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What If Your Insurance Fails When It Matters with Tina White, Providence Insurance · Epic Entrepreneurs

• 1:29
  SPEAKER_03: Absolutely.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_03: Let's go.
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_01: All right.
• 1:31
  SPEAKER_01: So you entered insurance in 1996 after working in sales and banking.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_01: What made insurance a career that stuck?
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_03: That's a great question.
• 1:42
  SPEAKER_03: I you know, I've always liked people and knew that it was meant for me to interact and and daily be team, you know, with teams and other people.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_03: But what really happened was that my insurance agent came to write my new homeowners policy, noticed I was gonna have a baby, and said, Hey, you know, would you like some life insurance?
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_03: And she said, People your age change jobs eight times during their lifetime.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_03: And because I said I had it at work.
• 2:13
  SPEAKER_03: And she said, Well, what if you left your work?
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_03: And and I said, Yeah, well, you're right.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, I was 25, so probably the chance of me having another job than banking at the time was true.
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_03: And I said, Okay, you know, I'll I'll take some life insurance.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_03: And she said, you know what?
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_03: I've known you since you were 13.
• 2:29
  SPEAKER_03: I think you'd be a great fit for insurance.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_03: So I was very blessed and fortunate that someone saw something in me that called out that ability of sales, which I started at about nine, age nine.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_03: So yeah.
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_01: Was that uh was I'm guessing that's door-to-door selling cookies or something?
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, so not cookies, surprisingly enough.
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_03: So this is quite a while back.
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_03: Let's see, let me go nine.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_03: So let's say 1980, early 80s, and there was a way that kids could make money by selling Christmas cards that were embossed and personalized.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_03: And so back then, uh, you went door to door because you knew your neighbor, and I went door to door.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_03: I wanted to win a Polaroid camera.
• 3:10
  SPEAKER_03: So clearly dating myself, I gave you the year, I gave you what, but this Polaroid camera, I was motivated by well things or money, making goals, you know.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_03: So that looked that came to me early on, and I I earned that camera, by the way.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that's yeah, that was a very different time.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_01: Like you said, you that hit me so well when you said you knew your neighbors.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_01: Like I've got I've got you know a couple of neighbors.
• 3:38
  SPEAKER_01: I got actually a neighbor that just moved across.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_01: I don't even know their name, barely even see them.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_03: Right.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_03: Uh I the same.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_03: Like I we have some neighbors down the street, and I don't really know them at all.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_03: And it's just a different world.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_03: We could tell you who probably built the house, what year they built it, but it it's it is a different world.
• 3:57
  SPEAKER_03: And of course, now I mean the big thing for kids when they're younger is being influencers.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_03: So what a world.
• 4:03
  SPEAKER_03: We didn't have any of that.
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_03: And I, you know what?
• 4:05
  SPEAKER_03: I bet you I would have been one of those kids.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_03: I would have been somebody from YouTube or whatever and be like, here's the newest thing, you know.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_01: You could dance, right?
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_01: You could do some TikTok dances.
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_03: I can't floss.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_03: I know that's weird.
• 4:19
  SPEAKER_03: I I I probably could.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_03: I actually literally teach a dance fitness class, but the flossing thing I never quite got, nor did I care for.
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_03: But yes, I can dance.
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_03: And yes, I would do that.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_03: I would get on there and matter of fact, mighty give me an idea for moving the insurance TikTok.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_03: I'm gonna have to do an insurance dance.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_03: I don't know what that looks like, but we'll find one.
• 4:38
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, okay.
• 4:40
  SPEAKER_01: Now, Tina, what did your path look like before Providence Insurance Agency and what pushed you towards business ownership in general?
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, so the path, I mean, obviously I had a retail background and I was very good at different places I worked and sales and like we would increase sales, and I learned really quickly that I was good at that.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_03: And then I was kind of drafted into banking.
• 5:03
  SPEAKER_03: So I had this whole financial side.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_03: And so when this agent who was a State Farm agent, I'm gonna give her credit, she did retire, but I went to work for her and it was brief.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_03: It was only about nine months because I also found out I was gonna have another baby.
• 5:20
  SPEAKER_03: So my children are very close back to back, 15 months apart.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_03: And during that time, State Farm is a very busy insurance network.
• 5:30
  SPEAKER_03: They probably insured one out of every three drivers in West Virginia.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_03: That was the actual statistic at that time.
• 5:37
  SPEAKER_03: We're talking in the 90s.
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_03: They dominated insurance in West Virginia and most a lot of other places in the nation.
• 5:44
  SPEAKER_03: Obviously, people know State Farm.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_03: And so it was very hectic and very busy.
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_03: But there was competition and there was this little regional competition company that we were starting to lose business, and our agent didn't like to lose business.
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_03: And so we were told to say, you know, whatever to try to keep someone, you know, you did you review the coverage?
• 6:05
  SPEAKER_03: That company is this or that.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_03: And so I finally looked at the girl I worked with and I said, Have you ever heard that about this company?
• 6:12
  SPEAKER_03: And she said, Yeah, I actually have them for car insurance.
• 6:14
  SPEAKER_03: I'm like, Really?
• 6:14
  SPEAKER_03: I'm gonna call and get me a call.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_03: Quote.
• 6:16
  SPEAKER_03: So I called this other insurance company for a quote.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_03: And the guy was like, he answered his phone on the first ring.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_03: We couldn't even answer on the fourth ring at this busy state farm agency.
• 6:27
  SPEAKER_03: And so I was like, wow, you answered your phone quick, but I would like to get a quote.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_03: And by the way, I'm a licensed insurance service person.
• 6:34
  SPEAKER_03: And he was like, oh, well, I'm looking.
• 6:36
  SPEAKER_03: So I I, you know, by being a talker, by being, you know, always wanting to learn about other people a little bit, it is the nature of how I am.
• 6:45
  SPEAKER_03: I talked myself into a job, basically.
• 6:48
  SPEAKER_03: So I was getting ready.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_03: It was two miles from my house, which is really good timing when you're gonna have two babies.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_03: So I I went ahead and left State Farm and went to this independent agent who had a lot of commercial background, so that was super helpful.
• 7:04
  SPEAKER_03: But it was so nice being so close to home that I could go home at lunch.
• 7:07
  SPEAKER_03: And that's how I kind of walked into this independent agent.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_03: So different times during my career, I looked at getting my own agency, especially through this regional carrier.
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_03: And the regional carrier is called Erie, they're out of Erie, Pennsylvania.
• 7:23
  SPEAKER_03: They're only in about 13 states, so it depends on your broadcast area.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_03: And I know you're somewhat here, so all the states around us do have Erie, but it's a very popular company, very competitive in my area.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_03: And so I would talk to the district manager and say, I think I'm interested.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_03: Well, startup costs, I mean, that is huge for any entrepreneur.
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_03: Can you endure?
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_03: Can you do you have a startup?
• 7:46
  SPEAKER_03: Do you have the equity?
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_03: Do you have assets to fall back on?
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_03: Can you make it a year before you get start really making income?
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_03: And those were big questions for me and my very young family.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_03: And so my husband is also self-employed in a different line of work, but he does have an insurance license.
• 8:04
  SPEAKER_03: And that's when I kept deciding, well, it would be easier, even though I was straight commissioned within a few years of the large, large agency that I went to.
• 8:14
  SPEAKER_03: Well, I went to grow with.
• 8:16
  SPEAKER_03: We were small, and then we grew really large, one of the largest agencies in the state of West Virginia.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_03: And so I really thought about it hard and I thought, okay, it's not the time.
