No discount please.....

Selling tips...

A lady agent of 18 years in the business asked me this question. A client had bought a plan with her and insisted to be given a discount from the sales. She doesn't want to give discount and also afraid to loose the customer at the same time. How lah???

I have been in the business for 30 years, and I kept to my principle that no discount would be given. Commission is our blood line or income to keep us in the career. Without the income from the sales generated, I won't think it's possible for me to stay in this challenging business for this long. 

I gave up my job thirty years ago to venture into this noble profession, selling life insurance. A career without basic salary and other benefits. I had to learn and relearned all about this industry to update my progress as I work along. There is no boss to dictate my path, while I control and manage my destiny. I have to be brave and courageous to face the unknown. I have to take constant rejections and objections from the unfriendly  prospects and yet to remain in this tough selling. For those who became my clients, I promised to remain faithful and loyal to them. I promised to serve rather than to be served. I promised to be there whenever I'm needed in any eventualities happened. From the thousand of clients we grew together, when I offer them the peace of mind and in return they rewarded me well financially. Today, all my sons had completed their decent overseas studies and I had a chance to have travelled round the world. Though I'm not rich as some of my wealthy clients, I am contented because I have a comfortable house to call as a successful home. All these are made possible because all my existing clients are willing to pay their premium in full and hadn't asked for discount. 

Conclusion: A weak agent might consider to give discount in order to clinch a desperate sale, while a successful agent offers sincerity and seriousness to the satisfied clients.

Food for thought - "For every sale you miss because you're too enthusiastic, you will miss a hundred because you're not enthusiastic enough" - Zig Ziglar quotes

Selling with the heart or the mind is two different approaches..

Thirty years ago when I took up the challenge to sell life insurance was because I was highly inspired by the products. The products were mainly on protection, providing security to the individuals and the families. Should a father die on an untimely death, the benefits would immediately pay cash to the surviving family members. The family would have shelter and food, the children could continue their studies and the entire family could still live in dignity. Or if the individual fell severely sick, he needed not to worry about the high cost of medical bills to come. I was greatly motivated to sell that 'peace of mind' to everyone I encountered those days.

So sad of today! We no longer talked about protection or the sum insured, rather the companies are offering values to inspire agents to sell. The values come in the form of premium income, the more premium we bring in, the more commission would be paid. The premium could be high, and yet the protection could be lower. Those days, premium was much lower but the protection was much higher instead. All the seminars seldom mentioned saving and protecting lives, rather they created motivation with dreams and financial success. On top of it, they threw in expensive and tempting trips and holidays to excite more sales.

Conclusion: I think it's much easier to motivate the mind than the heart. Most younger agents could easily be inspired with dreams and thoughts but to sink into the heart one needs plenty of understanding of life. The mind could be corrupted but not the heart. 

Food for the thought - “When the heart speaks, the mind finds it indecent to object.” - Milan Kundera

Men like smart women.....

One undisclosed reader posted a comment on my previous title dated 24 Oct 2012, "Be Truly A lady". She ended with an interesting question.

Anonymous said... 

No place for smart women in this world :-(

Your conclusion is that she needs to stop being so smart and start playing dumb to be with a man?

That will be against her nature!

A better question is: why are men afraid of smart women?

My reply for her was:-

Men will not be afraid of smart women but rather we are more afraid of intelligent ladies.  Being smart and intelligent are two different things. 

Intelligent people, be they man or female, they are usually prideful, full of self esteem, egoistic, authority personality and difficult to be pleased. While a smart person could be just the opposite of being intelligent.

I believe all men like smart women. I love my little darling to be smart. She is smart to tickle my heart. She is smart to know what I want. She is smart to make me happy. She is smart to romance with me. When I'm sad she knows how to change my mood. When I'm down she is prepared to listen and to understand my thought. When I'm on the heat, she is willing to hug me tight. When I'm distressed, she gives me the tender kisses. When I'm hunger, she cooks the best meals to satisfy my stomach. When I'm tired and lazy, she motivates me with her inspiring words of love. She is not only intelligent but she is extremely smart to have caught my heart and soul. 

My Dear Anonymous.... No man on earth is afraid of smart woman.

Specially for my little darling - “A woman has got to love a bad man once or twice in her life, to be thankful for a good one”

Taiwanese prefers jail to a nagging wife .....

WHY MARRY?
You have two choices in life:
You can stay single and be miserable,
or get married and wish you were dead.
----------
At a cocktail party, one woman said to another,
'Aren't you wearing your wedding ring on the wrong finger?'
'Yes, I am.. I married the wrong man.' 
_______
When a woman steals your husband,
there is no better revenge than to let her keep him.
______
A woman is incomplete until she is married. Then she is finished
---------
A little boy asked his father,
'Daddy, how much does it cost to get married?'
Father replied, 'I don't know son, I'm still paying.'
--------
A young son asked,
'Is it true Dad, that in some parts of Africa
a man doesn't know his wife until he marries her?'
Dad replied, 'That happens in every country, son.'
---------
Marriage is the triumph of imagination over intelligence. 
---------
If you want your spouse to listen and pay strict attention to every word you say -- talk in your sleep.
---------
Just think, if it weren't for marriage, men would go through life
thinking they had no faults at all. 
---------
First guy says, 'My wife's an angel!' 
Second guy remarks, 'You're lucky, mine's still alive.' 
---------
'A Woman's Prayer: 
Dear Lord, I pray for: Wisdom, To understand a man ,
to Love and to forgive him , and for patience, for his moods.
Because Lord, if I pray for Strength I'll just beat him to death'
xxxxxxxxxx

The above jokes were all collected through the years from my friends. I taught they were just for laugh, until I read the newspaper today. Please continue to read the real facts of life.....

