Why Most Sales People Failed

There can be multiple reasons that contribute to a new insurance agents failure. Here are the most common reasons I have found that lead to failure.

Limited Portfolio - Most Insurance Agents have a Limited product portfolio and are unable to cross sell other insurance products.

No System - Agents don't have a proven sales track or sales system to follow which most new insurance agents need to get results quickly.

Cash Flow Problem - They don't create consistent cash flow from insurance sales quick enough and must leave the insurance business to go back to an hourly paying job just to survive.

Low Reserves - New Insurance Agents start out in the insurance business with little or no reserves to fall back on. Most businesses require some upfront capital or reserves to get started.

Training - A lot of agents do not get enough training (Product or Sales) to give them a fair chance of making it in the insurance business.

Prospecting - Insurance Agents are not taught effective prospecting and marketing techniques that generate a consistent flow of sales prospects.

Drive - Some people simply don't have the drive, work habits, persistence, self motivation or ability to handle rejection that it's takes to survive in an insurance sales career.

Walk Your Talk

People are much more likely to follow a leader when they believe in that leader. Unfortunately, what leaders often have to say to their followers can directly conflict with their followers' beliefs and long standing habits. The results are chaos, arguing, and poor performance. Whenever that happens, your best bet is to step back and lead through example, like Benjamin Franklin did in the following story.

Evidentially, when Mr. Franklin learned that fields scattered with plaster produced a better crop, he tried to share the information with his neighbors only to be argued with by some, ridiculed by others, and ignored by most.

Not a man to waste time on words, he simply went about planting his own field. Next to the road, where people could see the emerging grain as they passed, Mr. Franklin traced some letters with his fingers and then lined the tracings with plaster. He then sowed seeds into the entire field. Once the seeds began to sprout, passers- by were surprised to see words in the field; clear for all to read, as the plants were a brighter green than the rest of the field. The words said, "This has been plastered."

People believe what they see for themselves, so if you are having trouble convincing others to follow you, perhaps you should find a way to show them a truth rather than tell them a truth.
Leadership through example requires a sense of humor, a great deal of patience, and a basic understanding of human nature.

Instead of complaining that people don't listen, a leader through example creates situations that compel attention. Instead of complaining that people don't follow through, a leader by example discovers ways to make people want to follow through. Instead of complaining about the closed minds of others, a leader by example designs and asks questions that expand a person's mind.

Durian - King of Fruits

Durian, or the scientific name is Durio zibethinus, is widely known and revered in Southeast Asia as the “King of Fruits,” the fruit is distinctive for its large size, unique odour, and a formidable thorn-covered husk. Its name comes from the Malay word duri (thorn) together with Malay suffix that is -an (for building a noun in Malay), meaning “thorny fruit.”

The fruit can grow up to 30 centimetres (12 in) long and 15 centimetres (6 in) in diameter, and typically weighs one to three kilograms (2 to 7 lbs). Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown and its flesh pale-yellow to red, depending on species. The hard outer husk is covered with sharp, prickly thorns, while the edible custard-like flesh within emits the strong, distinctive odour, which is regarded as either fragrant or overpowering and offensive. The taste of the flesh has been described as nutty and sweet.

Red colored durians are found in Sabah, Malaysia. Known among the Kadazandusun community as sukang or tabelak, the fruit is also called “durian hutan”, as it is mainly found growing wild in the jungles of Sabah. Its flesh is said to be thinner and drier compared with the cultivated fruit which is of thicker and creamier texture. The taste is about similar with other durians, although some have described it as sweetish sour.

Meritocracy

You cannot legislate the poor into freedom by legislating the wealthy out of freedom. What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that my dear friend, is about the end of any nation. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it." ~~~~ Dr. Adrian Rogers, 1931

Leadership Qualities

"I think it's very difficult to lead today when people are not really truly participating in the decision. You won't be able to attract and retain great people if they don't feel like they are part of the authorship of the strategy and the authorship of the really critical issues. If you don't give people an opportunity to really be engaged, they won't stay." - Howard Schultz, the CEO of Starbuck

1: You must have a vision. You must stand for something, or you'll fall for everything. But what does that really mean? Stand firm on your company's policies and procedures. Your company's vision should be in your mind every day, and you should reevaluate it occasionally so that it stays current with the changing times. Communicate your vision or the vision of your company to the people you want to follow you.

2: You must have passion. Passion is such a key part of being a great leader that if you don't have it, you simply can't be a great leader. Your employees want passion; in fact, they'll go to the ends of earth because of it, live and die for it. To build an extraordinary management team, you've got to light the "fire in their bellies," to get them to feel passion about the company and connect to the leader's vision.

