Does Every One of Us Have Room For Improvement?

I hated every minute of the training, but I said, “Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.” 

Muhammad Ali

Self-development starts from your mind, your thoughts, your ideas. Your opinions are what shape you and make you into what you are. This is your battleground. This is where you must focus if you want to change your life. There’s always room for improvement. Some of us may have been given this advice by well-meaning friends or family. Do you need to make changes in your career, your life, your health? Whatever your need, there really is room for improvement for most of us. Take the below quotes for example.

“Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning.”

Benjamin Franklin

“If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry.  He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.”

Martin Luther King

“If you want more, you have to require more from yourself.”

Dr Phil

“No matter who you are, no matter what you did, no matter where you've come from, you can always change, become a better version of yourself.”  

Madonna

It’s true; every one of us has room for improvement….

Scot Dickerson, CPC | President | Capstone Search Group

10 Areas Where Passion Can Meet Purpose in an Insurance Industry Job

:  10 Areas Where Passion Can Meet Purpose in an Insurance Industry Job

As fulfilling as it is on multiple levels, a career in insurance is not one that most young people intentionally pursue. Ask anyone who has spent more than a few years in the industry and he or she will tell you that they fell into it, but that they truly enjoy it. Why is this the case??  Largely because college students are not exposed to the wide variety of potential career options within the insurance industry.  When I was a senior in college and was conducting on-campus interviews with potential employers, I avoided the insurance companies coming on campus. The reason was….I thought they were looking for sales people.  I had no interest in selling insurance.  What I didn’t know, however, was the vast opportunities the industry actually holds for those coming out of college.

The insurance industry actually allows you to discover where your passion meets purpose.

What are you passionate about? The insurance industry can provide you with the foundation for a successful and rewarding professional career that helps you find purpose each and every day. Take a look at the below 10 example of where you might find your passion.

Actuarial

Love numbers? Hone your skills and gain the experience you need to start a career in one of the top ranked jobs in America.

Claims

Like helping people? Experience a broad range of opportunities across all personal and commercial lines of business.

Enterprise Risk

Are you logical, analytical, cautious? Develop a broad range of risk management skills as you progress in your career.

Finance

So is it all about the dollars and cents for you? Gain skills and knowledge to empower business partners and stakeholders with valuable insights.

Human Resources

Are you a people person? Learn what human resource professionals do and see where a career in this field could take you.

Investment Management

Enjoy complexity? Develop analytical skills and expertise in securities, markets, economics, and portfolio risk analysis.

Marketing

Interested in engaging in assignments that focus on developing your marketing and advertising capabilities, broadening your knowledge of the company, brand, and business lines and products?

Operations & Technology

Are you an organizer? Gain operational management skills that support organizational strategy. Are you into technology? Grow your technical skills and stay at the leading edge of your field.

Product Management

Do you love solving complex problems? Does a competitive environment energize you? Start a rewarding career in product management.

Underwriting

Are you analytical? Jump-start your future in underwriting by building a solid foundation that could lead to a long-term career path within the industry.

Scot Dickerson, CPC | President | Capstone Search Group

: The universal truths of networking

Networking in everyday life is not necessarily an obvious concept. Networking as a term is most prominently found in popular business literature.

Traditional networking contains these elements: 

• One connects to other people.
• Making a good impression.
• It takes place at events.
• It is goal-oriented.

Consider this universal truth of networking: Before you can get what you want, you have to know what you want, and make a game plan to get it. Networking in everyday life shares a number of features with the tradition networking you typically see in business: it involves connections with a set of individuals, there are contexts for action, and there are undoubtedly benefits from the interactions.

Humans are pro-social, interested in making contact with each other and sharing information and support. Obviously, not every person wants to support, share or exchange with all other people, but virtually all humans want to share with someone.

Personal situation...When we are looking for a painter to do some work around our house we often turn to networking for recommendations from others. Same holds true when we need work done on our auto.  Seeking a contractor for other home related projects.  Or perhaps we are looking for a good Italian restaurant.  Networking is embedded into our daily lives as social beings...

Recently I was networking with insurance professionals I know seeking out ideas and recommendations for an opportunity I am working on for a client company.  I engaged with a professional I had previously assisted when they were looking for a new job.  I was quite surprised when this individual responded to me that they thought me reaching out to network with them was unprofessional. Yet I ask the question, "Wasn’t this very person networking with me for opportunities when they contacted me about their own job search previously?"

