Survivor: One year in the (financial services) "trenches"

I have been in the business of selling for one year. I am a former Major League of Baseball draft pick right out of high school and a former Division 1 baseball player.

There is not a better sport I could have played that would have prepared me for this industry and lifestyle because this business is hard. This business is tough. And this business is about survival.

I want to tell everyone who has been in the industry of selling financial products and services longer than a year that you are a success.

My mentors are Richard Berry, the number one advisor for American Equity who wrote $42 million in annuity premium last year, and also my father, who just made President’s Club and MDRT with State Farm. I couldn’t have a better opportunity to be successful with two of the most successful people in the industry teaching me everything they know. And yet, I still have had a wide array of emotions throughout my first year of selling.

In baseball, if you get on base three out of 10 times, you are typically considered “very good.” I would say selling is the same exact way. Isn’t it messed up that you can fail seven out of 10 times, yet be successful?

How many of you feel successful after getting rejected by 70 percent of the people? I sure don’t.

But the more I learn and follow the people in this industry, the more I realize we are out there to do more than sell. We are out there to provide safety and peace of mind for people financially.

It doesn’t matter if you make the sale or not, I want you to know that you are successful. You are trying day in and day out to show people the products that we have that can be life changing, if people take the time to listen. You are asking them questions to see if you have a product that will benefit their family. You are changing lives each and every day, and that is a success story.