NAIFA Supports Life Insurance Awareness Month

For Nicholas Lamanna, serving his hardworking clients is a passion both inside and outside of the office.

Getting Started

When Nicholas Lamanna graduated from Old Dominion University, he moved just outside of Manhattan to become a standup comic. He was waiting tables during the day and performing at night but knew he needed to make more money. He didn’t know the first thing about finance, but a hiring manager at a Midtown investment bank decided to take a chance on him. After a year as a stockbroker, Lamanna decided to pursue a master’s degree in finance and started his career at Northwestern Mutual not long after.

A financial advisor with Guided Path Financial Services and Retirement Planning, Heather Lindsley, LUTCF, RICP, LACP¹, serves her community in Green Bay, WI, by building meaningful connections.

What It’s All About

Lindsley came to insurance and financial services at the suggestion of a friend, but she didn’t take the leap right away. She had young children at the time, but once they were old enough for school, she decided to give it a try. 

When Joshua Ruble graduated from college, he didn’t plan on a career in insurance. However, when a friend suggested a Risk Management Advisor role in Dallas, he quickly took the opportunity and relocated from Oregon.

When Ryan Ballesteros¹ was studying Forensic Psychology at Walden University, he didn’t imagine a career helping protect families as a life insurance agent, much less becoming a Partner at New York Life. However, when his son’s mother was pregnant with their first child, Ballesteros saw the power of life insurance. His son’s grandfather passed away, leaving a death benefit to take care of his wife and six children. Ballesteros was able to pay off debt, start a savings account for his son and purchase life insurance for himself.

Around the same time, Ballesteros reached the top of his career path. He considered his New York Life agent and wondered, “What would it be like if I was walking in their shoes?” That’s when he decided to become a financial professional with New York Life, to make a real difference in the lives of families like his own.

Jamie Matson serves her clients at The Haney Company with a personal connection. 

Making a Difference

When Matson started her career in human resources, she soon found a passion for employee benefits. Through her work, she became acquainted with several colleagues in the insurance industry. So, when she decided it was time for a change, she took a role as an account executive at a benefits brokerage firm. 

When Cliff Kwartner was studying business administration in college, he didn’t know what he wanted to do. When he graduated, he narrowed his job offers down to two positions: mortgage broker or insurance agent. He decided to go into insurance because he saw it as a career rather than just a job. It was 2008—he made the right choice. 

Making a Difference

Kwartner loved his career from the start—he loved talking to new people and helping them plan for the life they wanted. One of the benefits of being an insurance agent is building relationships with others in the industry, says Kwartner. “Your reputation is your biggest asset. If you do good business and you do things the right way, that will go a long way.”

At 39 years old, Randall Ball, CLU, was looking for a career change and found it at Northwestern Mutual. Ball’s friend James R. Goodrich, CLU, ChFC, loyal NAIFA member since 1971, recruited him to the industry and NAIFA and Ball never looked back. 

The Keys to Success

For Ball, there are three qualities every agent and advisor should have—they should have a sense of intellectual curiosity, be a good listener, and be able to put the information they glean into a solid plan. “If you’re the only one doing the talking, it’s a bad meeting,” he says.

For Steve Berg, AAI, CIC, LIC, helping people always comes first—no matter what. He and his team follow one principle: “Help the people and the numbers will take care of themselves."

When Berg started his independent agency, Berg Insurance Services, it was a homecoming of sorts. After spending three years as an insurance agent, he experimented with other careers, but he always knew he’d end up in financial services. When he reached a fork in the road of his career, he knew it was the right time to come back.

After several years in restaurant management, Erik Mickalson decided it was time for a change. He applied for a job at American Family Insurance, where his aunt and uncle were long-time agents. He got the job, but not because of nepotism—the recruiter who hired him didn’t find out about his family ties until months later.

After 16 years with American Family, Mickalson says the best thing about his job is being able to help people and protect families every day. He’s a multiline agent, but his bread and butter are life, home, auto, and commercial property insurance. While he works with a diverse array of clients, many of his clients are families like his own with middle-grade children. He jokes that his children’s soccer games are a great way to find prospects.

For Tori Chaulk, insurance runs in the family—it just skipped a few generations. Her great-grandmother was an insurance agent with Farm Bureau, and she was fascinated by it when she was growing up. So, when she graduated from the University of Tennessee, she decided to give it a try. 

Being an insurance agent turned out to be a perfect fit for Chaulk. She loves meeting new people every day and helping them find the right solutions for their unique situations. At Trey Bowen Legacy Insurance and Globe Life, she helps her clients with life insurance and property and casualty insurance. She’s especially passionate about life insurance, even though it can be a hard topic to talk about with clients. “[Life insurance] is the guaranteed insurance that you're going to use,” she says. “So, I’d rather help somebody plan for their family after they're not here rather than it be too late.”