Are You Focused on Going Fast or Far?

Hello. Hello. Brent Kelly here of the Agent Leader Podcast. I'm honored that you are with me on today's episode. And if you are an agency leader today, that maybe you're currently a player coach, meaning that you are selling insurance products but you're also leading a team, or maybe you're primarily managing your team and leading your team, but you have had production or results in your background. That's kind of how you got to where you are. This podcast today, I think is really going to speak to you. If you're not a current producer that is managing an agency or maybe you haven't been. I still think you can learn a lot of lessons in what I'm going to share today, because the question that I want to ask you, the listener, is are you more focused on going fast or going far? Are you focused on going fast or going far? Because I can tell you we work with a lot of agencies in our program, Private Client Network. We have agencies of all shapes and sizes that I speak to every single day. And we have some agencies that maybe we've had producers who've had high levels of success and they've kind of transitioned into more of a leadership or management role. We have agencies who, as we call them player coaches. So they're still very active in the sales process and building relationships and bringing in revenue to the agency. But. But they're still also managing and leading people. So we see this time in time out. And I think one of the challenges as well as one of the frustrations that oftentimes happen is because you were really successful or because you are really successful in getting results, right? You're bringing home the bacon, as they say. You're out there and you're killing it. But because you can do that, because you got a skill set and a hunger and a desire and that you can move fast, it can sometimes inhibit you moving far. You know, one of the analogies I often share with our members of our private client network, and these could be leaders I'm speaking with, is this idea that if you've been a very successful producer in getting results, you can run around the track really fast. Right? Just imagine the analogy that you're running a 400 yard dash. Maybe not physically, but in the insurance world and sales world of running around the track. And that because you've been so good, you're probably going to win the race. You're really good at it. The challenge comes now when you've got to lead others to finish the race and they don't go as Fast as you. At least not today. Right. The goal is to get them there, but not today. And so the challenge is, are you going to just speed ahead? And as you're running, you know, returning the last corner of the track, you look back and you go, okay, good luck, or are you willing to slow down to say, let me help you. Let me help you develop your skills, your talents, your work ethic, all these kind of things to get you to the finish line faster? Which, by the way, is probably going to slow me down in the midst of this. And just kind of thinking through this concept and this topic I've been reading. I love John Maxwell books. I mentioned John Maxwell. I've been part of the John Maxwell team for several years now and still get a lot of my mentorship and coaching from the leadership of the John Maxwell team. John Maxwell just came out with a new book. It's been pretty. It's about April, I think, maybe when it came out of 2019, called leadership. And one of the titles, in fact, one of the first chapters in the book is Moving from a Soloist to a Conductor. Moving from a Soloist to Conductor. And there's several things that he talks about in this concept of moving from a soloist to a conductor, because I think a lot of insurance people can be great soloists. You know, in fact, we see a lot of agencies that may just have a few people and they're making good revenue and doing well. And the challenge comes when, well, now I want to grow and adapt and bring more people into the mix. And I just can't figure out why they don't do the things like I do it. Why don't they see it the way I see it? Why don't they work as hard as I do? Why don't they understand the things that I understand, whatever it may be. And by the way, I don't think you can motivate the unmotivated. But I do think there's a big part of coaching and mentoring new people, new talent to be their best version. Oftentimes we overlook that as agency leaders, we forget how important that really is. But in this book, Leadership, Leadership, John talks about going slower so you can go farther. And it was just. I've been talking about this for a long time about, do you want to go fast or do you want to go far? Now, I think the perfect answer is, well, I want to do both, Brent. I want to go fast and I want to go far. And I think ultimately that's what we should try to strive for, certainly. But often we Ask ourselves the question, whether we're an agency, you know, from an agency leader perspective for our entire agency, or certainly oftentimes even as a producer, how fast can I go? How fast can I go? And oftentimes that's the wrong question. The question you should be asking is how far can I go? Because there's a power in consistency and longevity. You see it in athletics all the time, right? And sometimes it may be due to injury, but that someone has a great season, oh, and then all of a sudden the next year they're just gone. What happened? Or maybe in, certainly in the music industry, the one hit wonders. But you know, the great bands, the great teams, the great athletes, the they have longevity, they're not just a flash in the pan. So part of that as an agency is you've got to ask yourself this question, do I want to go fast or do I want to go far? And so part of that is you've got as a leader to travel with people, not run or climb ahead of them. And there's often this position, this competitive nature. What makes oftentimes successful producers, this is a great example, what makes them successful is that they can run fast and sometimes they think they need to climb on or over people to do that. And when you put yourself in a position of leadership, which is the idea to add value to others, to influence others, to help and mature others, that becomes a really difficult thing. That this is not a scarcity deal, that because I win, you lose, or vice versa, it's I've got to help us win together. I think a big part of this too, and we see this with agencies that are looking to take the next step in their growth is it's a mindset idea that we need other people. You know, that one or two of us is certainly not a big enough number for greatness. And so we've got to figure out how to not just why we need other people, but how to utilize other people. And I love in this book, and just another example of how good this book is of moving from a soloist to a conductor. He says we can compete with people, which goes back to the climbing over people or we can complete them. That's a powerful statement, isn't it? You can compete with your people or you can complete them. And the great agency leaders that I see and I work with and I have the privilege, we've got some really, really good agency leaders in our private network. I mean, it's just I learned so much from them and how they do things. And watching this Idea that I could compete against you. And you know what, if I competed against you, I might be able to win. And there's that level of, you know, just that drive that got them to where