I'm still digesting everything I leaned at the recent Q4Live Conference in Tampa, but writing this article helps a lot. 

What a great group of consultants and speakers — and no one expected a pirate attack.  Actually, it was the Gasparilla Pirate festival outside our hotel. Or maybe it was a group of panicky brokers who didn't want to lose any more clients to the expert advisors collected at the La Meridian Hotel? 

The conference was packed with insights that I've boiled down to a list of my four big takeaways:  

1. "What got us here, will not get us where we want to go!" 

That's a direct quote from Tony Moore, who reminded us the best brokers are leaders willing to embrace and implement new strategies. The days of the "superhero" leaders are gone. Creating a culture of collaborative, interdependent leadership teams within your organization positions you to not only survive, but grow as our industry continues to change.

2. Many solutions are already in place.  

Just in case anyone was actually expecting "something terrific" might still come from Washington, Dave Chase drove home this point: It's on us to fix it. Dave challenged us to see many of the necessary solutions are already in place, such as direct primary care, price transparency on tests, procedures and prescriptions and other consumerism tools. The real work for benefit consultants is scaling these solutions across the country and helping clients understand and use them.    

3. Don't be the "me too" broker.

Any broker can quote products to groups. Be the consultant who listens and strategizes to overcome the pain points you hear from your clients. Your groups aren't always going to ask you for what they want or need — sometimes, they don't even know. But ask them questions and they will tell you what the problems are. In "The Sales Bible," Jeff Gitomer says, "Questions are to sales as breath is to life. If you fail to ask them, you will die. If you ask them incorrectly, your death won't be immediate, but it's inevitable."