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_03: I can't really afford to take a draw on$20,000 a year and have two kids, and I've got benefits.
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_03: And so I hear this so often.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_03: I really can't leave my job because I need health insurance.
• 8:41
  SPEAKER_03: That is such a powerful hole that we have in the United States and with our healthcare system.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_03: And that was me, and I sold health insurance.
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_03: Isn't that funny?
• 8:51
  SPEAKER_03: And kind of like the weirdest dichotomy is that I'm in insurance, actually sell health insurance, but yet it's not really affordable and it's not something I can do on my own when you go to be an entrepreneur and start from scratch.
• 9:04
  SPEAKER_03: And so that was a conversation I had three to four times.
• 9:09
  SPEAKER_03: I've actually was asked to go into business and what other people want to start an insurance agency four times before I actually went and took the jump in 2021, which by all means was probably one of the weirder times to go into business post-COVID.
• 9:26
  SPEAKER_03: And also with AI an online company.
• 9:29
  SPEAKER_03: So long answer, but that's what kind of brought me where I am today.
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, okay.
• 9:35
  SPEAKER_01: Now, what do you do you all offer anything else?
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_01: What are the main services or solutions Providence and Service Agency provides today?
• 9:41
  SPEAKER_01: And who would you say is your best fit customer?
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_03: That's a wonderful question.
• 9:46
  SPEAKER_03: I am a property casualty agent.
• 9:48
  SPEAKER_03: So the strength is a residual long-term client that has a home and cars, and I love small business owners because I do have a large commercial background.
• 9:59
  SPEAKER_03: So I like to take care of the whole picture for them.
• 10:01
  SPEAKER_03: In addition to the property casualty side, of course, West Virginia has pri does private workers' comp.
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_03: So I do workers' compensation in multiple states.
• 10:11
  SPEAKER_03: And addition to that, we do sell life insurance.
• 10:15
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, why wouldn't I?
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_03: That's what got me into insurance in the first place.
• 10:19
  SPEAKER_03: And I do offer group benefits.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_03: We steer, we don't have a lot of individual health.
• 10:26
  SPEAKER_03: I do have a referral partner that would have multiple options for health insurance.
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_03: I do more the group side and if they want a blue cross, but it's a loaded topic and not something I'm building my whole agency on.
• 10:42
  SPEAKER_03: So, you know, normally just for clients only if they really want me to handle that for them.
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_03: But my strength really came into commercial later on.
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_03: And I was the state rep for two different direct carriers, which that people don't, I, you know what?
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_03: I didn't even know the different type of insurance agent jobs there were when I worked for State Farm and then the independent.
• 11:07
  SPEAKER_03: I thought there was just captive carriers that represent one person, like State Farm, all state farmers in some states, and then independents that represent everybody else.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_03: Well, there's the direct carrier, which is you're, they call you a representative of their company, but you're an agent and you still sell if they're only their product.
• 11:25
  SPEAKER_03: So you're actually employee of the actual insurance carrier and you go sell their product.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_03: And so I did that for two national companies in the state of West Virginia and part of Virginia.
• 11:34
  SPEAKER_03: And what I sold was pharmacy insurance and things that are kind of lateral to that or that that kind of complement pharmacy, which I would say grocery, you wouldn't think groceries, but sometimes pharmacies are in grocery stores.
• 11:49
  SPEAKER_03: So dentistry, there was ancillary type things that went along with that.
• 11:53
  SPEAKER_03: And then I went and sold car dealerships and dealer operations, is what I was trying to get to.
• 12:01
  SPEAKER_03: And then that company pivoted about a year in and added manufacturing and more standard business to my lineup.
• 12:09
  SPEAKER_03: And so I had already had that kind of experience before.
• 12:12
  SPEAKER_03: So I took a few years out in the field and got a whole new perspective.
• 12:18
  SPEAKER_03: But I was tired of being on the road.
• 12:19
  SPEAKER_03: I was never meant to be by myself.
• 12:22
  SPEAKER_03: And I think that I think that I'm best when I work with others.
• 12:26
  SPEAKER_03: And so I came back wanting to buy an agency.
• 12:29
  SPEAKER_03: And the first agency I approached, the gentleman was not ready to sell yet, and his daughter was going to run it.
• 12:35
  SPEAKER_03: So he offered me a position, but my former employer had found out that I was coming back and looking, and he offered me an opportunity I could not turn down money-wise.
• 12:46
  SPEAKER_03: And so that's what I went back to a large independent agency in January of 2019.
• 12:52
  SPEAKER_03: And then I was finally ready to launch myself with the blessing of my employer, by the way.
• 12:58
  SPEAKER_03: It's when you do things right and with integrity, then the it's much easier road for you as an entrepreneur.
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_03: And so in July of 2021, I filed my company and I launched off into business in August of 2021.
• 13:15
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, nice.
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_01: Now, what would you say is the biggest challenge the business is facing right now?
• 13:22
  SPEAKER_03: Well, navigating some of the new nuances of business that have kind of arrived in the last five to 10 years.
• 13:31
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, AI, is that going to make a big difference in your industry?
• 13:35
  SPEAKER_03: Could it put you out of a job?
• 13:37
  SPEAKER_03: Or can you learn how to work with it and have the technology to enhance the services you offer?
• 13:42
  SPEAKER_03: I think that's something you really need to investigate when you go into job.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_03: Look at the competition.
• 13:48
  SPEAKER_03: One of the things I think is always hard to answer is when someone says, what makes you stand out?
• 13:53
  SPEAKER_03: Well, in insurance, first of all, people don't like it.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_03: They don't want to pay for insurance, you know?
• 13:58
  SPEAKER_03: They don't want, like, it's a racket.
• 14:00
  SPEAKER_03: You hear all the things.
• 14:01
  SPEAKER_03: It's a racket that insurance never pays when you want it to.
• 14:05
  SPEAKER_03: So, first of all, you better learn your industry and you better know how you can comfort people and say, I'm going to bring you peace of mind so you can sleep at night.
• 14:13
  SPEAKER_03: You know, you'll have a roof over your head or be able to provide that if something happens.
• 14:18
  SPEAKER_03: And so looking at your the competitive ability in your area and really feeling out that business model and making sure that you're 100% committed.
• 14:32
  SPEAKER_03: Is it just a fleeting thought because you think this is really popular and I'm going to do that?
• 14:38
  SPEAKER_03: Or for me, I want to have conviction about what I do.
• 14:41
  SPEAKER_03: I want to believe in it.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_03: I want to know that I can do it to the best of my ability.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_03: And I want the technology, but I also, what was important for us, for me, was to buy a building and be a community asset and be somewhere people can come to.
• 14:58
  SPEAKER_03: There's a lot of insurance agents that just work from home, and I'm not knocking that.
• 15:01
  SPEAKER_03: It probably works in a really large city.
• 15:03
  SPEAKER_03: But I'm in a place where people want to see your face, know you by name, and it's a tight community.
• 15:09
  SPEAKER_03: So you do have to know your demographic and your area and if it's gonna work.
• 15:13
  SPEAKER_03: That would be a few of the things I would say to really consider before starting a new venture.
• 15:19
  unknown: Okay.
• 15:20
  SPEAKER_01: Okay.
• 15:21
  SPEAKER_01: Now, what do you believe is preventing the business from reaching its next level?
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_01: Would you say?
• 15:27
  SPEAKER_03: You say my business.
• 15:29
  SPEAKER_01: Yes.
