I’ve had the privilege of sharing about people and events that have influenced my life in these messages. You may recognize the name Bob Jamieson who was my mentor when I entered the life insurance business in 1977. I frequently referred to him in this space and as recently as a couple of weeks ago wrote about him ‘Transferring Trust’ to me with his hard-earned clients.
Bob died and was buried this past Thursday. It made me both sad and appreciative at the same time. I learned much from him in our ten years together as business partners. Even though our business was selling life insurance, many of the principles will apply to any business that you might be in:
· I learned the value of beginning each day early
· I learned that service is important but without sales it is futile
· I learned to compare ‘apples to oranges’ instead of ‘apples to apples’ because the other guy’s apples might be shinier
· I learned to let the tail wag the dog in selling. Sometimes the waiver of premium feature on a policy has more sizzle than the policy itself in the eyes of the prospect. In that case, sell the waiver of premium and let life insurance be the add-on
· I learned that having goals, working hard and treating people with respect goes along way in developing a business
· I learned that people don’t buy life insurance–it has to be sold to them
· I learned that you need to help the prospect ‘find the money’ to make the purchase
· I learned to prospect by either having a product and finding the right prospect or having the prospect and find the right product
· I learned the value of creativity and imagination in the sales process
· I learned that effective selling is the transference of belief
· I learned that sometimes the best thing you can do for your business is step away for a short period of time and come back refreshed
· I learned that you won’t be hurt by sharing sales ideas with the competition
· I learned the value of advertising as he and I became known as ‘The MONY Men’ based on our ads every other week in the Fort Dodge (Iowa) Messenger
· I learned not to rest on my laurels or get bogged down with disappointments. Tomorrow really IS a new day and a new beginning
· I learned the importance of having friends and mentors, young and old, and not taking them for granted
Rest in peace, dear friend. My ife is richer because we met.
Robert W. JamiesonMay 24, 1922–July 26, 2008
Bill Sheridan—SHERIDAN WRITES, LLC
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John Ingrisano | Aug 6, 2008 | Reply
Bill, first of all, my condolences on the loss of an old and dear friend. It sounds like Bob left you with quite a legacy.
Just as important, thank you for continuing that legacy by sharing some of what he taught in this posting. I was reminded of some good habits that I need to either continue ro reactive. Good job and God bless. JRI
Bill Willard | Aug 6, 2008 | Reply
Echoing John’s comments. This is a fine piece of writing and even finer thoughts, which I’m sure your late friend’s family will cherish.
Well done.