Why you need to embrace the Give-to-Get philosophy
These strategies won't ring the cash register immediately. Perhaps never. Or they may create a path by which people will find you.
As a benefits professional you run a business. You might see yourself as working for a large firm, but the income you get is directly tied to the revenue you generate for the firm. Put another way, you generate revenue, overhead gets deducted and you get the rest. This might come from business accounts, retirement accounts for individuals or insurance sales. Many people in your position measure everything in terms of ROI. You need to be different and embrace the “Give-to-Get” philosophy.
What is the Give-to-Get philosophy?
You want to extend yourself, doing good for others without drawing a clear line indicating how your efforts ring the cash register. Sometimes they never do. Other times you get a payoff far in excess of the effort you expended.
How to incorporate the Give-to-Get philosophy into your everyday life
According to the American Bar Association, “Nearly every state has an ethical rule that calls upon lawyers to render pro bono services.” You can find many ways to share your expertise, professional and otherwise.
1. Position yourself as a subject matter expert on LinkedIn. Plenty of people want to know about retirement planning and what constitutes a good benefit plan at a prospective employer. Your firm likely produces prewritten, Compliance approved articles explaining the basics. Ideally they could be organized as a series.
Strategy: Get into the routine of posting content several times a week. Post the same links with an intro to the LinkedIn groups where you belong. Thank people who “like” your post. Respond to comments people post. Invite some of these people to become first level connections. Why? Because they took an interest in your content.
2. Offer to help the bereaved in your social circle. The death of a spouse provides a double whammy. First, they are missing their life partner, then they are tying up all the loose ends concerning investments and finances. Let them know you don’t want to intrude, but you understand this stuff and can answer questions.
Strategy: We were chatting with a person on vacation recently. She was in the same situation. A friend in her social circle said: “I’m here if you need me.” She needed help and now knew where to turn. It was a complicated situation, but the person asking for help later became a client of the person offering help.
3. Contact your religious leader. Take the above idea one step further. The leader of your local religious community is often approached by members of the congregation seeking advice on many subjects. They are an expert in some, but not others. They need a safe set of hands as a referral resource.
Strategy: You are not developing a stream of referral business, because that could seem predatory. When your congregation leader sends a widow or widower seeking advice in your direction, your first inclination should be to offer free advice. They might later choose to implement the advice through you, especially if you show you care. Your religious leader might have a few names of agents to suggest and will be pleased if they get feedback you did a fine job without expecting anything in return.
4. Do an educational talk at the local library. We forget libraries still exist. People use them! They often have meeting rooms. As a community service, they might put together a series of weekly talks which they publicize.
Strategy: Your firm should have some educationally themed retirement planning topics. Get on the schedule, deliver your talk and make it an enjoyable, not a boring event. Some audience members will call with questions. You may develop a following.
5. Get involved with a local nonprofit. Many wealthy people give back to the community by getting involved with a local charity or nonprofit. Get involved as a worker bee. You might share your professional skills, but more likely they need your help in fundraising or as an event volunteer.
Strategy: Become a committed volunteer. Deliver on what you say you will do. Gradually word will get around about what you do for a living. People have a choice of providers. They often choose those sharing values similar to their own.
6. Write for your college alumni publication. You know about benefit plans and retirement planning. Your college should have an alumni newsletter. See if your firm will let you write articles about the basics on your two topics of expertise. Your college has all sorts of graduates – young and old, including business owners and professionals. By sharing your knowledge you raise your visibility both personally and professionally.
These strategies don’t ring the cash register immediately. They might never ring the cash register. Optimistically speaking, they may create a path for business to find you.
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