they are, that there's a part of us that wants to do that, but they go, you know what? My job is not to compete against my job. My main role is to complete people. And, you know, especially when I look at sales managers, and I've stated this in other podcasts before, but I always ask the question, you know, what is the number one job of a sales leader in an agency? And, you know, when I ask this question at live events, I just kind of wait for responses. And typically, you know, people are going, well, it's probably to make sales hit our quota, meet revenue, organic growth, whatever it may be. And I think those are all outcomes of great sales leadership. But I truly believe the number one job of a sales leader is to develop and build your salespeople. Right? That's really the understanding. And the hard part of this is that you've got to slow down sometimes so that you can understand where they're coming from. Because like it or not, not everybody's like you. Not everybody's gonna have the same hunger or drive as you. And I think we should make sure we're hiring people that do have hunger and drive, obviously, but it still may be different than you, you know, and part of that is you've got to put yourself in the position of where they're at. One of the questions that we ask all the time, and this is with our clients, with our team, is that the acronym of wiifm? What's in it for me? And great leaders to slow down, have to stop and ask questions. They can't just tell. They've got to ask, where do you really want to go? Where do you see this? How can I help you? How can I serve you? Now, of course there's coaching. There's times that you do need to tell and direct. That's part of the deal. But there are also times you got to slow down and ask questions. So one of the hardest things for sales leaders and just leaders in general that I see is that it's much quicker and faster. It goes back to the initial question to tell people what to do than to ask questions to get them to think about their own solutions. That's the power of coaching, especially business coaching and sales coaching. I could tell you exactly what to do, and maybe that's going to give us a quick result, but how is that going to help you tomorrow and the next week and the next month and the next year. How are you ever going to develop if I don't give you some authority and the ability to stumble? And by the way, you're going to make some mistakes. I'm going to be there to coach you, but I want you to come to me with solutions, some ideas. I can't just always tell you I have to ask. And I think the other part of moving from a soloist to conductor, as John Maxwell says, I love this, is put your team in positions to win, shine the light on them, make them the stars again. That comes back to a mindset, a mindset shift. And I think one of the things that I really want to wrap up and this is going to be a pretty short podcast, I just want to get this out because it's been on my heart and on my mind. And then I was reading this book, Leadership, and like, wow, this is exactly what I've been thinking about. This hits it head on is this idea that in this mindset that I want to help others around me become their best version every single day. And certainly you want to wake up with the idea of how can I be my best version? But what a cool concept in leadership to wake up and go, how can I add value to the most important people around me? And you know, of course, from a personal level that should be your family, people in your community, events that you're involved in, then certainly with your agency and your agency team, is how can I add value to you today? Because not only is it a powerful leadership lesson that gets results, but it just makes you feel really good. That's okay. That's a great thing about the great leaders is that, yeah, there's some hard decisions you have to make, there's some candid conversations you have to have, but when you see that you've poured in the lives of people around you, what a great opportunity. Which leads to my last John Maxwell ism. And I may have read this or heard this at some point and other people have probably said it, so I don't know if it's even his, but I think it's powerful. And it's this idea that if you want to ask yourself the question, am I going to move fast or am I going to go far? Is this idea of what's most important to me long term, is it success or is it significance? And I think they're both important. I want every one of you listening this to be successful. But to me, success, however you define it as More of a personal issue. As far as this is successful to me. If I can accomplish this goal, I'll be successful. If I can achieve this mark, I'll be successful, whatever it may be. That's success, and that's good. But significance is when you take success and then you multiply it with others. It's not about what I did. It's what did we do? How did we generate change? How do we make a positive impact? How did we affect the lives of our clients, our community? And that's moving from success to significance. So, again, a shorter podcast today, but I just wanted to bring that out because we see this so often in the insurance agencies we work with. It's one of the biggest challenges because, again, especially the younger leaders we work with, I mean, they've got this passion, this vigor. Maybe that's like you. You're ready to go out and conquer the world, and. And then you've got to begin to grow your team around you and build salespeople around you. And you're like, again, why aren't they doing the things I want to do? They don't go as fast as me. Why aren't they moving as fast as me? Why aren't they getting results as fast as me? Well, because they're not you. And the challenge is, are you willing, when necessary, to slow down? And I'm not saying forever, but slow down to look back, to put your arm around them, to help lead them. That's what leaders do. Leaders lead to help them get to the finish line. And every time you go on that track and you continue to lead them, they get a little bit better. And the next time, they get a little bit better. And the next time they get a little bit better. And the next time they get a little better. I think you get the point. And leaders understand that they begin to do this, and they have this multiplying effect with their team, and it's very, very powerful. So last the question one more time. Are you trying to go fast or are you trying to go far? By the way, if this podcast is at a value to your life in your business and your agency, whether it's this episode or other episodes, I'd love for you to leave me a review, give me some feedback. Always trying to add more value to you as the listener, you as an agency leader. Also, if we can ever help you at the Sitkins Group with your agency, our focus is to provide clarity, consistency, and give you a commitment to be your best version possible. Love the chance to talk with you more about our private network. We're going to be filling more spots up here in the fourth quarter of 2019, and I can tell you that we don't work with every agency and not all territories are available. So if you have a curiosity about what we do, how we work directly one on one with agencies for the entire holistic agency approach, reach out to me, Brentitkins.com, i'd love a chance to speak with you and see if there is a fit either now or down the road in the future. In the meantime, all the best in your success. Thanks for listening.