The Positive Power of Negative Thinking

It’s easy to imagine that being positive about everything in your life is the ideal mental state. It’s a wonderful fantasy, but it’s not real. Negative thoughts exist – and in some ways these musings are positively enlightening.

One example of this is the “fact” that the insurance industry was built on negative thinking. Without it, 17th century ship owners wouldn’t have been concerned about losing their vessels and cargo. And Lloyd’s famous coffeehouse may have become a venue for double lattes, instead of nascent marine insurance. Here are several more ways that insurance negatives and positives interplay.

Timeliness. Negatives tend to change with the times. For example, horse thievery is nowhere near as universal a problem as it once was, while cyber risks are now a major concern to every business with a website. So, make certain that your agency’s marketing and sales points are continuously contemporary.

Risk Analysis. Carriers reasonably expect their agents to serve as front-line underwriters. This requires methodically evaluating what could possibly go wrong – before submitting an account. In other words, performing preemptive negative thinking is an important part of your job, making it a good thing.

Social Marketing. Social media is a viable venue to pose negative questions about the suitability of someone’s personal insurance policy or commercial program. For example, you can ask, “After your car is damaged in a collision, do you really want to ride the bus?” Or “What happens to your business if a cyber-thief steals confidential data?” Provide reassuring links to insurance positive solutions on a dedicated Web landing page, Facebook page, etc.

Competition. Anxiety about your agency’s ability to compete against a growing number of deep-pocketed rivals is healthy; panic is not. Such concerns feed competitive fires that motivate you to invest in your future, including staff, technology, and training. It also pushes you to display ever-bolder leadership, which drives your continued success.

Skilled Employees. People quit their jobs every day, including talented insurance professionals. If you don’t recognize this possibility, you risk a potentially devastating impact to operations. Consider this issue in both positive and negative terms. Minimize potential employee exits by giving everyone a fair compensation package, providing a safe, pleasant work environment – and for your protection, have a well-crafted employment contract.

Service. It’s wise to anticipate that your front-line staffers can unceasingly improve their skills. Negative person-to-person interaction adversely affects retention, new sales, and carrier-agency relations. Monitor how your producers and representatives act, and provide corrective training as needed. Encourage employees to serve and sell in tandem and to positively prioritize each client’s needs over their own.

Claims. Every claim that’s filed, covered or declined, is a negative unto itself. Each claims event reveals the obvious fact that bad stuff happens every day. As such, historical narratives of such occurrences (with identities purged) are potential positives to both sellers and buyers. Claims encourage agencies to suggest broader protection, and encourage prospects and insureds to acquire more of what they need.

Kittens and Rainbows. If everyone were always worry-free, you’d be out of business. Folks and firms, without anxieties, don’t need to buy peace of mind because they already have it. You need to continuously jar complacent people into recognizing the realities of the risk-filled world around them. It’s your profession to be an alarmist, to offer sound advice and to reasonably profit off of the resulting insurance policy sales. The world isn’t just kittens and rainbows; too often, it’s downright disquieting.