With an extremely high number of hurricanes having made landfall, Florida is historically the busiest state for catastrophic claims adjusting. Florida residents interested in working as a staff or independent claims adjuster must first obtain the Florida adjuster license. Non-residents of Florida considering a career in catastrophic claims, particularly residents of states not requiring an adjuster license, should strongly consider obtaining a non-resident license in the "hurricane state". Follow these 3 steps to obtain and maintain your adjuster license in Florida:

Step 1) Observe the Requirements

To become licensed as a resident staff or independent adjuster in Florida, individuals must:

* Be at least 18 years of age.
* Be a resident of the state of Florida.
* Complete an online application for License and submit appropriate fees.
* Be a U.S. citizen or legal alien who possesses a work authorization for the Immigration and Naturalization Services.
* Be fingerprinted at one of the Department's fingerprint sites.
* If licensed in another state within 3 years, provide a Letter of Clearance.
* Successfully complete 1) an approved adjuster designation course (i.e. Florida Certified Adjuster {CA} Designation) or 2) the Florida Adjuster Examination.

If an individual already holds a general agent license and wishes to add or convert to an adjuster, one must apply online and submit the fee of $55 - no examination is required.

To become licensed as a non-resident staff or independent adjuster in Florida, individuals must:

* Be at least 18 years of age.
* Not be a resident of Florida.
* Complete an online application for License and submit appropriate fees.
* Be a U.S. citizen or legal alien who possesses a work authorization for the Immigration and Naturalization Services.
* Be fingerprinted on cards provided by the Florida Department of Financial Services. Two fingerprint cards are mailed to the applicant.
* For reciprocal licensing, the applicant's home state must have a reciprocal agreement with Florida.
* If the applicant does not meet the reciprocal requirement listed above, he or she must take either 1) an approved adjuster designation course (i.e. Florida Certified Adjuster Designation) or 2) take and pass the Florida Adjuster Examination.

Step 2) Obtain the Florida Claims License

Unless you are eligible for reciprocal licensing, you will need to successfully complete an approved designation course or pass the state exam. The Florida Certified Adjuster Designation Course, for example, satisfies all educational and evaluation requirements for obtaining the Florida adjuster license.

The course is available in online or classroom format. The 4 day classroom course consists of 40 hours in-class time and a series of quizzes administered twice daily. Cumulatively, these quizzes replace a final examination and are designed to be student friendly. Topics of the course range from General & Homeowner's Liability to Automobile Physical Damage Adjusting to Commercial and Homeowner's Property Adjusting. Designation courses such as the Certified Adjuster course enjoy extremely high student pass ratios. Once the course is completed, graduates need only submit their online application (observing the requirements above) and they can expect to be licensed within weeks.

The state exam can also be taken to satisfy the educational requirements. The state exam is notoriously difficult and generally requires considerable preparation before it can be taken with realistic chances of success. Still, it can at times offer a slightly faster, if uncertain, route to licensure.

Step 3) Maintain the License

Florida requires 24 hours of continuing education (CE) that must consist of at 2 hours ethics and 10 hours law. The remaining 12 hours are optional. The reporting period for completing Florida CE is 2 years.

Summary: Becoming a licensed Florida insurance adjuster will become increasingly important for those interested in working catastrophic claims in this time of volatile weather activity. Observing the requirements for licensure will ensure a smooth and expeditious transition into the world of claims. Solid educational opportunities exist that will exempt prospective licensees from taking the state exam.

To sell more annuities and other insurance products you need to always understand the prospect. What do they really want?

Understanding the needs of the client is important to building a relationship. If we are always trying to fit our round peg into the square hole selling becomes almost impossible. Here are some tips about selling to this target market.

This is important, remember it.

People Buy Annuities

You Must Sell Insurance

What the client really wants

· High Interest or Yield on their money

· Tax deferred growth, control over their tax liability

· Guaranteed safety, many are too old to earn this money again

· Right to withdrawal interest, this keeps their principal intact

· Access to funds in an emergency and also if the funds are needed for long term care issues

The client does not want these

· To annuitize, although it is a benefit, the need to keep their funds in a "pile" far over shadows

· To lose any more money in the stock market, safety and security is essential

· Risk and who does? Why risk funds when it isn't necessary.

· To be concerned about tax consequence for children, they may say they are settling these funds aside for their children, but if taxes are due, they really don't care

· To be told they will be in a lower tax bracket. Who does want to be told this? I want to think my tax rate will be higher because it means I will be making more money.