3: You must learn to be a great decision maker. Use the Q-CAT formula
· Q = Quick. Be quick but not hasty.
· C = Committed. Be committed to your decision but not rigid.
· A = Analytical. Be analytical, but don't over-analyze (Too much analysis can cause paralysis.)
· T = Thoughtful. Be thoughtful about all concerned, but don't be obsessive.

4: You must be a team builder. To become a great leader, you must develop a great team or, one might say, a well-oiled machine. Start by handing off responsibility to your team and letting your team to run with it. Don't micromanage, but make yourself available if questions or problems come up. Teach your team to use the Q-CAT decision-making system and give them the freedom to work through their own decisions.

5: You must have character. All great leaders have taken steps to learn about their individual personality and what part it plays in their leadership style. Your innate character strengths and limitations play a critical role in your leadership style.

Peter Pepper

It is a curious little pepper, the Peter Pepper. Some say it's sexy. Some say it's hot. Others say it is delicious. No matter who you are, you will agree it is an unusual Cajun pepper. One that makes every cooking and gift giving occasion an interesting experience

The fiery little Peter Pepper has long been considered too hot to eat! Native to Louisiana and Texas, this blistering capsicum forms pods which naturally and consistently contort themselves into a miniature replica of, well - take a look at its scientific name: Capsicum annuum var. annuum 'Peter' (Penis Pepper).

These interesting peppers are certainly a conversation piece for the gardener who has everything! Seeds are almost impossible to obtain, and most plants are grown from much coveted "private stock" - plants grown year after year for seeds alone.

Peter Peppers belong to the genus Capsicum. The name Capsicum comes from the Greek kapto, to bite, an allusion to the hot, biting taste of the fruits. Peter Peppers are hotter than the tabasco and at least 10 times hotter than the jalapeno.

Papa Jeabert's Founder:The founder of Papa Jeabert's, Inc., Phil Gremillion was born and raised in the heart of Cajun country - Lafayette, Louisiana, and grew Peter Peppers in his back yard from seeds given to him by his father.

Little is known about commercial cultivation of the Peter Pepper because it has always been grown as an ornamental. Papa Jeabert's was the first to grow Peter Peppers for commercial purposes. The first successful commercial field of Peter Peppers was grown by Papa Jeabert's under nursery shade cloth to protect the pepper plants from the sun.

Today the peppers are still grown under shade cloth, with the growing season lasting from late March through early October. A typical field might have 2,000 plants, set about 16 inches apart. Each Peter Pepper plant produces approximately 100 hot little peppers.

Failures are Lessons

"It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement; and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat."
– Theodore Roosevelt, 1910

Most people are afraid to fail. They worry constantly about not meeting expectations, making a mistake, or trying something new. Many never get started on the path toward reaching their goals and thus assure themselves of the very thing they are afraid of - “Failure”.

In order to become a successful entrepreneur you will likely have to ‘pay your dues.' You'll likely have to fail a few times, learn from your lessons, and only then be able to come through a winner. While you don't have to take wild chances, you do have to take calculated and educated risks.

Mistakes are simply opportunities to learn something new. The more mistakes a person makes, the more they will have learned and the greater chance they will have of succeeding on their next try. The key, however, is to learn from your mistakes and never make the same mistake twice.

Thomas Edison would have never invented the light bulb if he did not take this principle to heart. Edison failed more than 10,000 times before he found the filament that would create light for a sustained period of time. He did not view these as failures, however. On the 6,635th try to find a proper filament for the light bulb, Edison did not see himself has having failed 6634 times. He reframed the situation so that to him he had successfully eliminated 6,643 possibilities, refining and narrowing his search as he proceeded, drawing him closer and closer to his goal.

Sweet and Simple Formula for Success

75% of adults don't like their jobs, more than 50% of all marriages end in divorce, and three out of five businesses fail.

The root cause of small business success or failure is not due to a lack of knowledge or capital. It is due to a poor fit between the owner and the chosen venture. The successful entrepreneur always enjoys a good relationship with the business. They found their work, their mission, their purpose, and they stayed with it.

There are only two ways to achieve a "good fit" between an entrepreneur and a business. The first is pure luck (which is most often the case). The second comes from consciously exploring who we are and how we might connect to the world of self-employment. It's really no different than analyzing one's career options or choosing a mate.

The very first step toward success as an entrepreneur is recognizing that we possess enough independence to leave the perceived safety of traditional employment.

The second step is giving ourselves permission to reflect deeply on what we want out of life and out of a particular venture.