• 15:29
  SPEAKER_03: I I always laugh.
• 15:30
  SPEAKER_03: They'll say, What's the most important thing?
• 15:32
  SPEAKER_03: Time management.
• 15:33
  SPEAKER_03: What is probably uh preventing me from the next level?
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_03: Time management as the business owner and have having been insurance for 30 years, people have my cell phone, which hasn't changed in 20 plus years.
• 15:49
  SPEAKER_03: And so they call me and I can't learn to use the help that I've hired.
• 15:57
  SPEAKER_03: So I have I have uh employees and learning how to give over the reins when I'm the person that's been in control.
• 16:07
  SPEAKER_03: I think we find many entrepreneurs have certain personality traits that are the same, not all, but a lot of them are high functioning or I high strung.
• 16:17
  SPEAKER_03: The bottom line is I'm high strung.
• 16:19
  SPEAKER_03: I have a lot of energy, I have a lot of excitement.
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_03: And then I also know exactly how I want to do things.
• 16:26
  SPEAKER_03: And sometimes it's always hard to train someone to do what you do.
• 16:29
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, no one is you.
• 16:31
  SPEAKER_03: You do have your intellectual properties and abilities, and no one in my office has 30 years experience like me.
• 16:38
  SPEAKER_03: And so it's hard for me to delegate and say, okay, I'm gonna let you have this when I know that they're gonna have to learn and ask questions.
• 16:45
  SPEAKER_03: And in my head, that's extra time.
• 16:47
  SPEAKER_03: So what prevents me from going to the next level is not delegating to the resources that I have and probably allowing, you know, people into my day that I probably should just say, hey, and pass them off.
• 17:02
  SPEAKER_03: That's another thing, too, is that I want everyone to feel respected, but sometimes I are I have a better fit in the agency for them if it's like personalized for interest and the exception.
• 17:14
  SPEAKER_03: Sorry about that.
• 17:15
  SPEAKER_03: For if someone calls in for a personalized quote and it's starting, I have people who take that intake, and it would be better use of their time to take that information versus use of my time when I've got five businesses that are pretty large to quote.
• 17:30
  SPEAKER_03: And sometimes I get confused in my head.
• 17:33
  SPEAKER_03: It's not a disrespect, it's literally making better choices with my time management.
• 17:38
  SPEAKER_03: And so I have to refocus and reframe my perspective often.
• 17:43
  SPEAKER_03: And I think the more that I do that and I'm willing to let the reins go a little bit, then I can grow more.
• 17:51
  SPEAKER_03: And we all make mistakes, so I'm not immune to mistakes.
• 17:54
  SPEAKER_03: So they've everyone has to learn.
• 17:57
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, no, no, I agree, I agree.
• 17:59
  SPEAKER_01: I appreciate that candid answer.
• 18:01
  SPEAKER_01: Now, what what would you say, Tina, is something people assume is easy about running Providence insurance agency or or running that type of business, you know, in general, that is actually very difficult.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_03: Probably one of the pet peeve uh things I have said to me, so I'm being brutally honest here, and give is people say, Well, I wish I were you, I had you have those bankers' hours.
• 18:25
  SPEAKER_03: And so banks, you know, open nine to five, our office is open nine to five.
• 18:30
  SPEAKER_03: We actually do have someone here at 8:30.
• 18:33
  SPEAKER_03: But the misconception is me as the business owner that I actually only work those hours.
• 18:39
  SPEAKER_03: When in fact, I could take a call at 7:15, 8:15 in the morning, 8:15, 915 at night.
• 18:47
  SPEAKER_03: Boundaries are a little bit hard to establish.
• 18:51
  SPEAKER_03: For some people, we'll take advantage of any if you answer the phone anytime, they will call you anytime.
• 18:57
  SPEAKER_03: And turning off my work brain when I have a long list of things to do is hard to do.
• 19:05
  SPEAKER_03: And people think you just get up and you leave your desk and work is done, but it's not.
• 19:10
  SPEAKER_03: And I think that would be a miss a misconception in general with with owning a business, but specifically with a business that's very set like Monday through Friday, you know, getting some holidays off.
• 19:22
  SPEAKER_03: People view that and say, Well, I wish I had that, you know.
• 19:25
  SPEAKER_03: And I sometimes you have time, sometimes you have money, sometimes you have neither, and then eventually I hope I have both, you know.
• 19:32
  SPEAKER_03: But and that's when you're just starting a business, I mean, you spend a lot of time for a little money, but you're building something.
• 19:42
  SPEAKER_01: Now, insurance can feel like a commodity until an actual claim happens, right?
• 19:47
  SPEAKER_01: So, how do you help clients understand the difference between the cheapest policy and the right protection?
• 19:53
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 19:54
  SPEAKER_03: When people call in, they're saying, I want to save money.
• 19:57
  SPEAKER_03: And then you learn about their coverage and say, Well, you know, you don't have this coverage, you know how much that will cost you in the long run.
• 20:05
  SPEAKER_03: So literally it would cost them more.
• 20:07
  SPEAKER_03: So they're not saving money.
• 20:09
  SPEAKER_03: And I think the biggest area and policies that I can demonstrate that is in commercial insurance.
• 20:17
  SPEAKER_03: Now, it it exists in auto and home insurance, but personal budgets are very strained right now.
• 20:24
  SPEAKER_03: And so I find that people are willing to taste take some risks with their personal finance and insurance.
• 20:30
  SPEAKER_03: And it is just a commodity if you are in a state like West Virginia, and most states in the nation have a mandatory auto insurance law, and they think, well, autos cover what the state requires me.
• 20:42
  SPEAKER_03: Nobody can get anything from me anyway.
• 20:43
  SPEAKER_03: I don't, you know, have any assets.
• 20:45
  SPEAKER_03: And and then sometimes that's all someone can afford is to be legal and you're just trying to help them get to the next step.
• 20:52
  SPEAKER_03: But in business insurance, if you're not properly insured, it can wipe away your entire future in an event.
• 21:01
  SPEAKER_03: So whether it's a cyber event or you know, we are all braced right now for if the tornado is going to hit the area today.
• 21:09
  SPEAKER_03: And that has been something that has really affected places when it levels it, and you find out your policy didn't cover or had an exclusion, or you had such a high deductible.
• 21:21
  SPEAKER_03: When I used to sell dealership insurance, we would run a cross as one company.
• 21:28
  SPEAKER_03: And I really hate that I hated the sales practice.
• 21:31
  SPEAKER_03: I believe in being as transparent as possible.
• 21:33
  SPEAKER_03: And even when people ask you the hard questions, and maybe you don't have a certain coverage like another company offers, you have to explain that.
• 21:41
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, it's their right to choose if they're taking that risk or not.
• 21:45
  SPEAKER_03: And so this company would go in and show these customers this really low price, and they they wouldn't even ask what a 50,000 SIR was because nobody knew because it didn't say deductible.
• 21:57
  SPEAKER_03: And what an SIR is is a self-insured retention.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_03: So guess what?
• 22:01
  SPEAKER_03: It's a deductible.
• 22:02
  SPEAKER_03: So they would have a$50,000 deductible and I'd be quoting, you know,$2,500, and they wouldn't even know.
• 22:07
  SPEAKER_03: And it would be against their liability, too.
• 22:09
  SPEAKER_03: So if someone, you know, they had a million dollar liability claim, they weren't, they didn't realize they were paying$50,000 of that or an employment practices claim that's really important.
