Show Me You Love Me

I think I really surprised my youngest sister last week.

She asked me (in a rather off-hand way) "So, How's the insurance biz?"

My reply, "Oh, my gosh, I'm loving it. I help people do the most amazing things with their insurance choices."

She was kind of confused by that. She asked me what I meant.

Most people don't understand what we (the agents) find engaging about being insurance agents. They assume that we're mostly in it for the big money. Rake in as much premium dollars as you can, work three days a week and retire early on the residuals from the low value policies you tricked people into buying by exploiting their paranoia... 

Speaking only for my own perspective and motivations, I can tell you I do this work because it is very rewarding to help people use these insurance products to accomplish the things that mean the most to them.

I'm old enough to have learned that in this mortal world we have a few tangible resources. The places you commit these resources say a lot the depth and direction of your love.

Of the products I'm licensed to sell, Life Insurance is the most obvious extension of this course.

One of my favorite cases to date is a guy I met in northern Nebraska. He's a retired gentleman in his middle 60's who lives with his adult daughter and her little children, three of them all under five years of age. He asked about life insurance to do a very specific job. He wanted a policy that could be used to cut the principal of his 30 year mortgage in half if he dies prematurely. This was a simple and sure plan. I ran a couple of projections and we settled on a program that would serve this need and meet his budget.

I took the application and hopped back in my car to head home.

When I’m driving I either engage in some type of distraction (talk radio, sing songs I learned at summer camp, continuing education CDs...) or spend the drive-time thinking. That day I was in thinking mode. I kept mulling over this guys plan and how sweet it was. It wasn't the most expensive policy I've ever sold, wasn't complex or technically cleaver. Just a solid expression of his love and care for his daughter and grand children. What a privilege it is to serve this client.