I’ve been an insurance agent since 2015. I was 25 then, and now I’m almost 31. I have been meaning to write something about my journey for a while, but I have been hesitating because I don’t know how I should start, what I want to emphasize on, and whether readers would find it interesting. I will likely revisit this post from time to time and edit if I get new ideas.
Preface
I grew up in Ampang Jaya, Selangor. I attended primary school in Melawati and then to a boarding school in Raub, Pahang. Then I went to Brickfields Asia College for a twinning programme with Hertfordshire Uni for Law, worked for a while, and then to Uni Malaya for postgrad in ASEAN Studies.
I had no interest in sports, and I have a theory that if you’re bad at sports, you don’t make as many life-long friends compared to those who play sports. I might be wrong but that’s my experience, seeing many of my schoolfriends still keeping closely in touch with each other.
As a new insurance agent in 2015, this isn’t a good thing. Converting friends to clients would be harder as I had fewer, and less close friends.
Starting out
I went out making as many connections as I could. I probably lost some friends, and annoyed many people, desperate trying to make a sale. After a while, remarkably, sales started rolling in and I made enough to survive (barely) in my first year.
The second year went pretty alright, I made twice the income vs my last drawn salary when I was still employed. This was not necessarily due to higher sales compared to the previous year, but just maintaining the same sales figure plus getting the renewal commissions from the previous year as well.
I was living in Kepong alone, and the traffic to go to Capsquare was horrible. A 10km commute could take 1 hour or longer. In August 2016 – my second year, I rented a studio apartment in front of my office. At the time, the rent was quite sizable compared to my income. But I thought having more time from not commuting and being able to focus on my work was more important than what I spent on rent.
I have since moved to many more places, some rented, some bought. Trying out different parts of KL is interesting. I really can’t pick a favourite because each area has its appeal. Kepong food cost is pretty low. Living in the city centre is nice due to the lack of commute and you can do pretty much everything within walking distance. Bangsar was nice for its bars and restaurants as well as being close to Mid Valley. Now at Taman Connaught Cheras, I moved here because the property prices are still within the affordable range (as is Kepong), I’ve not explored enough to make a conclusion on what’s the biggest draw, I feel that it’s close to the city and the retail experience near my place are also excellent.
Learning from people
I meet quite a lot of people from various income levels and backgrounds. I also get to explore new housing or commercial areas by meeting customers. It’s as important as selling insurance, to pick their brain on their career, business and investment ideas and life in general. I am forever grateful to all my clients and friends for sharing your thoughts, as I’ve been able to make profitable life choices so far.
I am not able to list down what they are, as there are quite many. However there is one thing I’m probably sure I won’t be: being a parent. No disrespect to all parents and children, but it’s not for me.
Another aspect of experiences from people are their spectrum of personalities, and that has made me able to adapt well to various social settings. Most are friendly and respectful, some are really fun to hangout with, and there will be the occasional assholes.
Mistakes made along the way
Insurance is a pretty tough product to explain, and explaining it well comes with experience. Yes, we do get training, but the training will not encompass all the minute details like claims, servicing, etc.
I wish I’d explained to my earlier customers as how I explain products to customers today. Even though I think there was no misrepresentation on my part, it would definitely have helped a few customers who thought their claims could be cashless from the start of the policy. That’s on me, and my presentations have become so much more refined since.
Covid-19 pandemic
We’ve been selling insurance face to face since the beginning of time, and on March 18 2020 for an indefinite period, we were asked to stay home. This was worrying, at first. But AIA and other insurance companies opened up selling insurance online, and having a big customer base over the years helped me get referral business. I finished the year strong (I think), generating slightly more business compared to the previous year. There is a bigger awareness on purchasing more policies during the pandemic, but at the same time many also are out of business or jobs, and having their incomes reduced. Hence “slightly more business”, not a lot more. I’m grateful anyways.
The meaning of life, and what’s next
I have no idea. Some may find meaning from religion, raising children, supporting your family. Apart from retirement, I’m not sure what else I want to plan for. I don’t really have expensive hobbies but recently I’ve signed up for a private pilot’s license course, and I’ve also been accepted to an MBA course in KL – which I will only reciprocate if I am also offered a scholarship (that’s tbc).
That’s my sharing for today folks, cheers! – wan