Im asking the older agents and brokers what insurance would they go into if they can hit the reset button. Im new to the industry and not sure if I want to go into the family business of property & casualty (specialize in condo and coops) or my other brothers company he works for which is selling accident, sickness, life etc. After a year of selling my brother built a team of 5 people and growing, selling life, accident/sickness etc. He grinds, going to peoples homes every day to close smaller commission policy's training his new team members while also still selling himself. My other brother is doing condos and coops and gets way bigger commissions but is taking lot longer to build income and deals with property managers and condo boards and a lot of red tape. Totally different types of insurance sales and I'm struggling to decide what to go into. I also heard business liability insurance, aviation or yacht insurance are really great to get into and the yearly residuals are good. I want to build a business and don't want to switch in 3 years to something else if I can help it. I would appreciate a roadmap to success with a lifetime of residuals lol ~thanks for any insight
If you had the chance to do it over again...
- Thread starter Jimx1000
- Start date
- 5,503
Depending on your goals, how much time and money you have to build, etc. make different decisions better for different people. Personally, for example, I don't think I could ever survive on just life insurance, but I've done very well selling commercial p&c. I sell exclusively commercial p&c, and it took a looooooooooong time to build, but boy oh boy is it sweet on the other side. Due to my access to funds and persistence I was able to make it, but very few people do. The time and work it took to build, though, most of my family and friends thought I was out of my mind how much I was working and how little I was making in the beginning. Just my $.02.
Out of curiosity, why?
I don't make millions or anything but you get to really control your life like few self-employed people can.
Get up, work out, sell some insurance.
Then go for a hike, hit the golfing range, or go to lunch with your spouse.
Go back to the office and sell some more insurance.
Rinse, repeat.
This life doesn't suck.
EDIT: I have been in this industry for a while. The first few years absolutely suck.
I would work with a bit more dedication in the early years and would not have put insurance on the side to go into the collectibles business.. The business is a great business, especially if you are young and energetic, and a person with few resources and no college education can make an income which many college grads can only dream of making.
I remember being at a meeting at a large mutual company and was sitting next to the legendary agent whom the training room was named after. He shocked us all the table when he bluntly stated he would have taken a different path.
Let's face it. No matter how much you make, it's a lonely business that doesn't bring a man much prestige or respect.
Let's face it. No matter how much you make, it's a lonely business that doesn't bring a man much prestige or respect.
UKTX
Super Genius
- 203
This is a loaded question 
Lots of variables.
If I could do it again (knowing what I know now), I would have probably stayed captive and not jumped ship. But then again, hindsight is always viewed with rose tinted glasses.
IMO, based on what happened with health insurance, I would err on the side of caution building a business based on products that are subject to some form of federal oversight. You just never know what is around the corner.
If you have the cash, P&C is the holy grail of insurance. The renewals are mind blowing.
Lots of variables. If I could do it again (knowing what I know now), I would have probably stayed captive and not jumped ship. But then again, hindsight is always viewed with rose tinted glasses.
IMO, based on what happened with health insurance, I would err on the side of caution building a business based on products that are subject to some form of federal oversight. You just never know what is around the corner.
If you have the cash, P&C is the holy grail of insurance. The renewals are mind blowing.
- 11,997
For me I've been grateful to have started out in the insurance industry because I did get a lot of experience that has been useful throughout my life. When I got out of college I went to sell with NILICO (AIL basically eveywhere but NY) and I learned a lot about the sales process. Get leads, call them, do appointments, how to do a presentation, etc. A lot of that experience there helped me as I went on to manage a small Allstate office, then worked as a carrier rep for Medicare Advantage companies. It was a lot less stress, but then MIPPA passed and then all of the marketing methods I was using the most effectively became effectively illegal overnight.
From there I got into an industry that wasn't really regulated, no AHIP, no continuing education, and I was able to apply a lot of the things I had learned in what I considered more difficult industries in much easier industries.
To be fair, if I had it to do over again, I probably would have started right out of the gate with Medicare products and tried to get a diverse portfolio to really build a book of business. Most of my experiences in the insurance field had either been as a captive agent or working directly for a carrier, so if I had started off independent I would have actually had a pretty fair bit of renewals and a book of business instead of starting off at zero after 10 years in the industry.
Of course, I'm still only 35, who knows what the next 30 years holds
I have found generally in life that the more valuable things tend to require more time and effort. I know a lot of successful life sales people. It's quicker to build a suitable income level. If you have the skills, you can turn it off and on quickly. On the other hand, the level of competition is higher because the barriers to entry are lower. Also, the residuals tend to be very low, so if your not meeting with people, your unemployed. With the P&C, as you note, it takes much longer to build a business. This is the barrier to entry. Most people would shy away from that because they need money now, they can't wait to build a business. But if you choose this path and can survive the time frame it takes to get over the hump, you will have a much more stable income and presumably a more "sticky" income stream. So a question for you...How old are you and how long to you intend to work in the insurance industry? Next question...which brother's daily work seems more appealing to you for most of the rest of your life? Once you answer these honestly, the path should be clear.
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