Everyone wants to meet someone. Networking is a way to access otherwise inaccessible people.

Networking is the number one way to get a job. 60-80% of jobs are found through some element of networking. A personal connection to a hiring manager is the best way to get your resume on the top of the pile. Think about 10 of your employed friends, how many of them got their job through a form of networking??

Networking keeps you sharp, current, and in touch with your industry. Your career should never be stagnant. Even if you plan on staying in a given job indefinitely – why not make your business the best and the busiest? Before making a leap into another career, what better way than to talk to people who know?

When you’re talking to a friend of a friend, it’s unlikely that the friend’s friend is going to lead you on or tell you half-truths. You can more or less expect to get the full story. If you’re talking about a job opportunity – you’ll hear about the hours, the boss, coworkers, etc.

It’s all very simple…

• A good network is a two-way street of helpful relationships.
• In every social situation you’re in, make sure people leave knowing who you are, what service/skills you provide, and how to get a hold of you.
• Karmic payoff.  You help others, others will help you. Everyone likes people who are helpful – so good things will likely come to those people. Reciprocity is the golden rule and focuses on how to translate relationships into personal success.

Scot Dickerson, CPC | President | Capstone Search Group

4 Reasons College Graduates Should Consider and Insurance Career

College graduates may not think of insurance as the most glamorous industry in America, but the insurance industry does offer stability, challenge and growth to those who choose the profession. I realize not a lot of college students today are saying, “I can’t wait to work in insurance.” However, to the college graduates, there are a lot of benefits and advantages in insurance that you don’t have in other industries! Take the following four as examples:

Opportunities

The talent in the insurance industry is graying. It is estimated that nearly 60% of the insurance industry’s current employees are older than the age of 45 and that by the year 2020, there will be more than 400,000 job opportunities. Those are some substantial numbers and these numbers are on many insurance employers’ mind. The industry is hungry for young, driven talent to fill the pipelines before their current staff disappears.

Job Security

The insurance industry provides a considerable amount of job security. There will always be a need for insurance. Insurance is fairly recession-proof because insurance companies tend to be fiscally conservative and Americans need insurance whether the economy is up or down. And since insurance firms are often mutual companies they can launch sophisticated and aggressive information technology strategies, routinely support safety education and tend to have close ties to their local communities.

Job Variety

Insurance is everywhere! You won’t be limited to a particular list of major cities. The insurance industry is a major U.S. employer, providing some 2.5 million jobs that encompass a wide variety of careers, from human resource administrators to public relations managers to financial analysts. Some jobs, such as claims adjusters, actuaries and insurance underwriters, are unique to the insurance industry. Whatever your passion is, you can pursue it in the insurance field. Many sales and underwriting professionals in the industry pursue their interest specializing in advising for not-for-profit organizations, tech companies, medical professionals, breweries, etc. Being able to relate and understand how a business works is the essential feature of what makes an insurance professional great.

Altruism

The insurance industry serves to protect people’s financial situation. Insurance is all about managing risk and providing financial compensation in the event of a loss. You will find insurance organizations are commonly committed to serving the communities where they do business. Insurance companies rebuild lives and lifestyles after disasters, improve and support education in communities, and dedicate themselves to a culture of active communal engagement and volunteerism throughout the country.

Scot Dickerson, CPC | President | Capstone Search Group

What You Need to Know About Overtime Rules

The Department of Labor’s (DOL) proposed changes to the overtime rules is expected to be released as early as this month – under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The proposed rules bump the salary threshold for overtime-exempt employees from $23,600/year to $50,440/year. If the final rules stay the same as the proposed rules, employees currently working in overtime-exempt positions who make less than $50,440 will now be entitled to overtime pay.

It’s possible the final rules could include a lower threshold – $47,000/year instead of $50,440 – but even if that’s the case, it will still mean a big jump. Employers will have to decide whether to increase workers’ salaries to make them exempt from overtime or reclassify them as non-exempt.

And since many employers have different benefit structures for hourly and salaried workers, if some employees need to be reclassified as non-exempt they could see their benefits affected.

