The Myths, Centaurs and Unicorns of Insurance Producers

Mar 08, 2017

A Faraway Land

To most of those living it, life as a commercial insurance producer is a faraway land from fairytales and whimsical creatures. Many producers would argue it could be more accurately described as illusionary and unimaginative. The sad truth is majority of producers today find themselves stuck in patterns of struggle and frustration.

My largest customer is shopping me this year.
My pipeline is thin and I don't know how to get it going.
I'm don't think I'm going to hit my new business goal this year.
I keep getting pulled into service issues and don't have time for prospecting.
Everytime I pick up the phone to make a prospecting call, I'm overwhelmed with anxiety and call reluctance.
Every networking event I attend is just a massive business card exchange between sales reps but no decision makers.
I constantly feel like I'm not good enough for this job.

Sound familiar?

Far too often when I ask a producer how things are going, I get the response..."ugh it's a grind." While most mask themselves around the office as charismatic dragon-slayers, strong and in control, a majority of producers are quietly held captive on the inside by feelings of anxiety, inadequacy, and fear. I know because I've been there. For years I fought against an overwhelming daily spirit of lack - lack of support, lack of confidence, lack of training and a lack of breakthrough results. I talk about this more in our free course You Can Be Elite.

While I don't want to mislead you by selling you ficticious castles in the sky, I am here to tell you that centaurs and unicorns do exist.

But before we get to those, we must first dispel four myths that plague producers.

Dispelling Myths

What I've found in my own life, and working with hundreds of producers over the years, is that we are all held captive by the lies we believe. I recently heard a statistic that said 77% of our self-talk is negative. Believing these lies often leads to increased anxiety, which in turn leads to depression. Depression is a secret but common struggle of many producers.

The best way to combat these myths is with the truth. After all, it's the truth that will set us free.

Myth #1 - "If a producer has what it takes, they will figure it out."

Everytime I hear this I shiver. Usually it comes from a sales leader or experienced producer trying to justify the lack of an intentional training program to develop their newer producers. The worst part is that it implies if a producer is struggling or floundering, they "must not have what it takes."
Truth: If you're willing to work hard and persevere, you have everything it takes. But you can't do it alone. We weren't created to live an isolated life. We were created for community. We need each other, not just in life but also in business. As producers we are not immune to the need of support, training, encouragement, mentorship and belief. In fact, given that we deal with daily rejection in the nature of our role, we need it more.

Myth #2 - "I'm not qualified to write large accounts."

I believed this one for a long time. I made excuses why I couldn't write large accounts - my experience, my age, my book size, my agency, my resources. And as a result my average size account hovered between $5K and $10K in revenue, with many accounts falling below that. Until one day I wrote a $40K revenue account. Suddenly that made all the $10K accounts seem small and unchallenging. I realized I was limiting myself by my own self doubt.
Truth: The size of your book, the number of years you've been in the business, your age, your location, your agency size, your gender, or the color of your skin do not limit your potential for exponential success. In fact, every one of those, no matter what they are, could actually be your advantage and a springboard to abundance. You still need deliberate practice but you are capable. YOU are the ultimate accountability factor in your success.

Myth #3 - "Exponential success is only for others. The lucky outliers. But not for me."

I didn't overcome this myth until 10+ years into my career, when I underwent a "personal restart." (You can learn more about my restart in our free 50-minute video course Train Like The Elite.) I've come to learn that the producers who rise to the top 1%, don't get there by luck. Most of them actually aren't even "naturals" when it comes to sales, and many are introverts by nature. Their personality profiles don't fit the "ideal producer candidate" profiles. But they have an insatiable desire to keep growing and improving to become the best. And they invest in that.
Truth: Exponential success is yours if you are bold and courageous enough to take it. Every elite producer started at zero. Start small and then build a monopoly. Success breeds success.

Myth #4 - "I'm not a real producer."

Maybe you don't struggle with this, but I did for a long time. I felt like everyone else around me was a "real producer" but I was just faking it. Everytime I lost an account or dealt with rejection, it fueled this belief. "See, I'm not cut out for this." I felt inferior. It's amazing how much we dwell on our failures, but discount or dismiss our successes. "I got lucky this time, but can I do it again?"
Truth: There's no such thing as real or fake producers. There are just different levels of success. Don't fall into the comparison trap. And don't compare your beginning to someone else's middle. Focus instead on growing your success. If you are just starting out, how can you write your first $100K? If you did $100K in new business last year, how can you do $200K? You are a producer. You can be an elite one.

Centaurs and Unicorns Do Exist

In the startup world, the terms Centaurs and Unicorns are used to describe startups that have a $250M and $1B valuations respectively. They are the best of the best. Less than 2% of startups achieve Centaur status and less than 0.01% become Unicorns.

Centaur insurance producers are those producers who write over $250K in new business revenue each year. Their book sizes tend to be between $1M-$3M. I've met a lot of these over the years. If you're at a large agency, you probably have some in your office. According to the National Alliance Research Academy, approximately 7% of all commercial lines producers are centaurs. These are the very best in the business.

Unicorns are more rare. Unicorn producers are an elite few, less than 1%, who write over $1M in new business revenue annually. But they do exist. They manage books between $3M - $25M (Yes, I've met a $25M unicorn). Amongst unicorn producers, the new gold standard is "decacorn" status - a $10M+ book of business.

I tell you this not to discourage you, but rather so that you will see. And in seeing, that you would believe in your potential to build a special career and life as an insurance producer.

Your Journey from Faraway Land to Fairytale

While the journey from Faraway Land to Fairytale Land is fraught with struggle, challenge and temptation, centaurs and unicorns are real and living among us today. And the reward is a life of unimaginable impact, freedom and abundance.

You can learn more about these elite producers and the critical areas you need to focus on in your journey with our free two-course video package You Can Be Elite & Train Like the Elite. I'll share with you the real life journey's of a couple current centaurs and unicorns, as well as the details of my own personal restart and how I wrote $937,500 in new business in 18 months.

Get the Free Two-Course Bundle Here

Don't believe the myths. You have everything it takes. You are the ultimate accountability factor in your success. Exponential success is yours if you are bold and courageous enough to take it. You are a producer. You can be a unicorn.

Start your journey today. Take the first step.