A TAIWANESE man who found his nagging wife unbearable decided to stage a robbery so that he could go to jail to avoid her, Nanyang Siang Pau reported.

The 36-year-old restaurant owner, identified only as Bai, entered a convenience store in Taichung city, Taiwan, recently and shouted at the workers: “I am here to rob. Call the police!”

Bai kept insisting that they call the police.

Then he bought a packet of cigarettes and smoked outside the store, while waiting for the police to arrive.

He was released by the police later when they found out that he had no intention to commit a crime.

This article is from The Star Online (http://thestar.com.my)
URL: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/11/22/nation/12352619&sec=

Late night call to the Vet .....

Sunday laugh.... See whether it works for you.....

A dog lover, whose dog was a female and "on heat', agreed to look

after her neighbour's male dog while the neighbours were on vacation.

She had a large house and believed that she could keep the two dogs

apart. However, as she was drifting off to sleep she heard awful howling and moaning sounds, rushed downstairs and found the dogs

locked together, in obvious pain and unable to disengage, as so frequently happens when dogs mate.

Unable to separate them and perplexed as to what to do next, although it was late, she called the vet, who answered in a very grumpy voice.

Having explained the problem to him, the vet said, "Hang up the phone and place it down alongside the dogs. I will then call you back and the noise of the ringing will make the male lose his erection and he will be able to withdraw."

"Do you think that will work?" she asked.

"It just worked for me," he replied.

Not afraid to grow old....

Are you afraid to live too long in life? I used to ask many old age friends, around the sixties and above this scary question, and their answers are... "Yes!" Meaning, they wished not to live too long because they are afraid to be a nuisance to their family, when their health might be a big problem. 

I have two distanced relatives, I so called them as uncle. Both passed their age of 90 and above. Their wives had passed away few years ago. When they were around, husband and wife would quarrel all the time but now that the wives had gone, they wish the women could still be around. Reason... They have no one to talk to. Though both men are healthy and have no serious illness, they are lonesome in mind and soul. At their age, all their good friends had left this world. Those days, these senior citizens might group together to chat or to play mahjong to pass time happily. As time passed, these old folks got sick and unable to move. Later they just disappeared, leaving this single old man alone. Each day these two uncles have to wait for their sons to come home to accompany them. Otherwise without their sons, they practically have no one to talk to. The grand children are afraid of them, the daughter in laws do not know how to communicate with these stubborn old men and the sons are busy with their businesses. So at the end, they live in a lonely world without friend or families. They wish to die sooner and yet they can't. So to live too long in life could be a suffering!

What about me? No! I am not afraid at all, I am looking forward to reach 85 and see the glamour out of me then. To overcome boredom and lonesome, one must have a lot of good friends besides his family members. Today I have friends ranging from 85 years old to 15 years young. In fact I have more younger friends below my age, rather than those older than me. In 20 years time, all my friends would also be older by 20 years. The one who is 15 today will be 35 then, and I would make sure he or she would still be my good friends. So! If non of my sons are interested to talk to me in twenty years later, I rest assure there are enough younger people to stay around with me at that time. The secret of mixing with younger people is to lower my pride and self esteem. Speak to them like a brother if they are male and talk to the girls like they are all your dears, honeys or darlings. With all these younger people, how could I be getting old. No way! Thus, I am not the least be scared to live up to 100. 

So true - "Beautiful young people are accidents of nature, but beautiful old people are works of art" 

-- Eleanor Roosevelt

Lower our expectation....

I love eating Wan Tan Mee, Chinese noodle. However the original taste of this noodle food is no longer available in our township. All the stores or food courts selling them are tasteless. There is one typical Chinese restaurant in Kuala Lumpur, specialising in wan tan mee is still operating. It's a family business brought down by the grand father, and currently is run by the third generation. Yesterday I purposely drove down to this shop for my lunch and I hadn't been there for quite awhile.

When I was at their place, I was shocked to see only foreign employees working. Except the cashier, I believe could be the boss himself and two Chinese local supervisors who only took orders from the customers. The entire restaurant was practically managed by foreign workers. I saw three Indonesian women  preparing drinks, and three Bangladeshi Cooks preparing the food. I couldn't imagine Chinese food, especially wan tan mee was prepared by foreigners. How could these workers understand the process of the noodle's preparation, and know the taste buds of our locals! My plate was served with the right setting, noodle, meat and soup. BUT! When I started to eat, I realised the taste and the quality was totally different. There you are, gone are the best wan tan mee of Kuala Lumpur. Looking around, I could see people were still pouring in to order this noodle. Perhaps the younger people of today had not ever tasted the original taste of the yesteryear noodle, while I was lucky when I had tasted it 50 years ago. To them this shop is still the best for this type of noodle. High time that I should lower my expectation in life.

Sylvia Plath proverb said - “If you expect nothing from anybody, you’re never disappointed.”  BUT! Can this include food??? You tell me please?