Is It Worth It for an Independent Agent to Obtain an MBA?

[LGilmore]

This is entirely a personal decision that you can only make for yourself. No one can say with absolute certainty if it will or won't make you successful.

IF we could "know" something like that, we all would have won the lottery already.

If it makes you feel more confident about yourself, do it. If you're actually indifferent about it, don't worry about it.

As others have pointed out, all types of people succeed in this business as well as fail. Usually it comes down to working hard and smarter, because even hard work alone doesn't guarantee success.

So good luck and if it works for you. great.

 

[GeminiGroup]

I do not think an MBA is going to help you make sales.

That is why you want it?

Insurance sales are tough!

Well stated ABC...the above poster ignores the OP's question and proves my earlier point that many "graduates" value credentials.

Whether they are "needed' or not because they mentally have a 'vested' interest in it being TRUE. ( After all how many people are going to CLAIM that a course of action that mirrors their course isn't the best at preparing one for success )

That's what most humans do and folks are taught the company motto 'the more school the more letters the better'.

All 'education' we obtain is "beneficial" but it doesn't equate to anything in and of itself...that's the point, that people miss.
Who is going to say that gaining knowledge or understanding info isn't "beneficial"... the question seemed to be geared more towards whether it MADE one more profitable or more likely to succeed and the answer is NO.

Hey, I enjoyed my time in college, I enjoy obtaining knowledge on many subjects and know a few well enough to teach but my book knowledge nor my credentials are WORTH more than moxie, people skills, work ethic and the ability to 'inspire others to take action'.

The simple fact is even 'getting' your J.D. only allows you to 'see' if you can make it as an Attorney going back to obtain a LL.M. (Master of Laws) probably isn't 'worth it' as an Independent but it may certainly be 'beneficial' for bragging rights at Thanksgiving dinner among a group of like-minded liberals.
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All joking aside, obtaining your 'letters' isn't going to kill you nor will it make you.....unless your objective is a job with @Matt37
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(Btw....It's funny how intellectuals feel the sales-oriented folks are too 'strong' in their approach and many 'producers' come off as not being too bright.......Seems like a happy medium would be best but I'm not sure if that's my book-side or my 'life-learning-side'....my intellect is pushing me towards crediting life observation over most of my CLASSES but again school was 'beneficial' too.)

In the movie "White men can't jump"
Woody's character basically say to Wesley's "Some wanting to LOOK good was 'worth' losing, while for others winning w/ or w/o the gold chain around their necks was 'worth' more"

So, I agree with Matt37 the OP has to decide, what has more 'worth'.

 

[Guest]

As a client, I couldnt give a crap what degrees a person has, I give a crap about them knowing their business and can tell me/teach me WHAT I NEED to know as a consumer.....

I have an associates, what makes the MBA better than mine, in regards to Insurance sales and running an agency?

In Our situations, MOST consumers are worried about price and product, your letters behind your name dont mean squat to a client.

My old office partner, had a BS degree, I have an AA, I am still in business, he isnt.....

Doesnt make a difference, and really surprised this thread is at 4 pages.

Now personally, it might depend on what your degrees are in, if you took a lot of marketing classes, then it might help, or business oriented classes, it could/should help you run and grow your business, but thats on a personal level.....

A client doesnt care.....When I was at Farmers, I had my CERTIFICATE of completion from The University of Farmers posted on my wall, is that better than any degree? THAT, might mean more to a CONSUMER than any degree, because they KNOW it is Insurance related....

 

[GeminiGroup]

As a client, I couldnt give a crap what degrees a person has, I give a crap about them knowing their business and can tell me/teach me WHAT I NEED to know as a consumer.....

I have an associates, what makes the MBA better than mine, in regards to Insurance sales and running an agency?

In Our situations, MOST consumers are worried about price and product, your letters behind your name dont mean squat to a client.

My old office partner, had a BS degree, I have an AA, I am still in business, he isnt.....