Conducting a fact finder to understand the goals of your prospect is important. Always listen to their answers and never answer for them.

If you are an insurance agent that is looking for insurance leads, more than likely you are looking for policies in the area of auto, home owners, or life insurance. It makes the most sense because this is where the higher commission is.

Due to the fact that most business insurance customers are seeking insurance policies for start up businesses where the premiums are not all that high, the business insurance lead is not highly sought after by insurance professionals.

Also, for these same reasons the customer in need of business insurance has trouble finding someone to fill their business insurance policy for them.

Here is something for Insurance agents to consider when it comes to working with business insurance leads.

If you take the time to help a customer out with their business insurance needs and take the time to build a relationship with them, in no small way will they be overly appreciative of the fact that you took the time to help them.

Remember, you are with them in the beginning and you are a major component for helping them get their fledgling business off the ground. The trust and loyalty they will have in you is second to none.

Because of the relationship and the trust you have built with this customer they will be more than likely, and more than happy to do all of their personal insurance business with you. Which of course leads to life insurance, car insurance, home owners insurance, etc.

Or, at the very least you will have their ear when it comes time to explaining your products and services and the savings that you can offer them.

Also important is finding the right insurance lead company to work with.

Look for the insurance lead companies that sell fresh, real time business insurance leads, and one with which you can start out with a low minimum deposit.

This concept has been tested and has worked for many insurance agents so it may be something you want to consider.

So the next time you find a break in your day or an opening on your calendar, invest in a handful of business insurance leads and see if you can build a relationship with a small business customer.

Do you remember the Wizard of Oz? In that childhood classic The Tin Man laments how things would be different if...he only had a heart. The Scarecrow wants a brain, and The Cowardly Lion wants courage. Do you recall what happened when Dorothy and her band of motley buddies peaked behind the curtain in Emerald City and saw the great Wizard of Oz?

Each lovable character came to realize they had the very thing they wanted most within themselves they just couldn't see it. What does this wonderful story have to do with you? There a lot of parallels.

When I was a little girl I kind of liked the Wizard of Oz and I kind of didn't like it because it was so very scary. Remember how the terrible tornado rips Dorothy and Toto from her loving family. Remember those horrific flying monkeys and that venomous Wicked Witch? As a child these things were scary to me because I felt helpless over what would happen next, and I didn't understand a lot of what was happening. I watched it several times as I grew up before I even realized it was all just a bad dream.

As an insurance producer you lament if...I only had leads. You know you can't sell unless you have people to talk to. You're frustrated as to how to get those people to talk to so you do things like buy leads lists, and then you're even more frustrated when you're able to capitalize on no more than a tiny few of those leads. In the process you've burned through a lot of good prospects who will now never work with you because of the bad first impression you've made.

As an insurance producer you have to muster up a lot of courage to do the things you do. You have courage or you would never have entered the industry, and you wouldn't be in the industry now without courage. However, your courage will strengthen and you'll need to use it far less when you focus on the way you secure your leads and how you handle them.

This is where you're brain comes in to play. You are a very intelligent person. Even though you may be acting like the bewildered little girl I was when watching the Wizard of Oz. The best and only way to develop a highly profitable leads list is to build it yourself. Having your own highly proprietary leads list is your most valuable asset.

This is relatively easy to do once you know who you want on your list. From that point you simply develop a way for those people to reach out to you, and then you give them what they want. It really is that easy and it will cost very little to develop a list of people who will buy from you in comparison to a purchased list of worthless leads.

You got into the insurance industry because of your heart. You know what you do is very important to your clients and their future. So why would you or do you ever treat them in a manipulative or coercive way? The way you treat people from the first connection determines the outcome of that connection.

After all, isn't your main objective to discover who really needs you and what they need? This requires you use both your heart and your brain. Your heart is what drives you to learn about your prospect and understand what's happening with them. Your brain takes what they've told you and helps you to help them see a better future.

It doesn't take much courage to behave in way that benefits someone else. It doesn't take much courage to treat others with kindness, respect, and dignity. But when you treat your prospects with kindness, respect and dignity you earn a position of trust and you increase sales because your heart, brain, and courage are working together to serve both you and your prospects in a way that starts your relationship off on the right foot.

So how do you use your brain to build that highly proprietary leads list? First, clearly identify who you want to work with in as much detail as you can possibly come up with. Do your homework and learn more about these prospects than you know now, and make sure you know the top three things they're having problems with or want. Provide useful information to them for free in exchange for their contact information.