• 22:20
  SPEAKER_03: And so I think that's probably a very hesitant coverage I see with.
• 22:26
  SPEAKER_03: Business owners, especially if they're closely held, like, oh, all of my employees are family.
• 22:32
  SPEAKER_03: Well, it would be a really difficult Thanksgiving if someone got hurt, and the only option the lawyer told them is to sue their employer and their employer's family.
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_03: But what are they gonna do when it's money?
• 22:43
  SPEAKER_03: You know, I I'm I'm telling you, I see this stuff and you don't think it's gonna happen.
• 22:48
  SPEAKER_03: And so that's why I say you, you know, to business owners, it doesn't matter if your only employees are family, you should have employment practices.
• 22:55
  SPEAKER_03: You might grow later.
• 22:56
  SPEAKER_03: You know, you don't know.
• 22:58
  SPEAKER_03: But when it comes down to money, people will serve themselves.
• 23:02
  SPEAKER_03: And what I want a business owner to know is that I'm there to shore up all the loose ends and the gaps, right?
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_03: We fill the gaps, we make sure there's no gaps so that your business is properly covered and you can sleep at night and you have peace of mind that you're not going to lose your entire retirement.
• 23:22
  SPEAKER_03: You know, for people like me, you start an insurance business and your customers are your retirement.
• 23:29
  SPEAKER_03: That is that is my retirement plan, is the more customers I have.
• 23:32
  SPEAKER_03: And so, in a small business and every policy counts to me, I appreciate everyone.
• 23:37
  SPEAKER_03: And but if that would be taken away and no way to recreate it, I mean, that is my retirement.
• 23:43
  SPEAKER_03: That is my nest egg.
• 23:44
  SPEAKER_03: And so that's what I go in to explain to people.
• 23:47
  SPEAKER_03: This just isn't a business transaction of meeting required laws to have insurance.
• 23:54
  SPEAKER_03: It's literally protecting everything, your sweat, you know, blood, sweat, and tears that you've put in to your business that you will be properly covered.
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_01: Definitely right.
• 24:05
  SPEAKER_01: Now, is there something about you personally that had to change for your business to grow, like anything about your personality type or anything in your personal life that had to change for your business to start growing?
• 24:15
  SPEAKER_03: Would you say that's an interesting question?
• 24:18
  SPEAKER_03: I have to sometimes be quiet, which is hilarious in this whole conversation, is you told me to have freedom to talk.
• 24:26
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm like, no one's ever told me I had the freedom to talk.
• 24:29
  SPEAKER_03: Now I've done speaking of that nature in front of people, but you have a time restraint.
• 24:33
  SPEAKER_03: And and we do, of course.
• 24:35
  SPEAKER_03: But but yeah, as a salesperson, one of the most uncomfortable things I had to learn was people don't like being uncomfortable.
• 24:45
  SPEAKER_03: It made me uncomfortable.
• 24:47
  SPEAKER_03: And that to stop talking, when you ask a question, you have to stop and let them answer.
• 24:52
  SPEAKER_03: And the more awkward silence there is, they're thinking, wow, she has a great point here.
• 24:57
  SPEAKER_03: So I, you know, honestly, I'm very genuine and being authentic is important.
• 25:04
  SPEAKER_03: So you get what you get with me.
• 25:05
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, you kind of I'm not gonna change and I did not have to change my personality, but I do have to listen more and truly listen.
• 25:15
  SPEAKER_03: And I want to listen, but I also love to interact with people and finding the balance of am I talking just to talk?
• 25:23
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm sharing a story and I think I'm connected when they're like, oh, we need to, you know, we need to end this now.
• 25:29
  SPEAKER_03: So finding that balance of talking and sharing and learning what the person across from me really wants, I mean, that is a skill that will help you do more business if you learn it.
• 25:41
  SPEAKER_03: And but I haven't really, I really haven't changed anything about myself because I've been very true to who I've who I wanted to be my entire life.
• 25:50
  SPEAKER_03: And I haven't had to change that.
• 25:51
  SPEAKER_03: And I'm very thankful that I had good direction growing up and great parents, and I am me.
• 25:57
  SPEAKER_03: And so sometimes I'm not, I mean, I might not be the perfect fit for someone personality-wise, and that's okay.
• 26:03
  SPEAKER_03: I had to learn that the hard way.
• 26:05
  SPEAKER_03: That doesn't feel comfortable because I always want to like everybody and everybody like me, but that's not the world we live in.
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_03: So you have to be comfortable with who you are, and if you need to change something, be open to it.
• 26:16
  SPEAKER_03: And so, of course, any constructive criticism that I would receive, which I usually get on time management, but I would be open to.
• 26:26
  SPEAKER_01: Okay.
• 26:28
  SPEAKER_01: Now, about how many hours a week are you working in and out of the business right now?
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_03: Well, on insurance things, I would say last week was very intense.
• 26:39
  SPEAKER_03: We had a construction project, and so in our on our property, so I was here at the office, but a lot of time the contractor, okay, can you come out and approve this?
• 26:49
  SPEAKER_03: Can you so I was getting distracted from my work, and so I was having to take it home and I probably I mean, there are weeks where I'm spending 60, 60 plus hours in and out of the office.
• 27:03
  SPEAKER_03: And then being that it's summer, I went back to a first love.
• 27:07
  SPEAKER_03: I love to be active, and I got the opportunity to play softball again for the first time in 11 years.
• 27:13
  SPEAKER_03: I had thought that that phase of my life was over due to some surgeries and issues, but I had an overcoming year in 2025 to 26, and I said, you only live once.
• 27:26
  SPEAKER_03: Let me play.
• 27:26
  SPEAKER_03: So I played softball on two teams.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_03: So it got me out of the office more where the sun is out, and that literally recharges me.
• 27:33
  SPEAKER_03: I I that's what I need, and I feel like I'm a better employer and a better insurance agent if I get out and do a few things that just make me tick.
• 27:42
  SPEAKER_03: You know, if you ever hear that, that's what just drives me.
• 27:45
  SPEAKER_03: And so I've had so much fun playing softball.
• 27:48
  SPEAKER_03: So I may be down to under 50 hours, but always over 40, I can tell you that.
• 27:53
  SPEAKER_03: And my one worst story ever was last year we were going on vacation in September, and it was a Friday night, and I always work some crazy long day the day before vacation because I'm so afraid that somebody's gonna call or something, and my staff's not gonna know what's going on.
• 28:12
  SPEAKER_03: So I kept working, and next thing I know it was midnight.
• 28:16
  SPEAKER_03: The next thing I know it was 3 a.m.
• 28:19
  SPEAKER_03: And I had worked all the way through the night to the next morning from the morning, I I was a Friday morning, I got here by 8, something, I don't know.
• 28:28
  SPEAKER_03: And I had worked until the next morning at like 7 a.m.
• 28:32
  SPEAKER_03: I was like, okay, that might have been a little extreme.
• 28:34
  SPEAKER_03: Good thing my husband's driving.
• 28:37
  SPEAKER_03: That's probably my worst story.
• 28:39
  SPEAKER_03: But generally I do go home and I was working this morning early from home before six o'clock and trying to schedule my emails not to go out till 8 a.m.
• 28:47
  SPEAKER_03: So nobody'd be getting an email at 6:30 a.m.
• 28:50
  SPEAKER_03: And I would, you know, working last night.
• 28:52
  SPEAKER_03: So sometimes there's deadlines in commercial insurance.
• 28:55
  SPEAKER_03: I need to make sure my commercial people are taken care of.
