Sol Hicks started his career as a financial adviser five decades ago, and told viewers of MDRT’s 2020 Global Conference that his first manager thought he wouldn’t cut it in the industry.
“He was certain I would fail, and told me so,” said Hicks, who went on to become Rookie of the Year.
Years later he hit a slump and was told by his then manager that his career was over – not long after he one the first of his many industry ‘number one’ trophies.
“If I have learned anything in my 50 years selling insurance, it is this: potential — our capacity to live into and out of our personal power, our potency — is not a thing we should ever allow others to define for us.
“Potential is not about the life that’s ahead of us, the resources that are around us, or the accomplishments that are behind us. Potential is about what’s inside us.”
Hicks is the CEO of Ohio-based Hicks Global Enterprises, is the author of three books, Wise Guys Finish First; The Secret Life of a #1 Salesman; and Making Disciples. He says his toughest ‘sale’ was getting engaged to the woman who would become his wife of 55 years. He asked her to marry him 86 times before she said ‘yes’.
“I consider Carol my first successful sale, and the toughest one. I’m not intimidated by a ‘no’, said Hicks.
The question Hicks is asked most often is how he has maintained his career for so long.
“Potential is power,” he said. “And power works as long as you do. It doesn’t run out as long as you don’t give up.”
His three core principals are:
- Embrace the things that never change
- Evolve when things do change
- Always excel at what sets you apart
Hicks says that while much has changed during his career, people haven’t.
“People don’t change much,” he says. “Mothers still love their children today as much as they did when there was no Nintendo to give them for Christmas. Parents still have to save to send their kids to college. Dollars still have to stretch into retirement.
“What we offer, and have always offered, is a bridge over troubled financial waters. Families want to feel secure. That will never change. If we want to last in this business, we can’t forget that. Prospects are people first, last and always.
Prospects are people first, last and always…
“When we see them mainly as a way to make ourselves richer, we forfeit their faith in us.”
Evolve when things change
Hicks told his online audience that when he started in the business, conversations about insurance happened between him and the person interested in buying a product.
“I was the expert, the guide, the enlightener. I was the path to understanding,” he says. “Today, everything there is to know about a product, including how to buy it, is just a mouse click away.
“We share our prospects with Google. The moment they make their curiosity known online, our leads are being led by targeted ads and curated articles before we ever have a chance to say ‘hello’.
“Today it’s up to us to educate our clients. Education is easier now than it was when I started because information is so available.”
Pointing to the 2008 GFC he says people had instant access to every bit of news about the recession.
Today it’s up to us to educate our clients…
“But I did not lose my clients the way some others did,” he says. “Instead of telling them to ignore it or wait out what was happening, I used what the internet provided to teach them how to create wealth while others were watching theirs slip through their fingers,” he said.
“Today, information can be a source of comfort or fear, depending on our ability and willingness to talk to our clients and teach them everything we know.”
Hicks Global Enterprises
Hicks concedes his career has not been not easy, having worked through slumps, and been ready to quit the industry at least once.
“I have failed more times than I’d like to admit and heard ‘no’ more times than I can count,” he says.
“But I have learned that failure is not fatal, and ‘no’ is almost never personal. It’s usually an opportunity wrapped in an objection, waiting for somebody who sees, understands and appreciates the person who is hesitating.”