Page 32 - The UnCaptive Agent

WHY DO YOU WANT TO START YOUR OWN AGENCY? 5

fact that you may make less), and how you feel about
that risk.
Many people are motivated to start their own insur-
ance agencies because they want to build wealth. I
remember my partner in my insurance agency telling me,
in the early days, that the insurance agency business was
a wonderful business for growing a big income, but that
you really don’t get rich as an insurance agency owner.
Over the last twenty-five years, I’ve seen over and over
again that he was wrong about that. In fact, I remember
when I began building my book of business—and before
there was a lot of cash flow, I took solace in the fact that
for every dollar of commission income that I put into my
book of business, I was adding about a dollar and a half
of wealth to my financial statement and ultimately my
retirement account. The truth is that today, that dollar
of commission is worth far more than a dollar and a
half of wealth. In fact, it’s often worth two-and-a-half
to three dollars, and even more. So, building wealth as
an insurance agency owner is not only possible, it’s a
very realistic reason why many people choose to start
insurance agencies.
For some founders, the reason creating their own
agency is to create a family legacy. In America, the
family business (like the family home) is a cornerstone,
not only of our economy, but also of our culture. Many
agencies in the independent agency channel are in their
second, third, and even fourth generations of owner-
ship and operation. Many prospective agency owners
who I have visited cite one of the reasons that they
want to be an independent insurance agency owner is
to build a family business where they can work with
other members of their family and pass on a business of
value. This is particularly true of exclusive agents and
captive agents who are seeking to make the transition