Out In The Cool Air

This was the first really nice day of door knocking this year. The temperature wasn't that great but the sun was shining and the blue sky stretched from east to west. 

I met a bunch of nice people. 
For those that don't know what I mean by "door knocking". I'm talking about ground level prospecting. I have a public information list of names and addresses for people who are celebrating a 65th birthday soon and I go their door, politely introduce myself and offer to help them understand Medicare...

I must have a face people find easy to trust. I also carry a few tools to quickly validate myself as a credible expert and someone who can sincerely help.

“Door knocking” is a very strait ahead approach and it is one of my favorite ways to meet people and win new clients. Once they figure out that I really can help they’re often a little bowled over. “This guy just came out of nowhere with all this solid information” it really is fun. Almost all the people I meet need at least a little help and some need a lot of help desperately. I’m able to say I’ve made a huge difference for my clients. 

Questions about 'Open Enrollment', 'Part-D drug plans', 'filling the gaps in Medicare'. People ask some great questions.
My career contract is with Physicians Mutual. Their product line to supplement Medicare is unique. Many options, some unique enough to patent (companies we compete against offer very few options). We can sell the cheapest plan (if that's what the prospect needs) or we can show them how to supplement Medicare at the lowest price for the next twenty years or more. 
It was a great day to be out in the streets.

Check Out The New Suggestion Box --->

Can a blog have a suggestion box without having it fill up with a bunch of cruddy stuff?
I guess we're going to find that out.
No, I'm not thinking that you nice people who have been so kind in reading my assorted ramblings would do such a thing.
The internet is teaming with people who have a lot of freetime and little regard for others.
But, I believe it's worth the risk to hear what matters to you.
There have been many kind and useful comments about the content I've shared so far. My hope is that the Suggestion Box can guide this dialog toward your interests and concerns more directly.

Insider Info

Had a really really neat thing happen last night.
My wife and I were out having dinner with all our children and a family friend. We are at a local pizza place that specializes in making things 'over-the-top-fun' for kids. All you can eat buffet, balloons, Ice cream, cookies, candy, weeee!
So, we're having a fine time. Kids are using their best manners and everything. The server who was assigned to our table has given the kids their balloons, suckers and a small handful of vending/game machine tokens. As we are leaving the restaurant we find the vending/game machines. The most captivating machine to all of us is the big clear plastic box filled with stuffed animals that has the claw hand you control to lift out the stuffed animals out and into the world where children live.
My kids go at it with all the gusto and hope they can muster. Tokens are leaping from their sticky hands into the coin slot faster and faster. They are getting so frustrated and angry. Our really nice family evening is collapsing toward a big crying fit.
"We better let Daddy do this while we still have a few tokens left." OK here we go.
I step to the controls. Cool and collected. We've got five tokens left. The next four tokens go down fast like goldfish at a frat party. Last token. I feel a little sweat on my upper lip. Token goes in. I push the claw control forward and to the right, over a little more and let it dive deep into the pile of plush toys. It grabs a whole claw full of toys. and I navigate the claw back to the front of the machine where the toys are dumped into a clear plastic chute for passage into our world where children can love and fight over them!
This was one sweet moment people. If my kids were bigger people they would have carried me out of the restaurant on their shoulders.
Here's the 'Insider Info' part. One of the prayers I've prayed most lately is that I can be the father this family needs. This little moment of triumph at the pizza joint last night was like a big wink and a nod from the Lord.
A beautiful moment in a life I love dearly.
I have moments like this in my life as an insurance agent too sometimes. You prepare yourself to serve and then you find out how much your service is needed. I have a couple cases this week that will require some extraordinary care and service.
Please make me able to serve Lord.

"1 in 3 persons experiencing a disability of 3 months or more" How can that be?

All of you who are readers of my JamesOilerAgent Blogger page know that I've recently contracted with Illinois Mutual to offer Disability Insurance products to individuals and workplace groups. 

