Why am I doing what I’m doing? Oh yeah – it was 2001 and I had nowhere else to go. As a substitute teacher I had the summer off and as an aspiring musician I was drifting about aimlessly. Aimless and nothing to do: that’s how I got into the insurance business.
Sometimes you have a bad week and you question things. Why would anyone chose to sell insurance?
Insurance is complex and the rules are always changing. It’s made up of enigmatic words that form unintelligible sentences that when strung together make an ambiguous contract. Do people understand that it’s complex? Of course not. Why should they? They often think that insurance is a prepackaged product that sits on an eternally stocked shelf behind our desk. Just last week, a guy left a message telling me he wanted insurance for his business. When I called back, his first question was, “So how much is it gonna cost?” “Let me check my catalog… business insurance….starts with a B… aah, yes, here it is! Insurance for a business: $499.99! ” I wish it was that simple.
People don’t trust insurance agents. They’ve had a claim denied that they thought should have been covered. They got a price increase on a new policy AFTER they shook hands with their agent and signed the check. Maybe it’s the way insurance agents talk. Sometimes we go into this folksy accent that everyone knows is fake. “Heeey, partner, I’m just so happy to help ya!” Why do we do it? I guess we just want to be accepted.
Insurance agents get sued all the time. I read once that insurance is the third most sued industry right behind doctors and lawyers. I can’t find my sources right now, so I could be wrong, but it makes sense to that we would be sued so frequently. When you don’t trust the guy that’s selling you something that seems like it should be simple but is actually complex, and you lose a lot of money because of that thing he sold you, what do you do? SUE!
Yeah, some days you just want to give up. Quit. Sell everything you own and go on an eternal road trip. Go try and be a piano player again. Maybe that’s just me. So why keep going down this path?
Well, one thing that I’ve found is that people in the insurance game are genuinely nice, honest, and truly out to help others. You have to be a “people person” because you’re dealing with people and their problems all day long. In all the years of working with insurance personnel, I’ve only had one feud, and it was tiny. Hardly even a fight. And when we saw each other at the next conference, we became pals again.
It makes sense that you’d have friendly people in this industry because insurance is overwhelmingly about helping others. People call the agency because they have a need. They’re closing escrow tomorrow and they need homeowners insurance today. They’re hiring an employee for the first time and they need workers comp. They’re entering the business world and need some advice, besides just an insurance policy. When you close a deal and acquire a new client, you’re actually contributing to the progress of another person or business, and it feels good.
On top of all this, insurance itself is really important. Without insurance, the only people that could afford to take on the risk of owning a car, home, or business, are those with tons of cash and connections. Insurance helps the everyday person have and achieve what only royalty could have in the past. I’m not saying insurance is the most important thing in the world, but it’s up there.
So yes, there are the times when you get yelled at, get pulled in twenty different directions at once, or don’t close the deal you thought you were going to, and you want to throw in the towel. But I urge you: don’t do it! Remember back to 2001 when you felt a real satisfaction for your vocation for the first time in your life. What you do matters. So get back out there and give it your all. Thanks for the pep talk, self.
Eli you are my insurance-hero!!! 🙂
Well, well, well. Mr Hollywood Suites! You are my hero! And I’m seriously stoked you read my stuff!