If you want things to change, you’ve got to change. If you’re willing to change, everything will change for you. It’s really that simple.
In this episode, I am going to introduce you to the three key questions that you need to start with and keep in mind when you are setting goals. Answering and then implementing the strategies that come from examining them, will help you get to that massive year-end celebration for 2023.
Highlights:
You cannot hit unidentified goals. You need to set goals and review them regularly.
Discover your three areas of genius that will allow you to make an impact on others.
Build in the simplicity to get the creative out of you. Don’t make it overly complex.
If you’re a visionary, you want to create the vision for the organization, set it in motion, and then let it run itself.
Break your success goals into personal and business.
When looking at the success of your business, look at all aspects from the people involved, to your marketing, to your finances.
Apply this same time of introspection to the success of your personal lives as well.
Remember to take your MEDS = Mindset, Exercise, Diet, and Sleep
Until next time, get out there and make a difference, be unstoppable, and leave no regrets!
James Jenkins of RiskWell is looking for unfair advantages anywhere he can find them. It’s all about finding opportunities that are not on the carrier hitlist. Join James and I as we discuss his niche and how it has made all the difference for his insurance agency. Remember, the value of the advisory increases with the complexity of the risk.
Highlights:
The client can spend 10 minutes on Google and they’re probably as well prepared as your average CSR is to talk about products. So, you have to find ways to deliver value in meaningful ways.
If you’re not investing in your craft, you’re going to get beat by a call center, or the personal lines agent who gets a chance at a big commercial account.
There’s no better way to differentiate the value offering in the marketplace than to move beyond the product because everybody can sell the product.
Growth looks like a stabilizing of the variance between high competence and low competence, between maintaining a competitive edge and being a fierce alpha-type personality, while at the same time being pleasant to be around and being a generally nice and kind person.
You already have the tools necessary to make your own unfair advantage. If you don’t know what that is right now, just put some effort into figuring out what your unfair advantage is and drive that hard.
About our Guest:
James Jenkins is the founder and CEO of RiskWell, an independent agency located in McKinney, TX. After spending 6+ years on the captive agent side of the industry, James made his Freedom Jump and opened what is now RiskWell in April 2019. From the beginning, James has been committed to building a business that thrives on efficiency, strong culture, innovation, and extremely high organizational agility. RiskWell recently achieved the $1M gross annualized revenue mark and currently has eight team members.
James attributes much of his team’s success to staying focused on niche specialization. RiskWell is a nationally recognized expert in serving real estate investors of every shape and size. They insure investment properties in 40+ states. Additionally, RiskWell serves many roofers, general contractors, and heavy trade contractors.
James launched the Agency Freedom Podcast in 2021 with the mission of empowering insurance professionals to launch and grow independent agencies. AFP began with a focus on current and former captive agency owners and has evolved into a more holistic approach to growth and improvement.
A big part of James’ success comes from his commitment to professional growth and expertise. He holds the trifecta of professional designations in the P&C insurance world: Chartered Property & Casualty Underwriter (CPCU), Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) and Certified Risk Manager (CRM).
James’ business philosophy is centered on the key principles of integrity, consistency, advocacy, results, and expertise. He believes the best way to win people over is through clear communication, good follow through, tactical empathy and a resolute commitment to personal excellence.
James’ interests outside of work begin with his family and include cycling, photography and smoking delicious meats.
The topics James is most qualified to speak on include the following:
If you want things to change, you’ve got to change. If you’re willing to change, everything will change for you. It’s really that simple.
In this episode, I am going to introduce you to the three key questions that you need to start with and keep in mind when you are setting goals. Answering and then implementing the strategies that come from examining them, will help you get to that massive year-end celebration for 2022.
Highlights:
You cannot hit unidentified goals. You need to set goals and review them regularly.
Discover your three areas of genius that will allow you to make an impact on others.
Build in the simplicity to get the creative out of you. Don’t make it overly complex.
If you’re a visionary, you want to create the vision for the organization, set it in motion, and then let it run itself.
Break your success goals into personal and business.
When looking at the success of your business, look at all aspects from the people involved, to your marketing, to your finances.
Apply this same time of introspection to the success of your personal lives as well.
Remember to take your MEDS = Mindset, Exercise, Diet, and Sleep
Brand Strategist, Selah Hirsch knows all about the importance of establishing your brand. Are you able to talk about what you do, how you do it, and why it matters? If not, then today’s episode is for you. If you think you have it all established, then you might just learn something new.
Highlights:
Everything in branding has to be highly intentional and strategic in order to shape the beliefs of our customers
A brand needs to attract new leads, convert more sales and retain more business.