What you may not know is this means I'm obliged to read and understand about 600-800 pages of products guides and third party resource materials so I'm well versed in the products, common and less common uses, and technical aspects of these offerings...
Some of the statistics are blowing my mind. At first they are tough to believe but when I think about the sample of people that I know the stats start to ring true.
I found a concise guide to most of the materials I'm reading (sort of a Cliff Notes version) at the www.lifehappens.org web site. (linked below)
1 in 3 persons experiencing a disability of 3 months or more was tough to swallow at first until I started adding up my people. 
The next one I had to prove to myself was the greater risk for women. This one took less time to think through. I know quite a few women who are breast cancer survivors. In my own informal calculus they tip the scales very heavily toward supporting the greater risk for women.
Please find some time to download this 8 page "What You Need To Know About Disability Insurance" guide. It will be worth your time.
Anyone reading this that has substantial student load debt from undergrad and grad school please call me today if you don't have disability insurance. I'd rather serve my friends and family first.

What You Should Know About Disability Insurance

The Most Powerful Penny In Your Dollar

The Secret Insurance
Alright, Disability Insurance isn't exactly a secret. But as our nations attention is drawn so completely to "Healthcare Reform" Disability Insurance has gotten pushed so far out of view that for many people it is a forgotten, or maybe even 'new' concept (younger folks who have entered the job market in the last two years may not even know you can insure your paycheck).

Disability Insurance has been around for a good long while. It has long been known as a great value for protecting your lifestyle from life's hard knocks. But in our current economy many people assume that it is a product that will be priced out of their grasp.

The point I want to get to in this blog post is that a very strong Disability Insurance policy can be had for about 1% of most peoples income. I think it's fair to call it the "Most Powerful Penny in Your Dollar".

This is no stripped down 'starter' product either. For this 1% of your income we're talking about a plan that;
1. Will keep your major expenses from falling into arrears
2. 'Guaranteed Increase Option' to increase the value as your salary grows (with no new underwriting)
3. ADL (activities of daily living) rider.

I've heard several people in the last few days use the phrase "I got a lot of skin in the game". The economic condition of our country has made this phrase fit most everybody I know. Disability Insurance can be used to insulate your family from the trauma this economy is bringing to some households.

If I've peaked your interest in 'insuring your paycheck' reach out to me here.
(402) 250-2244
jamesoiler@cox.net
Let's talk more.

Anyone Interested in Tens of Thousands of Dollars in Savings?

Here's some text I paraphrased from one webpage which purports to be an authoritative source on buying Medicare Supplement Insurance:

"Since all the Medicare Supplemental insurance plans are standardized the supplemental coverages are all the same, your best bet is to just compare Medigap premium rates.... pick the cheapest plan that has the coverage you want."

Sounds true enough on its face but it is just a select slice of the truth presented as a 'whole' truth.

In a state where insurance carriers are allowed to issue Medicare Supplement plans only under the 'attained age' rate structure it's a true enough statement. But, that is rarely the case.

In most states there are usually two rate structures available and often three for Medicare Supplements. Your right (and it is a right) to pick the most favorable (more stable) rate structure can amount to tens of thousands of dollars in savings over the life of a Medicare Supplement policy.

Think "total cost of ownership". How much will a cheap plan today cost you in the years to come? This can really bite you if your health declines after your Medicare Open Enrollment has passed.

Furthermore, while the Medicare Supplement plans are uniform in the coverage details, the companies which fulfill the commitments made in those details are vastly different.

Things as simple as speed of claims payment or additional "added value" incentives should all be considered in your decision.

Please understand that you may have more options than the broker/agent is presenting to you.

Door Knocking in the Shadow

The weather here has just been amazing the last few weeks. I've been tearing up the streets door knocking around town. It's pretty fun. Get's a little dull when nobody is home.

So, I've been avoiding working in a part of town that had some really grim stuff happen last year. We're talking unsolved double murder in an affluent mid-town neighborhood.

So, there I am door knocking in this neighborhood. One of the only known facts from the double murder a little more than a year ago was that a person was seen approaching the front door to the house earlier in the day.

I was working in this neighborhood a good solid 3 hours. It all went well enough. I even talked briefly with one neighbor who was retired from a competing insurance company.

The pall cast from this grim event in the neighborhoods recent history was really something to experience.

The thing I took away from this experience is that we really do meet these people where they stand today. It might be a great day in their life or it might be the worst of the lot.

Step up to the plate and do the best job you know how. You can't expect to succeed by backing down from the challenges.