tyler’s mother, Sandy Massey, was also a Cross Country and Track coach at Hutchinson School in Memphis years ago. This Fall Sandy Massey is being inducted into the Baylor University Sports Hall of Fame for holding records in the 1500-meter and 3000-meter events and qualifying for the 1984 U.S. Olympic Trials. So, Tyler was introduced to the concept of being part of a team by both parents early on in life.

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