Put yourself in the shoes of your ideal client to learn how to talk to them rather than at them.
Three critical questions to ask yourself about your ideal client.
Every single person on a team needs to be in step with the ideal client to the agency because that will just help create a team culture that is committed to serving the client
A look at a brand differentiator and the three questions to ask yourself
You need brand identity however you also need to look at how it can grow and change to have you stand out from your competition
Selah Hirsch is a brand builder! As a Brand Strategist through her company Express My Brand, Selah specializes in high-impact brand development. Every day she works with brands to strengthen the way they talk about what they do, how they do it, and why it matters.
She brings magnetic energy and vision to help business owners and teams breakthrough the generic and discover their better, bolder brand. Her high-energy presentation style includes powerful stories and hands-on moments, leaving a memorable impression and handles for practical application.
When Selah isn’t building brands, you can find her cheering on her husband Michael in Ironman triathlon races, volunteering at Loveworks Leadership, and chasing her three high-energy kids around.
What is in store for your future? The best way to determine your future is to start with your goals. In this episode, I talk about the actions you can take to help you get everything you want in the future, faster.
Highlights:
Thinking about your goals is not enough. Making them concrete, written down, changes your mindset on getting them accomplished.
The four steps you need to do to achieve your goals.
Look at the smartest decision you made, the most caring service you performed, and the biggest risk that you took.
The different realms to look at in order to set goals for a successful business
Have an accountability partner that helps keep you on track
Set B-HAGs. Your Big Hairy Audacious Goals
The four things you need to lead a successful life, career, and/or business
After multiple requests, we have returning guest, Joel McKinley, on the show. Joel is here to talk about strategic thinking, his Army Ranger background, and how it relates to the business operations of the world, more specifically, the independent insurance agency business operations.
Highlights:
It is not enough to plan the goal, but you must plan for the changes that achieving it will bring
If you want to see yourself get to the next level, you have to keep investing in yourself, train with the ones that you want to emulate.
Creating a clear vision of where you want to be, where you want your business to be.
Surround yourself with the five right people that are going to support you in that vision
Utilizing the SWOT analysis to create a successful business
Always inspect what you expect. If you are not, how do you know it is going to work right for you?
Joel was born in Colorado and spent his early youth there, but when you’re raised in a military family you get to claim everywhere as “home”. Joining the army (he knew he would at age 11) to serve as an infantryman after graduating high school, Joel has deployed and served in Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait, and Kosovo and is grateful for the opportunity to serve his country. One of the highlights of Joel’s military career was the achievement of Army Ranger. Joel retired from the military after 20 years in 2018 and now gets to use those superhero powers on being a dad to his two super cool kids. Joel dove in headfirst as part of the UPP team to also share his superhero powers with the Unstoppable Agents Nation to continue to serve others and help agency entrepreneurs grow their business, create wealth and have more freedom.
FUN FACTS
Loves Star Wars and is comfortable with his inner nerd
Woodworking is his passion hobby
Loves to build, create, and take things apart (sometimes they go back together and actually work)
Won Regional Top Seller of Cub Scouts popcorn at 8 years old (#3 Nationally)
Legitimate fear of sharks and will not go in the ocean
Lived in Germany for 8 years
Was choked unconscious by UFC legend Royce Gracie
Until next time, get out there and make a difference, be unstoppable, and leave no regrets!
Mike Stromsoe
The Unstoppable Profit Producer
Call 800-770-9984
Email [email protected]
In its fourth year at the BeUnstoppable Bootcamp, the Implementer Of The Year contest has become a “can’t miss” learning experience. There are three IOTY finalists. In this episode, I interview IOTY finalist Jose Soriano.
You can catch the other two finalist’s interviews on episodes 129 and 130.
Highlights:
The challenges he faced when first starting his agency with his wife
Developing his hiring system in order to get the right people in place
Stepping out of your comfort zone
Find others who are on a different level than you in order to learn and grow
About the Finalist:
Jose Soriano, Global First Insurance & Tax Services
In 2008, he was introduced to the insurance industry at only 18 years old. In just 6 months he became the #1 producer helping over 110 families in just one month. In 2012, he and his wife Karla, made one of the most important decisions of their lives – to open their own agency. They felt they can truly make a difference and impact many people’s lives in a positive way in the process. Since then, they have helped thousands of families insure their future. Always looking forward, their goal is to provide value to everyone they meet. Their goal is legendary impact, as they help pave the way for the agencies in the future. Jose and Karla travel all over the U.S. attending seminars and training classes to insure they are becoming more every day, being of value to their customers, and are up to date on all the changes that the industry faces. Combine, they have 20+ years of insurance industry experience.
