NAIFA is proud to announce Joseph W. Jordan, inspirational speaker, behavioral finance expert, best-selling author, and one of the founders of the Insured Retirement Institute (IRI), is the recipient of the 82nd annual John Newton Russell Memorial Award. The award is the highest honor accorded by the insurance industry to a living individual who has rendered outstanding services to the institution of life insurance. The selection committee consists of representatives of the nine leading organizations in the life insurance and financial services industry. Jordan will be celebrated and formally presented the award at NAIFA’s National Leadership Conference and Belong event in Washington, D.C., on December 4.

“Joe Jordan is a legend in our industry who perfectly represents everything the John Newton Russell Memorial Award stands for. On behalf of the selection committee, I am honored to congratulate Joe as the 2023 award recipient,” said Tom Michel, LACP, CLTC, Chair of the 2023 award committee. “As an internationally known speaker and author, Joe has been and continues to be a positive influence on hundreds of thousands of agents and advisors. The committee considered many qualified nominees for the award, but Joe’s energy and passion for our industry and ability to motivate and inspire his fellow financial professionals make him a worthy choice.”

Joe Jordan entered the insurance business in 1974 and later became the Vice President of Insurance Sales at PaineWebber before moving to MetLife. Until 2012, he was Senior Vice President – Retail Product Development at MetLife, where he started their fee-based financial planning program and behavioral finance department.

Over the past 11 years, Jordan has become one of the most sought-after speakers in the insurance and financial services industry. He has been the keynote speaker at numerous events, including MDRT Experience, the LIMRA Distribution Conference, The American College Knowledge Summit, the Asian Pacific Life Conference, and numerous NAIFA events. He has spoken in far-ranging locations spanning the globe, including Mexico, Canada, Brazil, the U.K., Italy, Poland, Hungary, Romania, Greece, India, Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, China, Korea, Japan, and Australia.

On a recent episode of NAIFA’s Advisor Today Podcast series, he said, “What I like to talk about is not just the facts and the numbers. It’s about stories. All wisdom comes from specific human experiences. I’m trying to bring that into play so that we communicate better with people and save lives. I did the research and found out everyone dies. … So what better impact could you have if there are people out there who have really benefited as a result of what you do? Not only in death, but now we have this other problem of people living too long.”

His book, Living a Life of Significance, has sold more than 100,000 copies and has been translated into five languages. It chronicles Jordan’s personal journey and 50-year career in the financial services industry.

“Every successful advisor I know knows who Joe Jordan is,” said NAIFA President Bryon Holz, CLU, ChFC, LUTCF, CASL, LACP. “They either know Joe personally or have read his book or heard him speak. His impact on our industry is that expansive. He is a long-time supporter of NAIFA, MDRT, IRI, and other associations and is constantly giving back to our industry. On behalf of NAIFA’s Board of Trustees, I am very pleased to congratulate Joe for this well-deserved honor.”