One thing I see time and time again, especially in personal lines, is the demand for further education. The independent agency channel does a really good job with product education. There are a variety of courses
and designations that help professionals get a better knowledge of coverages and how they apply to various situations.
It is ongoing sales education and client relations that are really the areas of requirement. How do we create these programs within our businesses to be more successful at closing sales and developing consumer retention?
The resolution to this question lies partly with a book by Geoff Colvin that gives relevant insight into coaching professionals. The book is Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else. His thesis is that superior performance in all areas of life is not inevitably dictated by inborn skill. The real answer to effectiveness is "deliberative practice".
He identifies this in five approaches:
1. It must be designed to improve performance (preferably by a teacher).
2. It must be repeated continually.
3. Evaluation ought to be readily available.
4. It is highly rigorous.
5. It is not very much fun.
He presents three models for this type of practice and applies it to business in multiple ways.
1. The Music Model.
A student practicing a composition repeatedly is the paradigm for this. It is routine practice in a static form. In business, practicing for a presentation or speech would qualify. Taking a presentation and reviewing it idea by idea, striving to explain each main idea more effectively, further improves the deliberative process. The presenter could also search for examples of others who successfully explained the same idea, and study and glean from their material.
2. The Chess Model.
Anybody who has played chess is aware of this example. The coach sets up the board and pushes the student to find alternatives and moves in multiple situations. In business, this shows itself not in move selection but decision-making. The difference between this and the music model is that each circumstance is distinct and you are not responding to the identical composition everyday. What it teaches is the ability to make clearer and quicker decisions. Business schools work almost solely on this as they make students analyze and sort out case studies throughout their curriculum.
3. The Sports Model.
The athlete toughens areas of his body that are mandatory to accomplish his skills most effectively. He frequently goes through the motions of certain methods to enhance their efficiency and power. Picture the basketball player shooting thousands of free throws and syncing his arms, wrists, fingers, and legs to provide regular successful movements on each shot. In business, this can be accomplished by going back to our principles which often include writing skills and basic math abilities. In sales, role-playing is the most successful way of developing people skills.
Each model can be incorporated into your insurance agency to produce staff members that triumph over your competition.
How will you use this in your business?
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