In its fourth year at the BeUnstoppable Bootcamp, the Implementer Of The Year contest has become a “can’t miss” learning experience. There are three IOTY finalists. In this episode, I interview IOTY finalist Torie Rinehart Nix.
You can catch the first finalist’s interview in episode 129 and stay tuned for next week’s finalist.
Highlights:
A look at the obstacles that Torie had faced and how she overcame them
The effect the 3Ps have had on her, professionally and personally
Having an effective team that can run the organization when you are not there
Have you ever been part of a great team? A team where you loved to come to work every morning, a team that charged you up with energy, and a team that encouraged you to accomplish goals you thought were impossible. On this team, you felt a great sense of belonging and believed that others had your back in every situation.
A team is more than a group of people who work together. A high-performing team is a group of people who share a common vision, goals, metrics and who collaborate, challenge, and hold each other accountable to achieve outstanding results.
This week’s podcast is all about creating a high-performance sales team!
Highlights:
The need to complete regular self-assessment
Developing your action plan for improvement
The purpose of a deadline when creating your plans for success
Identifying potential obstacles before implementation to be better prepared
Connecting with your long-term clients to ensure they know they are appreciated and valued
Researching your client’s business and the people you will be dealing with, both professionally and personally in order to make connections
Keeping appointments with yourself, not just with everybody else
We all have three types of days – Lifetime days, high-performance days, and maintenance days
A preview into the Daily 10 Step Action Plan
Characteristics of successful people
Until next time, get out there and make a difference, be unstoppable, and leave no regrets!
Mike Stromsoe
The Unstoppable Profit Producer
Call 800-770-9984
Email [email protected]
Growing up in the insurance business with a father that started his own company in the basement of the house, Anthea Mumby was able to see the vision for the opportunity of what the business could be like. A few years out of university, she purchased the brokerage from her parents and continued to build it to the success it is today. Listen as Anthea and I discuss the importance of having a vision for your business and the strategies behind making it come true.
Highlights:
Utilizing your vision in all aspects of your business from training to hiring
Creating the buy in within the team to help support and achieve
Maintaining high levels of client retention through proactive client communication, having the right fit client and winning awards
Solidifying their targeted niche, architects, through books and conferences
Doing research to get to know your clients will assist you in finding the best way to market to them
The importance of looking at the vision and contemplating it for the future in order to stay focused and keeping the mindset to accomplish it
Transitioning to her next achievement, Dream Team Consulting to help others clearly define their own vision
About Our Guest:
My Story – Anthea Mumby
I grew up in a family insurance brokerage. My Dad left his corporate job and started the business in the basement of our home. My Mom was raising 3 children; I am the oldest and have two younger brothers. She also helped my Dad with bookkeeping.
When I learned to type in grade 9, I started to work in the business, doing the typing tasks and eventually taking on more responsibility. I told my Dad “you are sitting on a gold mine of opportunity, let’s grow this business!” He agreed, and we were off to the races!
I took my professional licensing as an insurance broker concurrently with my education at the University of Waterloo and successfully passed the examination as well as achieving my honours Bachelor of Arts (English).
With my insurance license achieved, I was now able to start to service clients, and grow the business by selling to new clients. We moved the business out of my parents’ home to leased premises, and started adding staff.
I got married, and three years later had my daughter. I was back to work within a few weeks of having my daughter, set up a nursery in the office and hired a lady to help me take care of my daughter while I continued to work.
A few years later, my husband joined the insurance brokerage, with his focus being life insurance and group benefits while I focussed on general insurance (cars, houses, businesses).
My parents were ready to retire and so I purchased the brokerage from them at fair market value.
Working with family members was incredibly challenging, and I had additional pressures to deal with such as disgruntled staff who attempted to bully me online, demanding suppliers, and the need to provide superior service for our roster of professional clients (we specialized in architects and other design professionals).
Despite these challenges, the business was doing well, especially with respect to our client retention which was well above industry norms.
With my husbands’ input, I created a 3 year Vision for the company, and used it as a powerful tool to achieve the outcomes included in the vision. In doing so, I was aware that things were rapidly shifting in the insurance brokerage world in Canada and that now was the best time to sell the business for the best valuation with best possible terms.
Through extensive personal development, masterminding, coaching, and commitment to my own Vitality, I now work on my own terms, making my health and family my biggest priority, continue to expand my personal growth, build meaningful relationships, and share my expertise with others.
I am thrilled to have started Dream Team Consulting as a consulting firm specializing in family-owned businesses.
I have a deep level of passion for family-owned businesses; you might say I am addicted to their success! As a natural motivator, I help them by sharing my wisdom, resiliency, and leveraging the over $100k I have invested in my own development and business training.