• 28:57
  SPEAKER_03: But work-life balance is definitely something I'm still working on with my time management piece.
• 29:05
  SPEAKER_01: And this is a good one here.
• 29:07
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, you've been very candid about your answer, so I'm sure you'll be candid about this one.
• 29:10
  SPEAKER_01: But what what would you say is one leadership or business skill you know you still need to improve on?
• 29:18
  SPEAKER_03: The delegation part.
• 29:21
  SPEAKER_03: Because and here's why.
• 29:23
  SPEAKER_03: They talk about being a leader.
• 29:25
  SPEAKER_03: I think it's so important to be a leader to show, show up and show how to do it and truly lead and not just be a manager and tell people.
• 29:34
  SPEAKER_03: So there can be a fault to that though.
• 29:37
  SPEAKER_03: You know, a manager just tells everybody what to do.
• 29:39
  SPEAKER_03: But I always want to lead by example.
• 29:42
  SPEAKER_03: But at some point I have to let go of the reins.
• 29:44
  SPEAKER_03: And I think that's the part that's hard for me because I love leadership, and yet sometimes it can be overwhelming and a lot of responsibility because you need to rise up other leaders and give some of the reins over and give some of that delegation of responsibility to another person.
• 30:03
  SPEAKER_03: An up-and-coming leader, I took a leadership class in my county in the last six months.
• 30:09
  SPEAKER_03: We just ended two months ago, and it was an eight-month, it was an eight-month program through our Chamber of Commerce.
• 30:14
  SPEAKER_03: And it was so rewarding.
• 30:16
  SPEAKER_03: I enjoyed it.
• 30:17
  SPEAKER_03: It was hard to be out of the office for a day a month.
• 30:19
  SPEAKER_03: It cost me a couple of days, but just looking at the opportunities and things, and I already considered myself a leader.
• 30:26
  SPEAKER_03: I wasn't sure what skill that I was gonna hone in this particular cohort.
• 30:32
  SPEAKER_03: But what I was able to do is network with others and see up and coming leaders and see where we could all shine in our community and do things.
• 30:39
  SPEAKER_03: And so I think that's really important to learn in leadership how to lead and set the example, but also mentor the others that are gonna come up and let them have their time and let them have their opportunities.
• 30:54
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 30:55
  SPEAKER_01: Now, Tina, as an independent agency with multiple carriers, where does technology make the business more efficient?
• 31:04
  SPEAKER_03: Well, I, you know, I think earlier question, I'm just remembering you may have asked some of the companies or me.
• 31:10
  SPEAKER_03: I deal with a lot of national companies.
• 31:13
  SPEAKER_03: So we do have an agency management system with a rater that is so helpful.
• 31:18
  SPEAKER_03: We could put all the input in one place for a customer and then push it out and probably can get on the personal line side, we can get over 50% of our carriers quoted like that.
• 31:29
  SPEAKER_03: On the commercial line side, not quite the same, but it does give us something to show the prospect.
• 31:37
  SPEAKER_03: Look how much we've shot for you.
• 31:38
  SPEAKER_03: Like we are one stop.
• 31:40
  SPEAKER_03: If we do a good job, and this is kind of where I come back to it, let top technology be your partner in the sense that if somebody wants to do business with me, I'm going to find them a great solution.
• 31:52
  SPEAKER_03: There's no need for them to go anywhere else.
• 31:54
  SPEAKER_03: So use technology to where it kind of corners your market.
• 31:57
  SPEAKER_03: If somebody's already come into you, they've already been referred to you, they've already had a good report about you, you've done a good job with someone else.
• 32:06
  SPEAKER_03: And so use the technology paired with it to maybe get to the final stages quicker.
• 32:12
  SPEAKER_03: And that's kind of what we do.
• 32:13
  SPEAKER_03: We use the technology, see where our customer kind of falls in this estimated range, and then we can go there and already knock out a few of the options.
• 32:23
  SPEAKER_03: And so, in quoting, we use it.
• 32:26
  SPEAKER_03: We use it also.
• 32:28
  SPEAKER_03: I I was look talking to an older agent that is ready to retire.
• 32:32
  SPEAKER_03: And when I told him that you can text us, and two people in the agency received that, and so and people have access to their account so they could print something off or send us a change in the middle of the night that we would wake up to come.
• 32:45
  SPEAKER_03: He was really surprised.
• 32:47
  SPEAKER_03: So I don't have an AI, a virtual assistant or any kind of an AI assistant that makes robocalls of that nature.
• 32:55
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, some of them are pretty convincing in the insurance industry, I will tell you.
• 32:59
  SPEAKER_03: But I still like the personal touch.
• 33:01
  SPEAKER_03: I probably could save a lot of money and time if I would use more AI tools.
• 33:06
  SPEAKER_03: But we right now we have a good balance.
• 33:10
  SPEAKER_03: It also costs money, by the way.
• 33:11
  SPEAKER_03: So the more technology you use and try to incorporate, you will spend more money.
• 33:18
  SPEAKER_03: So I'm I'm still feeling my way through a lot of the technology, but by no means am I behind agencies from 25 or 30 years ago that won't even, you know, do some of the things that we're doing when it comes to outreach and using a little bit of we do some automated advertising, and when they go to post, they usually use AI for some ideas and and then make it their own.
• 33:44
  SPEAKER_03: I don't do a lot of the advertising anymore.
• 33:46
  SPEAKER_03: I do let my staff do that.
• 33:48
  SPEAKER_03: I feel like they're better, even though I love to do that.
• 33:50
  SPEAKER_03: But I hope that answers your question.
• 33:52
  SPEAKER_03: I think that it's important to embrace it for the industry that you're in.
• 33:57
  SPEAKER_01: Okay.
• 33:59
  SPEAKER_01: Now, why would you say customers choose you instead of another provider?
• 34:03
  SPEAKER_01: You know, kind of what are you doing better than your competition, would you say?
• 34:07
  SPEAKER_03: You know, we ask the same questions, but I want it to flow like a conversation with your friend on the personal side.
• 34:15
  SPEAKER_03: I want someone to feel like we're gonna have their back.
• 34:18
  SPEAKER_03: And I think we convey that by being personable and friendly.
• 34:24
  SPEAKER_03: You can be professional, but still be friendly and personable.
• 34:27
  SPEAKER_03: And I think unfortunately, that a lot of a lot of larger places they have a checklist and their employee just runs right through it without really having a conversation with the person, acknowledging them that they're more than just their insurance need or their auto quote.
• 34:42
  SPEAKER_03: I think that does stand out about our agency and about who we are.
• 34:47
  SPEAKER_03: So on the commercial side, I think my expertise and how I can convey that to the customer shines.
• 34:57
  SPEAKER_03: And also they know they have someone in their corner and have their back.
• 35:01
  SPEAKER_03: It's not just purely a cold, you know, transaction.
• 35:05
  SPEAKER_03: It's business business.
• 35:06
  SPEAKER_03: So for me, that's what works, being really personable and sharing more like a friend, you know, a friend and confidant than just running through a checklist of questions.
• 35:20
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 35:21
  SPEAKER_01: Okay.
• 35:22
  SPEAKER_01: Now, can you tell us again, kind of give us a quick snapshot or synopsis of kind of the team supporting you today?
• 35:29
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, so uh I started the agency with my son, who lost his job during COVID, and he is a computer science just genius, is what he is.
• 35:44
  SPEAKER_03: He had a degree in computer science, didn't know where he was going to go with it, was working on equipment, electroelectronic equipment when when the you know everything happened with the lockdown.
