Natasha Gunn | 20 Under 40
Natasha Gunn
Sales Support Specialist
Security Benefit
Natasha Gunn currently serves as a sales support specialist on Security Benefit’s operations team, and previously spent three years as director of strategic communications at Midwest Tax & Financial.
Community relations sit at the center of Natasha’s life outside of work: she serves on three nonprofit boards, chairing Club Blue in support of Boys and Girls Clubs of Topeka and serving on the boards of Forge Young Talent and Florence Crittenton. She earned a Bachelor of Science in journalism, with an emphasis in strategic communications, from the University of Kansas.
What values guide the decisions you make? Why are those values important to you?
The values that guide me are compassion, consistency, and conviction. Compassion because everyone deserves to be met without judgment; consistency because trust is built over years, not moments; and conviction because real change requires the willingness to have hard conversations. Together, they're how I try to lead, at work and in every board room I sit in.
What should someone never take for granted? Why?
You should never take a support system for granted. It's easy to assume people will always be there, but community has to be built and maintained. I don't take mine for granted, because I know firsthand what it's like to need it and have it show up.
What led you to your career?
I studied journalism in college because I've always been curious about people — what motivates them, what they need, and the "why" behind a problem. That curiosity led me into communications and then into client-facing operations work, where I get to solve problems and build relationships every day. It wasn't a straight line, but every stop taught me something about serving people well.
What advice would you give someone just starting out in your field?
Ask questions until you actually understand the "why," not just the "what." In service and operations work, the people who ask the extra question are the ones who catch problems before they become bigger ones — and that habit will serve you no matter where your career goes.
What's at the top of your bucket list? Why?
The top of my bucket list is more adventure, particularly in the form of international travel. As Anthony Bourdain put it, "Travel is not a reward for working, it's education for living." For me, it's about the abundance that comes from continuing to expand, grow, and learn, through shared experiences, different cultures, and new viewpoints.
If you could instantly master one skill, what would it be? Why?
If I could instantly master a new language, then yes please! I'd love to become a linguist with the deeper mindset of communicating, understanding, and connecting with people all over the world. What an invaluable superpower that would be.