Doesnt make a difference, and really surprised this thread is at 4 pages.

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RBA is concise and correct..........

Winners find a way to WIN..... and those that have to 'think it over' attend grad school

 

[DecisionMan]

People judge our credibility as insurance agents by the quality of questions we ask, not by the degrees or certifications we have.

My personal opinion is an undergraduate degree simply proves one can complete something, and teaches one where to look for answers. Most do not provide practical knowledge that can immediately be put to profitable use.

More so the MBA. I have one in finance because the company I worked for at the time insisted I get it. While I loved the education I can honestly say it doesn't provide any magical lure for new clients, no automatic set of referrals, or any unique knowledge I couldn't get through the American College's various courses specific to our industry.

This past Sunday the scheduler put me in as a fourth to round-out a foursome at a nice course. My cart buddy is a 35 year veteran of UPS, 51 years old, who knows a lot of 35 year veterans at UPS.

The usual 'where do you work' questions were asked and I said "I sell life insurance and help people with retirement planning." As usually happens when waiting to tee off, questions are asked like, 'how long you've worked there?', 'where do you live?', 'family?' which all leads to various conversations.

My point is that eventually I asked him some good questions about his pension, social security plans, how he plans to finance his retirement. He dumped on me a ton of great stuff that will lead to appointments and several sales - not because of my MBA , but because I knew what questions to ask.

Your picture indicates you're a young man, Andy. This is a great time to learn this industry specifically, not get an MBA. Your generation is going to take over a huge number of books given how the average insurance agent is in their late 50s.

So spend your time learning this industry intimately. Learn your products, their applications, and the questions to ask your prospects. They'll value you for your insight and knowledge, not for your MBA.

 

[arnguy]

The O/P can always sign up for the University of Phoenix.

To Matt37...GO OWLS!!!!!

 

[bobson]

Only if 1manshow is your advisor.

 

[NCAgent]

With furthering your education, what matters is what you get out of it in real life. If you get extra credentials and it helps you learn about more financial planning opportunities or better coverage for commercial prospects, GO FOR IT! It would have been a sale overlooked for the less-informed.

As for a degree, I think that a degree is nice because it helps people learn how to learn independently. I have a BS in biology. It helped me though because I can find out information online and in sources faster than some of the HS counterparts and I adapt quickly. The actual course material didn't affect that. I am used to learning a lot of information quickly and retaining it. Notice that the degree doesn't change for that.

The only thing I think an MBA could help with is learning how to run a business IF you already have one established. Financial trends, managing others, marketing, etc. but even that is going to be watered down.

Also, saying that many people have a degree and those are the ones that get the designation: I think that is just the kind of person they are. They want to learn, they want to get more knowledge, and disseminate it properly. Overall it is just the act of learning that they like. If it helps instill confidence, gives the agent the ability to talk to a target market like an equal, or helps see more sales opportunities that would have been missed otherwise, education of some kind will probably help.

 

[ladyinsuranceservice]

I recently attended a young agent conference here in Marquette, and one of the speakers was a professor from Michigan Tech. A follow up email was sent inviting me to seek and start working towards getting my MBA. I don't have an undergraduate degree, but I do have work experience, so if I meet the requirements of their online program, would it be worth my time to get my MBA? Do any of you have yours? Has it helped in any specific way? One of the things I noticed on Tech's website is the opportunity to network during a couple of their on-campus weekend residencies. What do you guys think? Should I do it?

I have an undergraduate degree and an MBA. The letters do not earn the credibility. The process of disipline and journey are what grants the credibility. Unless you obtain your undergraduate degree you will not understand many of the key elements of business for a masters program. If you are looking at a program that allows the certification just because you pay for it you really should have red flags raised. Go through the tedious process of enjoy the journey attending college. I understand after being in the work force that you are not interested in the college frat life. That is really not what college is about. Learning is what college is about.

 

[xrac]

If a person is in insurance sales I think a MBA is mostly useless.