My MS Diagnosis Made Me a Better Leader
“The tests confirmed that you do indeed have MS, and that’s why you’ve lost sight in your right eye.”
Those are words I never thought I would hear.
In February 2024, I started my multiple sclerosis (MS) journey.
My husband and I decided early on that we were going to be very open about the process. We took one month at a time and developed a theme to get through each month, starting with “Operation: Get My Eyesight Back” and then moved on to “Operation: Change My Diet.” Each month was an adventure, and we navigated new challenges month after month.
Just recently, I sat down and reflected on what MS has taught me about leadership. Leaders are supposed to be stoic, untouchable, and unbreakable. Thanks to MS, I believe I am all of those things and more. Here are a few more lessons on leadership MS has gifted me:
Be authentic. When I was first diagnosed, I had to decide how “real” I was going to be about the journey I was on. Should I tell my Powerhouse Planning team and clients? Would people still view me as a strong leader? I rolled with yes and haven’t regretted my decision. I learned that when you live as a genuine, authentic leader, you can also live as a model, showcasing that living in your realness is okay. There is no perfect human, and when your team and clients start to see you being real, they sense a space where they, too, can be seen.
Empowering people is key. Immediately, when I told my leadership team about my diagnosis, I explained that I wasn’t sure what this journey would be like but that I would always be open and honest with them. I asked if I could lean into them more than ever, and they committed to being fully in. They took over meetings and scheduled breaks for me each day until we had a medical plan in place. When I say I empowered them, it’s only part of the picture. They helped me drive and grow the company without missing a beat. My diagnosis allowed me to see where they could shine when given the opportunity to take on new roles.
Leaning into strengths has become essential. In the fall of 2024, I became a Gallup Certified Strengths Coach. Throughout the certification process, I’ve learned to lean wholly into our team based on their top strengths. There’s no need for anyone to become something they’re not, and we have learned to celebrate who each team member is. MS taught me to embrace our team’s DNA and actively involve them based on what they were born to bring to our world—not to have a company culture that shapes people into something they weren’t even created to be.
Be still. With MS, you are forced to slow down. But I have learned that’s not such a bad thing. That need for stillness requires me to turn down the volume of life and listen. The world is full of hustle and bustle, but when you’re calm enough to breathe in your surroundings, you hear and see things that would have otherwise passed you by. Being still is an art I’m perfecting, even now—sometimes by force.
Silent diseases exist in our workforce, and health and wellness should be a priority. I can tell you that having MS and
being in a leadership position has taught me that silent diseases and mental health and wellness problems are entrenched in every team. All people need to know your company is a safe place to land and fall—and there’s a team ready to pick you up as needed. It’s simple. People have hard things happening in life, and we’re called to be there and show up with kindness and compassion.
Powerhouse Planning turns 13 this year, and you would think I would have learned most of what I needed as an entrepreneur by now. But 2024 showed me that being vulnerable and authentic makes our team strong, even when my body wasn’t.
Now go on. Be authentic. Empower the people in your corner of the world. When we live in a community mindset and own our truth, we will see people grow and transform. And isn’t that what true leadership is all about?
__________
(For those of you wondering about my MS journey, know that my eyesight fully returned after about a month and a half, and I’m on a 90% organic/anti-inflammatory diet as well as much more.)
Jessica Bertsch currently serves as the president of Powerhouse Planning. At Powerhouse, she aims to provide career opportunities for military spouses and veterans worldwide. Jessica is wife to Fritz (a U.S. Coastguardsman) and mama to Quint (13 years old), Gracie (10 years old), and Auvie (9 years old). You can also find her raising money for MS because we still need a cure, and she will indeed be part of it!
Reflecting On 12 POWERful Years
In case you missed it, Powerhouse Planning turned 12 on September 11, 2024. When we sat down to reflect on 2024, we realized we’ve come a long way in what, in the business world, is a very short time. When founder and president Jessica Bertsch hit “submit” on the paperwork that created Powerhouse Planning, she was taking a true leap of faith that she could leverage her professional experiences into a total remote freelance team solution that would give portable careers to military spouses and veterans. “Military spouses are some of the most overqualified and underutilized members of the workforce,” she says. “I wanted to change that and really create a space where military spouses could shine and find meaningful careers that they could take with them no matter where the military sends them.”
