Rise Above All Challenges
Willison Yu, 2020 National President, LUAP, said in his opening remarks: “We believe that the year 2020 doesn’t have to end with an asterisk. Your goals and your dreams should not take a pause just because of the changes in our environment.”
It is because of this belief that “Resilience” was chosen as the main theme for the convention.
“Resilience: the ability to recover and bounce back quickly from a tough and difficult situation. It is through showcasing this quality that you will be able to rise above all challenges that are before you,” he said. “LUAP ad MDRT MCC want to arm you with tools that will help you reach your goals. It is because of this desire that this convention was born.”
A Noble Mission
Insurance Commissioner Atty. Dennis Funa said: “We must do our part as insurance agents and professionals to give the public and our clients a sense of assurance and security, especially at this time of uncertainty.
“I urge our life insurance agents, underwriters and professionals to find a greater purpose in serving your clients by providing quality service that will help them secure their lives and the future of their families. Treat your profession as a noble mission that contributes to strengthening the economy and financial stability of our nation.”
He added: “The COVID-19 pandemic is not the end of our story. Rather, it is a turning point, where a new chapter of our lives will start. As we prepare to face the challenges and opportunities of the new normal, rest assured that the Insurance Commission will continue to serve as a guiding hand for the insurance and its related industries. Together we can make it through.”
Will the agent still have a place in the life insurance industry?
Speaking about the rapid advancement of technology, including Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Antonio G. De Rosas, President and CEO, Pru Life UK, said data analytics would become better in predicting insurance needs and demands to better target customers and even communicate with customers.
When that happens, he asked, “Does the agent still have a place in the life insurance industry?”
He shared, “Agents will be part of an ecosystem. Agents can establish deep, personal relationships with customers. Artificial Intelligence cannot do that, no matter how smart.”
“Customers have more affinity to human beings than computers. However, we cannot just rely on that ability. It has to be part of an ecosystem,” he said.
Artificial Intelligence is just one piece of the puzzle, the other piece is agents. “If we are able to work together, I believe agents will have a long and fruitful career into the future. It is just how we need to transform the way we sell and the way we do business,” he said.
“Humans will always have the edge over Artificial Intelligence but will always need to stay on top of this edge, to stay relevant in anything that we do,” he concluded.
What Makes the Great Ones Great
Don Yaeger, Leadership Speaker and Executive Coach, spoke about the time when he managed to beat Michael Jordan at a charity event pick-up game.
And he said Michael was mad and thrash-talked him for the rest of the event and he couldn’t understand why, given that it was a charity event and a casual game.
After speaking with Michael, he came to realise that what makes the great ones great is that they hate to lose more than they love to win. Winning is what they’ve come to expect.
He said that Michael shared with him, the moment you are ok to lose, you will spend your lifetime there.
Don went on to share the “4 Threads of Greatness”:
- Greatness is available to all of us… If you are willing to do COMMON things UNCOMMONLY well.
- Mental, Emotional and Spiritual disciplines that made them better.
- Greatness requires proper NUTRITION – not what they eat, but what they read, what they listen to, what they watch, and who they talk to.
- They are committed to GROWING THEMSELVES daily.
Purpose-Driven Close
Sarah Songalia, Financial Advisor and Business Consultant, who was awarded one of the Top 100 Most Influential Filipino Women in the World through her decades of leadership and excellence in the Philippine finance and business industry, shared about the purpose-driven close.
One of the key things that she highlighted about closing was mindset. “What’s in a close? The mindset that we have in closing a sale influences the actions that we take before, during and after the sale,” she said. And that could mean the difference between a family being able to have insurance proceeds when misfortune strikes or not.
On the importance of purpose, she said: “Purpose establishes the context within which the financial planning process takes on its meaning.”
Giving the example of a client wishing to retire early, she said if you are able to dig deeper, you could find out that the purpose is to spend more time with their kids or family. Or when a client wishes to create a business succession plan, it could be because he wants to travel with family.
You have to find their real purpose because the goal of retirement savings or a business succession plan is easy to discard. But when you find their real purpose, this way, you can help your clients to journey to where they want in their life.
Maximising your Critical Illness Insurance Sales
Bhupinder Anand, Managing Director of Anand Financial Architecture, based in London, emphasised the importance of critical illness coverage and spoke about maximising critical illness insurance sales.
A 24-year MDRT Member with 19 Top of the Table honours, he shared the “3 Steps to being a CI Specialist”:
- Knowledge – Understand how the products work and understand by using claims statistics and examples. “We need to know that whatever question a prospect gives us, we are ready for it,” he said.
- Belief – To sell any insurance, in particular critical illness, you need belief. “Belief in the product is demonstrated by carrying it ourselves. I’m talking about a meaningful 7-figure sum policy.”
- Passion – Passion only comes when you’ve handled a claim. Then you will really see the benefit of what you’re doing, he said. “You can listen to other people’s stories, but that won’t give you the same passion you would have as handing over a cheque to a cancer survivor.”
The MDRT Spirit Can Completely Change Your Life
Annie Leung, MDRT MCC Ambassador Program Chair (Division 1, 2 & 3), spoke about her journey in the industry.
She shared her story of how she overcame challenges in her life. That life is full of surprises and how she went from attempting suicide to achieving success and happiness in career and life with MDRT.
She shared how when she attended her first MDRT Annual Meeting; she was puzzled by the phrase “To receive, individuals must give”.
But after experiencing how others share their life stories openly to inspire, best practices in the spirit of giving and the spirit of volunteering, she was greatly encouraged and became “addicted to MDRT”.
She started to find out more about MDRT, and volunteered and gave back to the industry and society.
Before long, she realised her life was transformed. Not just financially, but in terms of personal growth and the happiness she felt.
“MDRT has given me a whole new life. I want you to experience what is MDRT, enter the MDRT world. It is not just about commissions, the MDRT Spirit can completely change your life,” she said.
Stay tuned to Asia Advisers Network as we bring you daily coverage and highlights.
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