• 35:55
  SPEAKER_03: And so he was asked to come and work at the agency that I was at because the owner had known him since he was a little boy.
• 36:03
  SPEAKER_03: And they got him over there and he was giving him all these ideas about marketing and technology because he knows all of the most current, he did a whole, a whole study on all the different uh options for insurance with AI and technology, and he put together a project that was overwhelming to me.
• 36:22
  SPEAKER_03: It was a lot, but the agent just didn't even want to do any kind of technology.
• 36:27
  SPEAKER_03: And so there's, you know, there's a lot of personalities when you get an office full of 40-some people, but yet it's pretty tight-knit and cubicles.
• 36:36
  SPEAKER_03: And so as things kind of went along, I've looked and I said, it's finally time.
• 36:42
  SPEAKER_03: My kids are both grown adults, and I don't have to worry about my husband's VA.
• 36:47
  SPEAKER_03: I just I have myself and I'm ready to take this jump and open my own business, and I'll just take my son with him because he got licensed.
• 36:56
  SPEAKER_03: He's super smart, he would be so helpful with my IT, with my computers, and everything I needed.
• 37:02
  SPEAKER_03: And so, you know, that was kind of the catalyst that helped me start it.
• 37:07
  SPEAKER_03: So then Brett was my main full-time employee, and he is my oldest.
• 37:12
  SPEAKER_03: And then I've had a few other employees as time has gone by that were either part-time or insurance wasn't the right industry for them.
• 37:23
  SPEAKER_03: But my daughter moved back from Florida in 2024, and then she assumed a role in my agency.
• 37:30
  SPEAKER_03: And my son was just hired by the local university last fall to be a full-time professor ahead of the computer science department.
• 37:37
  SPEAKER_03: And so I want my kids to live their dreams.
• 37:40
  SPEAKER_03: But this summer, my son's been helping me with some projects because he's off, you know, from teaching full-time during the summertime.
• 37:49
  SPEAKER_03: And then my daughter is my full-time personal lines manager.
• 37:52
  SPEAKER_03: And just recently I hired an office coordinator, and so that's one of our growth initiatives.
• 37:59
  SPEAKER_03: And I've got something on the back burner right now.
• 38:01
  SPEAKER_03: I'm super excited about, hoping that works and comes to fruition.
• 38:05
  SPEAKER_03: So that's my team currently, and I have a subproducer that I added last month, which is someone who sells insurance and isn't in the office all the time, is not technically employed, but a sales agent.
• 38:19
  SPEAKER_03: And he had a lot of previous insurance experience in the life and health side and wanted to learn property casualty.
• 38:26
  SPEAKER_03: So that's my current team.
• 38:28
  SPEAKER_03: And there might be one coming in the future that I'm looking forward toward to, but I have a growth opportunity in business in the next month or so that I'm trying to close in on, and hopefully we will uh employ another person.
• 38:44
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, okay.
• 38:45
  SPEAKER_01: Now, side note there, I noticed you said that uh your daughter moved uh from from Florida up here.
• 38:50
  SPEAKER_01: So it what why did she leave Florida?
• 38:52
  SPEAKER_01: What happened there?
• 38:53
  SPEAKER_03: It got expensive.
• 38:54
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, yeah.
• 38:55
  SPEAKER_03: We moved in 2021, th four months before I opened my agency.
• 39:00
  SPEAKER_03: So what's super ironic is she moved in.
• 39:02
  SPEAKER_03: We moved her down there.
• 39:04
  SPEAKER_03: We went shopping, trying to get, oh, you're talking about it's hard to rent in the Orlando, Tampa area, and there's a lot of scams.
• 39:13
  SPEAKER_03: People take rentals and then they copy them and they just try to take your money.
• 39:17
  SPEAKER_03: It's crazy.
• 39:18
  SPEAKER_03: So we had to vet out a few things, finally found her place to live, and she couldn't move until May.
• 39:23
  SPEAKER_03: So we'd gone in March.
• 39:24
  SPEAKER_03: She moved in May, and I know this is gonna sound crazy, but I didn't even have a thought of opening a business.
• 39:31
  SPEAKER_03: Matter of fact, I told someone in April of 2021 there's no way that I would open an insurance agency in this atmosphere.
• 39:38
  SPEAKER_03: Well, he asked to be a partner, wanted to know if I want to partner or not.
• 39:41
  SPEAKER_03: But I but it was also for me, I said, there's no way I would open an insurance agency in this environment that we're in right now post-COVID.
• 39:48
  SPEAKER_03: And so how funny is it?
• 39:51
  SPEAKER_03: I think God laughs at our plan sometimes that it was July and I'm filing a name with the Secretary of State.
• 39:57
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, how fast that changed is still beyond me.
• 40:00
  SPEAKER_03: But she moved down there, really enjoyed it.
• 40:04
  SPEAKER_03: What she thought that she wanted to do ended up being more hobby related, not something that could support a career, and the expenses just got more expensive.
• 40:13
  SPEAKER_03: And my mom passed away.
• 40:15
  SPEAKER_03: And, you know, to hurry up when she was sick and then make it back to the funeral 13 hours.
• 40:19
  SPEAKER_03: My daughter said, it's just too far away to have to be that.
• 40:23
  SPEAKER_03: I want to be within like six to eight hours.
• 40:25
  SPEAKER_03: I can get somewhere the same day if something happens.
• 40:27
  SPEAKER_03: And I love that about my family because that's how family-oriented that we are.
• 40:32
  SPEAKER_03: And that I only have two children and they both work for me.
• 40:35
  SPEAKER_03: And people ask them all the time, do you like working for your mom?
• 40:38
  SPEAKER_03: And they're like, Yeah, of course.
• 40:40
  SPEAKER_03: So that is like the greatest compliment.
• 40:43
  SPEAKER_03: And again, I think I told you, and I had before mentioned it uh earlier in the podcast.
• 40:48
  SPEAKER_03: In 2009, my husband got licensed and worked with me in the agency that I worked for previously.
• 40:55
  SPEAKER_03: And he's really not a big salesman, but he was he's great with input.
• 41:00
  SPEAKER_03: And same with my son.
• 41:01
  SPEAKER_03: They both can, you know, input and take data like crazy.
• 41:04
  SPEAKER_03: But my my husband maintained his insurance license.
• 41:07
  SPEAKER_03: He really does risk management for me, though, like go out, take a picture, go look at a building that maybe has need to see if they're updated on electrical.
• 41:15
  SPEAKER_03: He knows things I don't really know, you know, about construction.
• 41:19
  SPEAKER_03: And but he doesn't necessarily work in the agency every day, but we do have him backup that he could do things for.
• 41:27
  SPEAKER_03: So that's kind of a neat thing that that nobody really realizes is that he is still on the books, or not on the books, but he still has his license if he we would need him to.
• 41:36
  SPEAKER_03: But that's why she she moved back and she had gotten into insurance in in Florida, but she was selling Medicare insurance, which we do not sell here.
• 41:45
  SPEAKER_03: We do refer that to someone else.
• 41:47
  SPEAKER_03: But she was selling Medicare insurance, and I just laughed at her because she never wanted any insurance internships during summer breaks or anything before she, you know, ever moved to Florida, and she comes back and now she works in insurance.
• 41:59
  SPEAKER_03: And so she does a really good job.
• 42:03
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it's weird how it comes full circle like that.
• 42:05
  SPEAKER_01: Didn't want to do it, and now she's doing it.