So what do you need to know about overtime rules?


This proposal represents a 113% immediate increase plus an annual increase. The proposed overtime rule would initially raise the salary threshold defining which employees must be paid overtime by 113%, from $23,600 to $50,440. In addition, the DOL has proposed increasing this minimum salary on an annual basis.

The proposal will impact millions of workers and cost billions to businesses. According to the DOL, the rule will affect over 10 million workers – workers who may see their workplace flexibility diminished or a loss in other benefits they rely on, says the Partnership to Protect Workplace Opportunity (PPWO). The National Retail Federation estimates retail and restaurant businesses will see an increase of more than $8.4 billion per year in costs.

The implementation window is very short. As proposed, the implementation timeline for this rule is only 60 days, which will place a massive burden on HR departments and organizations scrambling to comply, according to the PPWO.

Many employees will need to be demoted. This change could force employers to reclassify professional employees from salaried to hourly – including many managers and those with advanced degrees – resulting in a loss in benefits, bonuses, and flexibility, and a reduction in professional opportunities.




Scot Dickerson, CPC | President | Capstone Search Group

Social Media Being Used For Insurance Investigations

People cannot resist the impulse to share the details of their lives with millions of strangers on social media sites. As to whether this represents a privacy issue, at this time the courts routinely allow investigators to mine social media sites. The position seems to be that when you're posting your exploits in front of tens of millions of people to freely see, that's not privacy anymore.

Always be careful of what you post to your social media profiles!  These days, more than ever, insurers and law enforcement officials are increasingly monitoring social media posts to check for insurance fraud. The use of social media monitoring has exploded in the insurance industry.  Insurance claims adjusters view social media as a gold mine for their investigations.

Not only do insurance claims adjusters look for proof that your claim isn’t fraudulent, they also might look to see pictures of what your car looked like before the accident.  If you were injured during the accident, adjusters might look at your pictures and status updates to see how the accident has affected your life.  They could also search social media for potential witnesses to the accident.

Whatever situation you’re in, if you find yourself filing an insurance claim after a car accident, it is a best practice to avoid posting about it on social media.  It’s even smarter to avoid accepting “friend requests” from strangers. The extra boost in your friend count is not worth it!

If you are involved in an auto accident, or plan on making any type of insurance claim, for that matter, make sure you comb through your social media profiles with a fine-toothed comb.  You never know who could be watching!

Scot Dickerson, CPC
President

Toxic Coworkers

Most of us understand how toxic it can be to interact with negative people. Their dreary outlook on life can drag us down. And, their pessimistic attitudes can, too often, discourage us from giving our best or taking the necessary steps to improve our future success. Toxic people can disrupt our lives and create negative thoughts within ourselves, even side tracking our own success.

Perhaps one of the most useful things you can do is to define your space and how much you are going to allow others to influence you. Often, negative people find it easy to encroach on other people by joining in on conversations--whether in person or even through social media--that are never welcome. The most effective way to eliminate as much pessimism as possible is by simply setting limits within the parts of your life to which negative people have access. Keep your sanity and create boundaries to protect yourself.

While it's important, and human, to spend some of your time helping others with their problems, it's impossible to help them win every battle. Choose whether it's more important to help your friend figure out why they are so dissatisfied with their current job, or help him get through his latest breakup. You'll exhaust yourself trying to fix all of your friend's problems or daily issues. And, it is possible that placing the negative complaints on pause for a few hours--or a couple days--can bring about a resolution without your involvement at all.

Surround yourself with people that make you happy. People who infuse your life with positivity--make these positive friends a much bigger part of your life than your negative friends. Being bombarded by a constant stream of negativity can take a toll on even the most easygoing person, so protect yourself from that potential burnout by adding quality time with those who uplift your spirits and encourage you to do great things.

Most negative people don't even realize how they are coming across. Create a positive spin on things for your negative friend. Sharing something positive can help your negative friend open their eyes to their own negativity and, hopefully, help them focus more on the positives in their lives.

Finally, what appears to be the most successful tactic of all is finding positivity within yourself. As hard as it may be, don't let the negative words or actions of others get to you. Maintain positive energy regardless of what happens--smile in the face of adversity--by replacing negative thoughts with positive.

Scot Dickerson, CPC
Capstone Search