Use this information as your driver in all your marketing efforts. As people ask for the information you build your list. Continue to build your list forever. Make sure your using your heart when you make your initial contact so you start right to end right.

This may sound like a lot of work to you especially if you don't specifically know how to do these things. You're smart enough to know in both your brain and your heart you can't buy this as a prepackaged deal and have it work out all that well for you. You can work with someone like a coach who can help you do these things specifically for your business based on what you want to accomplish and then get a payoff from that work forever. What are your heart and your brain telling you to do now? Do you have the courage to take that action? If you did would you save more time and money than your investing now in the things that don't work?

Do you sell immediate annuities? If not,is it because the commissions are so low? I don't sell them for that reason and yet I have a system for making the prospect happy and not taking a reduction in compensation.

Here it is and please keep it a "secret" or the immediate annuity companies will be out of business!

When I meet someone and their primary interest is income I say this:

"Mrs. Jones, I know you need income and my annuity products will provide that for you. The problem is once you create the income stream you can't change it and you will be locked in. Here is something that other people in your situation have done. Many people have delayed the decision to convert their funds to income and at the same time have their funds invested in safety and security."

By explaining to Mrs. Jones the fact she can control future unknowns it spins the use of an annuity to her benefit. It allows her to feel in control and to offer her more options.

1. Find out how much money they have for the immediate annuity

2. Go to any insurance company website and price the immediate annuity based on the amount and her age.

3. Determine the monthly income at the current age and then re-run the calculation at ONE YEAR higher. As an example if she were 70, run it at 70 and at 71.

4. You will have two figures (as an example) let's say the income at age 70 is $1,000 a month and the same deposit at 71 is $1,050.

Now back to Mrs. Jones..."Mrs. Jones, the current income value of your deposit based on your current age is $1,000 a month. Immediate annuity rates are based on your age and each year those factors determining the monthly payment increases. For instance, the same money will provide more income at 71 than at 70 because it is based on age and life expectancy."

"Mrs. Jones, Why not consider putting your funds on deposit and select the interest only option. My annuity company will pay a first year interest rate of 6% (bonus first year) and you remove the earned interest on a monthly basis. The interest each month will be $1,000 a month."

I continue. "Next year when the interest rate changes we will have several options. You can keep your funds on deposit and continue to withdraw the monthly interest, you can convert it all to an immediate annuity or you can continue to withdraw the same fixed amount."

Naturally if you invade principal for the same monthly income as with the bonus interest rate your account will decrease. Here is how I deal with this.

"Mrs. Jones, Even though every year your account declines, the factor that determines a monthly payout for you increases (mortality table) so at any time you can convert your pile of money to an income stream, and you can determine how long that income stream will be, even for the rest of your life."

This simple concept works like a charm because it gives Mrs. Jones control of her future options.

· Monthly income which is desired

· Not locked into a payout, what if her situation changes

· It gives the prospect control over future choices and provides options

Plus the compensation is higher and it becomes a complete Win-Win Situation.

As consumers our prospects should always know who they do business with. It makes no difference if it is you the agent or their favorite stockbroker. We can help our prospects by accessing information free and fully available to anyone by using this system.

"Mrs. Jones, how well do you know your broker? Have you ever conducted due diligence on your broker? It is available to you and it is provided to you by your broker's regulatory agency, the FINRA." FINRA is a self-regulating agency and provides this information as a public service. (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority)

FINRA keeps records about their members and it is available to anyone. Since it is available to anyone then it is also available to me. I am able to acquire this information about my prospect's broker and I often volunteer to obtain it for them.

"Mrs. Jones, would you like me to obtain the FINRA report on your broker? I think it is important to always know who you are doing business with and FINRA makes this information available."

I have obtained hundreds of them and given them to my prospects. It is all about information and being informed. This information is publicly available and it can be used to help build a relationship with your prospect.

Go to www.finra.com and order it online. Go to the investor page and on the right will be the box to look up the broker.

If you are getting the sources for your prospect there is also an 800 number. 1-800 289-9999

This is a free service and one which provides important information for you and your prospect.

Probably the very biggest error that is made with financial planning by people is the mistake regarding "time horizons." By definition a time horizon when speaking of financial uses is the length of time a sum of money is expected to be invested. If our time horizon is next year then options are less and if our time horizons are further, options increase.

It is partially human nature because the older we get the shorter we think. As an example if I were to say to a seventy-five year old female that she should buy a 15 year bond she wouldn't agree, but based on life expectancy tables it is about right.

So in discussing time horizons I use the example of US Treasuries. I point out to the prospect that by looking longer they have more options.