• 42:08
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 42:09
  SPEAKER_01: Now what would you say is your big and this helps out a lot of entrepreneurs.
• 42:13
  SPEAKER_01: We have a lot of we have a pretty big entrepreneurial audience here.
• 42:17
  SPEAKER_01: But what would you say is your biggest challenge when it comes to hiring, leading, or retaining good people, let's put that.
• 42:26
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, so hiring is a challenge, obviously.
• 42:29
  SPEAKER_03: For insurance, they have to either currently have a license, be able to pass a college-level test to get a license.
• 42:39
  SPEAKER_03: And many people can pass the test, but it is very stressful to work in an independent agency that things come at you fast.
• 42:47
  SPEAKER_03: You have to know so many companies.
• 42:49
  SPEAKER_03: Now, admittedly, you can't know everything about every company, but you need to have be organized to know who to call when you need to know something about a certain company.
• 42:59
  SPEAKER_03: So there's a lot of follow-through, knowing procedures and processes, and that can be overwhelming for some people.
• 43:08
  SPEAKER_03: So I I don't know that it's right for everybody, and it is a big learning curve.
• 43:15
  SPEAKER_03: And so again, for me, then once you get them in, there's a there's like quite the learning curve.
• 43:23
  SPEAKER_03: And then all the goodness, we're licensed.
• 43:26
  SPEAKER_03: I'm sure there's 50 companies that I'm I'm licensed with.
• 43:30
  SPEAKER_03: Do I get everybody licensed with everyone?
• 43:32
  SPEAKER_03: Probably not.
• 43:34
  SPEAKER_03: But just that licensing takes up a lot of my time, and I really need to probably offload that responsibility to one of my employees.
• 43:43
  SPEAKER_03: But there's a lot, there's a lot of investment into a new employee.
• 43:49
  SPEAKER_03: And if they end up, you really don't know if they're gonna work out for at least three to six months, and when they don't, then it becomes very difficult.
• 43:57
  SPEAKER_03: And it's probably outside of sales and managing my time, that's probably one of the harder things for me because I always want to believe there's a l unlimited potential in everyone and that it can work out, and it doesn't always work out.
• 44:12
  SPEAKER_03: And so knowing when to kind of say this is probably not gonna work out, that's probably the hardest thing for me because I don't really like letting people go.
• 44:23
  SPEAKER_03: I'm good at hiring and seeing all the opportunities.
• 44:27
  SPEAKER_03: But I don't like having to fire people or let them go.
• 44:31
  SPEAKER_03: So it's a big investment of time and mentorship.
• 44:36
  SPEAKER_03: And during that time and mentorship, then you're you're not being as productive as you need to be either.
• 44:42
  SPEAKER_03: So I think that hiring is a very tough thing for employers.
• 44:49
  SPEAKER_03: I would say utilize any personality test if you're in sales, or there are many recruiting agencies that can vet.
• 44:58
  SPEAKER_03: And if you're not good at vetting, let an employment agency vet for you.
• 45:03
  SPEAKER_03: Let them take a personality test, excuse me, such as the disc assessment, so that you're going to know if they're a direct person or if they're super charismatic and friendly, where I fall in the eye, if they're a steady, or you know, if they're really the person, the S and the C that you fall back on in that customer service role.
• 45:26
  SPEAKER_03: I think the disc assessment is a really nice assessment.
• 45:29
  SPEAKER_03: It also teaches you how to get along with the other personalities that fit in a spot.
• 45:35
  SPEAKER_03: And so hiring is is a huge issue in growing.
• 45:40
  SPEAKER_03: And then, you know, trying to figure out how many employees you actually need to do the job because there is a law of diminishing returns.
• 45:47
  SPEAKER_03: You can get too many employees and not enough work for everybody.
• 45:55
  SPEAKER_01: Now, all right.
• 45:55
  SPEAKER_01: So perfect.
• 45:56
  SPEAKER_01: I appreciate you answering this question.
• 45:57
  SPEAKER_01: So we're gonna head into let's go, you know, like I said earlier, the this or that round.
• 46:01
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 46:02
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah, so I'm gonna give you, you know, this or that, you know, uh choose one of them and then kind of give an explanation on why you chose it.
• 46:08
  SPEAKER_01: You kind of give me a small paragraph on that.
• 46:10
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 46:11
  SPEAKER_01: All right.
• 46:12
  SPEAKER_01: Coffee or tea?
• 46:14
  SPEAKER_03: Neither.
• 46:16
  SPEAKER_03: I don't drink either.
• 46:17
  SPEAKER_03: I know that's such a surprise.
• 46:19
  SPEAKER_03: I don't like the taste of either of those.
• 46:22
  SPEAKER_03: So I'm a water girl.
• 46:25
  SPEAKER_03: I would not drink either one if you made me.
• 46:27
  SPEAKER_03: I I I did once drink coffee in Japan when I lived in Japan, and I was taught to always, you know, be respectful.
• 46:35
  SPEAKER_03: And so this guy offered me some can.
• 46:37
  SPEAKER_03: It was out of a vending machine, too, coffee out of a vending machine.
• 46:40
  SPEAKER_03: It was really sweet, thank goodness.
• 46:42
  SPEAKER_03: And I just sat and drank it all because the the Japanese man gave it to me.
• 46:46
  SPEAKER_03: So, but that's the only coffee I've had in my life.
• 46:49
  SPEAKER_03: I do not like it.
• 46:50
  SPEAKER_03: And sweet tea, I don't like that brewed tea or or regular tea without being sweet.
• 46:55
  SPEAKER_03: I I'll drink green tea.
• 46:57
  SPEAKER_03: So, okay, I could say tea and green tea.
• 46:59
  SPEAKER_03: I will drink green tea.
• 47:01
  SPEAKER_02: Okay.
• 47:02
  SPEAKER_02: All right.
• 47:05
  SPEAKER_02: Beach or mountains?
• 47:07
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, that's hard.
• 47:09
  SPEAKER_03: I want to say beach because I live in the mountains.
• 47:12
  SPEAKER_03: So you always what what you don't have, kinda?
• 47:15
  SPEAKER_03: The mountains are beautiful.
• 47:17
  SPEAKER_03: I like I love both, but I love the beach and I need it right now.
• 47:21
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, especially with how uh yeah, how hot it's been lately.
• 47:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, definitely.
• 47:25
  SPEAKER_03: I just I just need some beat peace right now in my life and relax my brain.
• 47:30
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah, especially with this heat.
• 47:31
  SPEAKER_01: All right.
• 47:32
  SPEAKER_01: Sunrise or sunset?
• 47:35
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, I have found such value in sunrises in the last year, just appreciating each day waking up.
• 47:43
  SPEAKER_03: I I love sunsets too, but I literally take a picture of the sunrise almost every single morning.
• 47:50
  SPEAKER_03: And I took it today.
• 47:51
  SPEAKER_03: My husband asked me this morning, what are you doing?
• 47:53
  SPEAKER_03: I'm like, it's just my way of appreciating.
• 47:56
  SPEAKER_03: It's it's something that's about me and my stories every day.
• 47:58
  SPEAKER_03: A picture from the back porch of the sunrise.
• 48:05
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, cats or dogs?
• 48:07
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, dogs.
• 48:09
  SPEAKER_03: I didn't even know that I like cats until we just happen to have a bunch of feral cats that are at my dad's house next door.
• 48:15
  SPEAKER_03: But I love dogs.
• 48:18
  SPEAKER_03: I am a dog mom through and through.
