I realize it may be a fine line, but I would much rather get beat than lose, at anything.I am helping coach my 12 year old son’s baseball team this year.  With the exception of a small core group of boys, this is a brand new team.  We’ve been having batting cage practice for a couple of months now, but have only had one outdoor practice.  Nevertheless, we signed up for a pre-season tournament.  We did so to get in some game time, get a sense of what we need to work on, and to start playing together, as a…

Each year, we have an overriding theme on which we focus throughout the year.  Last year it was “Execution & Implementation.”  This year we will be focusing on the ideas of “Teach, Tailor and Control.” While these aren’t new ideas for us or our members, we wanted to highlight these ideas as we see them being critical for the continued evolution of the broker model.  Additionally, we see now being the time that producers/agencies need to make sure they are mastering each of these ideas. We felt particularly validated when these same principles appeared in a series of recent articles…

Customers don’t make major buying decisions in one meeting. Sure, it can happen. Sometimes the value is so obvious or the need is so great that a client says “Will you be my agent?” at the first meeting. But that’s not the normal case. And nor should it be in most situations.As an insurance agency whose goal is to be an advisor for your clients and bring improved business solutions, it’s in your best interest to take the systematic approach to developing that relationship. If you want your clients to call you while they are contemplating a decision rather than…

We are in a period of enormous opportunity to help employers fix what’s not working in their businesses. And right now, there is a lot that’s currently not working well in businesses.I’m reading The New American Workplace, which was published in 2006. It’s a follow-up study to a book called Work in America published in 1973. The book looks at the current state of the how workers and employers interact with and feel about one another and how these interactions differ from 30 years ago. It’s particularly interesting to read it now in 2011 because at the time of writing…

You may have read a previous article I wrote about bringing your “inner child” to work with you. Children just have this great curiosity about what is happening in the world around them and aren’t yet saddled with knowledge of “what they can’t do about it”.  Wendy recently shared a story of her son that completely reinforces this observation and is so relevant to what we're doing.When she went to tuck her son (Cedric) in at bedtime, she found him sitting up in bed with pencil and paper in hand.  He says to her, “Mom, give me a problem. I…

I’ve never been quite sure why I hate it so much. I love good food, and I enjoy cooking good food. I’ve never been able to figure out the disconnect between the food and the shopping.We’ve got a great grocery store here that I’ve enjoyed more than any other. They have awesome customer service, a great meat department, and consistently fantastic produce. After making the commitment to shop there, despite higher prices, I actually started hating shopping a little less.Then after many years of begging, pleading, and generally whining as a community, we got a Trader Joe’s. Now, I’m going…

If I told you that a 12% increase in your sales effort could result in a 50% increase in your end of the year production, would you be interested? I’m a runner and, of course, there are days I feel especially strong and others when it’s a real challenge to push myself out the door.  Despite the ease or challenge of getting started, I run a pretty consistent pace. However, I have noticed that there are runs when my pace is significantly faster. It’s the days when someone is watching.  Or, to be more specific, when I’m running where there…

Happy Thanksgiving! Today felt like a good day to share one of our favorite articles, which tells a great story about a 10 year old boy's focus and dedication to excellence. He's inspiring and motivating to us, and hope he is to you as well!     This particular 10-year-old isn’t a sales professional, but he’s a professional nonetheless. I was at my son’s baseball game last night and witnessed something that was nothing short of amazing — on so many levels.   Our team plays a pretty competitive level of baseball. The boys are talented, but above all they…

As a sales leader in your organization, one of the most critical functions you perform is to help young producers learn and refine their sales skills.  And, yes, selling is a skill, not a personality trait.  Sure, there is a lot to be said for how personality influences a person’s ability to sell, but personality alone is just a start.  It’s like most other things - you may be born with the potential, but to realize that potential takes a lot of hard work and practice.  So, as that sales leader, it’s critical for you to understand how to help…

Don, a friend of mine, recently hit one of those mile marker ages.  You know, one of those that require a trip to the doctor for a checkup.Actually, he wasn’t all that concerned about it.  After all, he takes decent care of himself, has always considered himself healthy, and other than some fatigue, felt really good.  So in he goes to see his family doctor, Phil.  Phil had been the family doctor long enough that they really were on a first name basis.So Phil tells Don, “Overall, you’re in good shape.  Sure you could lose a few pounds and a…