"Mrs. Jones, the very safest place to keep your money is in US Treasuries. But if you don't look longer you will not receive the higher rates. As an example a one year Treasury may only pay 1-2% but a ten year Treasury may pay 4-5%. By looking longer we have so many more options."

The illustration I used above is easily understood. Once a prospect understands their option in relationship to their goals, selling the right product makes great sense.

We provide longer term products and by explaining the safety of our products as we would US Treasuries. Positioning our products in the same category of other safe and secure products allows our prospects a great level of confidence.

Try it; "looking longer" has many more options for our prospect.

Selling the power of tax deferral is not a new concept. But how you say it can make the difference between a sale and no sale. I have used the concept of double and triple compounding to explain the benefits to prospects, but I have also expanded it to make understanding it simple. Here is how I explain compound interest.

The Power of Compounding and How to Illustrate the Benefits in an Annuity...

"The Power of Compounding."

*A Traditional Investment Account Has Double Compound Interest

Definition: Interest on the Original Principal and Interest on Accrued Interest.

*A Tax Deferred Investment Account Has Triple Compounding Interest

Definition: Interest on Principal, Interest on Interest and Interest on Tax Savings

Who takes advantage or Tax Deferral? Smart Money People, that's who. This is because tax deferral also provides control when tax liability is selected. Use this term to allow your prospects to better understand the benefits of allowing money to grow in an annuity.

Tax Deferred Is Tax Diminished

Corporate America thrives on tax deferral and anytime taxes can be delayed it is a winner. Anytime you can send a tax liability to the future you will reduce the net out of pocket because the actual tax could be reduced by inflation. By using annuities for the benefit of tax deferral allows the prospect to have more control over the future use of the funds.

Many agents sell "tax deferral" without ever fully understanding how the benefits can be fully utilized. I do so by explaining to my prospect that when the accumulated funds are accessed in the future, they would not be required to refile past tax returns because another huge benefit of tax deferral on annuities is NO RECAPTURE.

When the accumulated interest in an annuity is accessed the tax liability is also accessed. This allows the prospect to have full control over when the tax is paid.

Use the RECAPTURE concept to fully explain this terrific benefit.

Here is the exact language I use.

'Mrs. Jones, by using tax deferral you will be the one in charge of when this tax liability will be incurred. It could be next year or some other future year. In the meantime, your annuity will provide interest credited to your account but the tax liability will be deferred. Here is something you may not have known. When you access your funds in the future, you will not be required to go back and "recapture" the tax liability. The IRS doesn't require you pay any back taxes, just the liability of the tax year in which the funds were touched!"

No recapture! I know what you are thinking, this is sort of silly but it really isn't. One of the great benefits of these products is tax deferral and knowing that the tax liability is totally in their control creates a bountiful selling point.

Will Rogers, know the name? If you don't, you better get with it! Our target age market certainly does and they relate to Will Rogers. He died in 1935 and his funeral was at time the largest attended funeral in US History with 125,000 attendees.

Will Rogers is not an icon. He is bigger than that. From 1915 to 1942 (7 years after his death) he was the most popular person in the World! Not just America, but the World.

Things Will Rogers said then are relevant now. Our target market relates to Will Rogers and knowing some of his sayings is very helpful in developing and growing a relationship.

Will Rogers: An American Original is a great read. So is The Best of Will Rogers. These and many others can be found on Amazon and in almost any book store.

Occasionally I will say to a prospect, "Will Rogers is my favorite humorist and he said..."

Here are some good quotes:

· Things will get better - despite our efforts to improve them.

· The trouble with practical jokes is that very often they get elected.

· Mona Lisa is the only beauty who went through history and retained her reputation.

· Live in such a way that you would not be ashamed to sell your parrot to the town gossip.

· All I know is what I read in the papers.

· Don't let yesterday use up too much of today.

· A fool and his money are soon elected.

· There's no trick to being a humorist when you have the whole government working for you.

. Half our life is spent trying to find something to do with the time we have rushed through life trying to save.

· Everything is funny as long as it is happening to somebody else.

· The income tax has made more liars out of the American people than golf has.

· We don't know what we want, but we are ready to bite somebody to get it.

· We can't all be heroes because somebody has to sit on the curb and clap as they go by.

· I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts.

· Never let yesterday use up too much of today.

· Everything is funny, as long as it's happening to somebody else.

· Be thankful we're not getting all the government we're paying for.

There are thousands of them and it is in your best interest to learn a few of them. They are solid relationship builders with our senior target market.