Great Consultative Selling Qualities…From my Contractor

Group of 3 people reading architect plans

Kitty Ambers, COO/AVYST I am a master of the ‘task’ list. Several years ago I read David Allen’s very helpful book – ‘Getting Things Done’. Practicing the concepts Allen outlines has reduced my stress level by keeping things organized electronically. One thing Mr. Allen recommends is keeping an ongoing long-term project list at hand. Finally,…

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Small Changes Lead to Big Results

21 days, title page

by Kitty Ambers, COO, AVYST I attended an industry meeting where the concept of the “21-day challenge” for embracing change was discussed. We all agreed on the idea that it takes 21 days of consistent action to begin to create a new habit and is a great place to start.  Diet, exercise, and stop-smoking programs…

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Agents Should Remember to Sell the Sizzle

Title photo, word sizzle with a flame for the "i"

by Kitty Ambers, COO/AVYST An article I read in Daniel Burrus’s TechoTrends newsletter titled, Continuously De-Commoditize, made me think about the concept of product/service de-commoditization as it may relate to the typical insurance agency.  Burrus says, “Look at every product and service you have and ask, ‘Why is this item a commodity?’  Then ask, ‘What…

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Business Basics, Lest We Forget!

Title, Business Basics on chalkboard

by Kitty Ambers, COO, AVYST Several years ago, I had a wonderful week working with a dynamic group of new producers. I facilitated the Certified Professional Insurance Agent (CPIA) designation program as part of an insurance company’s 3-week producer training curriculum, and this was the first week. I was extremely impressed with the caliber, background,…

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Baseball Concepts for Business

Title page "Baseball Concepts for Business" with baseball sitting on a field

I love baseball season! Although the status of Major League baseball was iffy for a while, Opening Day has finally arrived! Each year as the season gets underway, I’m reminded of some parallels between baseball and business. The following are a few ideas that come to mind: Conditioning – Inevitably, at the start of each…

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Momentum or Inertia: Which Did the Super Bowl Teams Each Have?

Was the Buccaneers-Chiefs Super Bowl LV a game of momentum or inertia? Inertia: “a property of matter by which it remains at rest or in motion in the same straight line unless acted upon by some external force”  or “a tendency not to move or change”.  Here’s an example of inertia used in a sentence…

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Can You Change the Inertia of Your Insurance Practice?

Golf cart on a golf course

Whether your insurance agency, brokerage or other firm has inertia (like the Rams in the Super Bowl) or momentum (like the Patriots), I want to point out that neither inertia nor momentum will last forever. Sooner or later inertia will die out. If I coast my golf cart down a steep fairway, I might roll…

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