She certainly has succeeded. In 2024, Powerhouse Planning employed 25 freelancers, 19 of whom are military spouses and two of whom are veterans. Our freelancers span 14 states and in 2024, Powerhouse Planning provided more than 7,200 hours of work for our dedicated team. And what a team it is! Providing total remote team solutions to 25 clients, our freelancers used their skills and talents to provide in-person training, gala support, symposium support, and conference support reaching global audiences. Our freelancers provided nonprofit support, including grant writing services that secured over $8M in grant funding, ensuring that our clients can continue to provide vital services to those who desperately need them. Through three main service areas, business growth, content creation, and event facilitation, our freelancers are making a real difference for our clients.
Our freelancers don’t stop there, though. They embrace the opportunity to give back, something Jessica has always insisted is part of the core philosophy at Powerhouse Planning. Through our Share the Goodness charitable arm, Powerhouse Planning donated over $22k to more than 30 organizations, our biggest year yet! Whether it’s through internal fundraisers to support causes near and dear to our freelancers’ hearts, or through Share the Goodness contracts, Powerhouse Planning loves to give back to the communities we call home. In 2024, three businesses benefitted from Share the Goodness contracts, including Operation Child Care Project™, Cba2, and Zip With Us®. We continued to support our World Vision child, as we have since the beginning in 2015. She’s 12 now, just like us, and we love to watch her grow and flourish alongside Powerhouse Planning. In all, our team volunteered over 1,300 hours to the communities where we live, demonstrating that we don’t just make sharing the goodness part of our work culture, but also part of our everyday lives.
Two years ago, at our 10th anniversary celebration, our team decided we wanted to do more for military spouses. We launched Empowering the Homefront™, an ambitious multi-year project to make military life a little easier for military spouses, whether that be through professional services like resume creation and job coaching or to support fellow military spouses no matter where they are on their journey. In 2024 we launched our Empowering the Homefront digital magazine, which comes out quarterly and features inspirational stories from military spouses, features military spouse-owned and -focused companies, and offers free resources. We also provided a free website design for a military spouse-owned business, Classy Chick. As a company of military spouses and those who love military spouses, we know the hardships and unique challenges that come with military life. Empowering the Homefront is our small way of saying, “We see you, and we’ve got your back!”
We’ve had an exceptional 2024. We’ve added Gallup Strengths coaching to our available services, so we can continue to help our clients build and foster positive, successful work environments. We’ve trademarked our “P” logo and our “Empowering the Homefront” program. We’ve continued to provide exceptional solutions to our clients, which you can check out by reading any of our case studies to see exactly how our total remote team solution works. After the incredible 2024 we had, we are full-out excited to see what 2025 brings. If you want to know how we can help you make 2025 your best business year yet, contact us today.
New Powerhouse Team Member
Bianca S. is an editor and journalist with more than 13 years of experience. Her portfolio includes interviews with former Secretary of Defense Gen. James Mattis, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown, then-UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, actor Gary Sinise, and countless elected and military leaders.
Bianca holds a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration and journalism. She resides near Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland, with her now-retired Marine Corps husband and two children. In her personal time, she enjoys paddleboarding, hiking, and running.
Bianca is eager to rejoin the Powerhouse Planning team, which she initially worked on as a technical writer beginning in 2015.
New Powerhouse Team Member
Joanna G. is the community engagement manager at Military.com, founder of PILLAR: The Digital Retreat for Deployment, and writer/founder of jomygosh.com. She has worked in the military community for more than a decade, and her writing has been featured in national and international publications. She lives in Pennsylvania with her Navy veteran husband, twin children, and dog.
New Powerhouse Team Member
Jena is excited to join the Powerhouse team and share her skills as a grant writer. She is new to the military spouse life, only marrying her high school sweetheart in January of 2024. They are at their first duty station, Fort Liberty, and are eager to start this new journey together.
Jena earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology at The University of Akron, where she also served her sorority, Alpha Gamma Delta, through multiple leadership roles, including chapter president. Currently, she is studying for her master’s degree in clinical mental health counseling.
When Jena is not working or studying, you can find her spending time with loved ones, reading, crafting, hiking, and traveling to national and local parks.
