Meet Thomas Grumley

Thomas Grumley had little experience with diabetes before coming to work at the Diabetes Care Club last fall. But if you ever get a chance to talk to him on the phone, you'd never guess that. After graduating from the University of Mississippi in 2008 with a degree in real estate, Thomas moved to Florida to start his career, but it was quickly derailed by the recession. "It was very, very bad timing," he says. So how did he end up here? We interrupted him for a few minutes to get the scoop:

Interview

Q. Real estate to diabetes-that's a lot like apples to oranges. What's the story?

A: Andy was my roommate at Ole Miss, too. When I moved to Nashville-and moved in with him-he told me about the job and how much he loved working here. Since joining the company, I've learned a lot about the disease and realized that it's a really big issue.

Q. Time to toot your own horn: What makes you so good at your job?

A. You'd think there weren't many similarities between my job in real estate and this one, but they both require the same people skills. Being in real estate, you have to be very personable. That's even more important when you're on the phone talking to diabetes patients. I'm pretty good at relating to the patient and being able to make a connection right away, which I think makes them feel more comfortable.

Q. You said you love to travel; where are you headed next?

A. My family and I are headed to Colorado for a backpacking trip in a few weeks, so that should be fun. But a dream trip for me would be Germany. I've been overseas a couple of times, but never there, so maybe that will happen soon.