• 48:21
  SPEAKER_03: I started with small little yappy dogs, went to medium dogs, and now I have three large dogs who try to make themselves lap dogs.
• 48:29
  SPEAKER_03: I have a great dane, I have a 100-pound yellow lab who's feisty and was jumping all over me this morning.
• 48:37
  SPEAKER_03: And then my our newest dog is not quite two, and she's a German shepherd, and the sweetest little thing.
• 48:43
  SPEAKER_03: When I say little, it's because she only weighs 65 and she's the smallest of the brood.
• 48:48
  SPEAKER_03: But I love the personality of dogs now.
• 48:51
  SPEAKER_03: When you if you go out of town, a cat's a much easier thing to have, I've found.
• 48:55
  SPEAKER_03: But the dog is my personality.
• 48:58
  SPEAKER_03: It's just, it's just me.
• 48:59
  SPEAKER_03: I love them and they have they're so much fun until they're not.
• 49:03
  SPEAKER_03: But you know, they are fun.
• 49:05
  SPEAKER_03: It's kind of the same as kids, and I probably shouldn't say that, but anyway, sometimes kids, they're a lot of responsibility, but it was great having kids.
• 49:12
  SPEAKER_01: Phone call or text?
• 49:17
  SPEAKER_03: I like text now.
• 49:19
  SPEAKER_03: I am I am still good with phone calls.
• 49:22
  SPEAKER_03: I can say my kids or my son, he wants a text 100% of the time and doesn't really want to talk, but I do like text because it can get small things out of the way, and I'm a talker, and so if you get me on the phone, it'll last longer than it has to, and I've seen the value in time management.
• 49:39
  SPEAKER_03: So text.
• 49:42
  SPEAKER_01: Hire for skill or higher for attitude?
• 49:45
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, I would hire for attitude.
• 49:49
  SPEAKER_03: I would not hire someone with skill and a bad attitude.
• 49:56
  SPEAKER_01: Any any reason?
• 49:57
  SPEAKER_01: Any reason why?
• 49:59
  SPEAKER_03: Well, first of all, attitude is everything and it conveys over the phone, and we are a customer-facing job.
• 50:05
  SPEAKER_03: And if you sound like if somebody calls in a like, hello, good morning, you know, and they're never happy, it conveys over the phone.
• 50:13
  SPEAKER_03: And who wants to talk to that person?
• 50:14
  SPEAKER_03: I don't.
• 50:15
  SPEAKER_03: Neither do my clients.
• 50:16
  SPEAKER_03: So, and that's why I think attitude, and yes, you can change your attitude, but also if a person has some good acumen and you know, basic intelligence, I can teach skill.
• 50:28
  SPEAKER_03: And it's better for me to not have to uh have someone unlearn bad skills they've learned somewhere else or bad techniques.
• 50:35
  SPEAKER_03: So yeah, I'm gonna go with the attitude because a positive attitude will take you a long way.
• 50:40
  unknown: Okay.
• 50:41
  SPEAKER_01: Morning meetings or afternoon meetings?
• 50:44
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, afternoon, depending on the type of meeting.
• 50:48
  SPEAKER_03: I have a standing meeting in the mornings and I like getting it out of the way.
• 50:52
  SPEAKER_03: But if it's a client meeting, I need to feel like I have my ducks in a row.
• 50:57
  SPEAKER_03: So honestly, it depends on what type of meeting.
• 51:01
  SPEAKER_03: If it's a corporate networking or a training meeting, probably early, but if it's a customer meeting, I'd prefer to like have all my ideas in my head for the day of what I'm doing to have the meeting.
• 51:13
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, okay.
• 51:14
  SPEAKER_01: All right, perfect.
• 51:15
  SPEAKER_01: All right, so I appreciate you getting through that there.
• 51:18
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, what's next for Providence Insurance Agency LLC and what what is the best, you know, what what what should people excited be excited about coming up in the near future for your company?
• 51:26
  SPEAKER_03: Well, you know, you never know.
• 51:29
  SPEAKER_03: People retire all the time and might have agencies to sell, and I might, you know, I'd be interested in buying some agencies.
• 51:36
  SPEAKER_03: There's one in my hometown that I'd like to have, but I don't think she she'd be surprised.
• 51:41
  SPEAKER_03: She's in this probably the buying stage too.
• 51:44
  SPEAKER_03: But we've done a lot of sponsorships, more community activity.
• 51:49
  SPEAKER_03: I'm singing the national anthem this week this Friday at the ballpark.
• 51:53
  SPEAKER_03: I do that a lot.
• 51:54
  SPEAKER_03: I didn't talk about big things for me, are I do fitness and fitness and health coaching.
• 52:00
  SPEAKER_03: I don't have much time for that right now, but I do it a lot.
• 52:02
  SPEAKER_03: I've made some transformations in my life, and I love to sing, and I do that every Sunday at church.
• 52:06
  SPEAKER_03: I'm a worship leader.
• 52:08
  SPEAKER_03: And so I like to incorporate sometimes with my company, and so I'll wear my company jersey or whatever, go sing the national anthem at the minor league ball league, ball field that we have here in town in Charleston.
• 52:20
  SPEAKER_03: So what's next to keep growing?
• 52:24
  SPEAKER_03: And I, you know, I don't want to be this mega insurance.
• 52:29
  SPEAKER_03: I just want to be a comfortable, good place where people can come and know that they're properly supported.
• 52:34
  SPEAKER_03: And so I'm not looking to buy a bunch of agencies or have a lot more employees.
• 52:39
  SPEAKER_03: Matter of fact, I I think there's a three to five area.
• 52:42
  SPEAKER_03: I've got three, maybe five might be it.
• 52:44
  SPEAKER_03: And and and I don't know if I'll ever get another location so that would determine.
• 52:49
  SPEAKER_03: But I'm always open to possibilities, and that's what gets me to where I'm sitting today and some of the negotiations I'm in currently.
• 52:58
  SPEAKER_03: And so I look at it and see if it's right for me.
• 53:01
  SPEAKER_03: But hopefully I'll find someone wonderful, a young lady that is much younger that might want to come in with me and take over when I want to retire at 70 or 75.
• 53:12
  SPEAKER_03: I still got a good 20 years, I feel like, under my belt.
• 53:15
  SPEAKER_03: So the sky's the limit for Providence insurance.
• 53:18
  SPEAKER_03: Who knows?
• 53:19
  unknown: Yeah.
• 53:19
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, great, great.
• 53:21
  SPEAKER_01: All right, Tina.
• 53:21
  SPEAKER_01: Well, yeah, thank you again for coming on and sharing your story and you know, your real behind the scenes of building Providence Insurance Agency.
• 53:27
  SPEAKER_01: You know, did you want to give any, you know, last piece of advice about, you know, close out here before we go ahead and close out and sign off for the podcast?
• 53:35
  SPEAKER_03: Uh never lose hope and uh build your dream.
• 53:40
  SPEAKER_03: Don't give up.
• 53:41
  SPEAKER_03: Uh, and joy will get you farther than worry.
• 53:46
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I love it.
• 53:49
  SPEAKER_01: I love it, I love it.
• 53:51
  SPEAKER_01: All right.
• 53:51
  SPEAKER_01: Well, thank you again, Tina, for coming on and sharing your story.
• 53:53
  SPEAKER_01: And uh I wish you in Providence Insurance Agency continued success in the future.
• 53:57
  SPEAKER_03: Yes, thank you so much for the opportunity.
• 54:00
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you.