SALES METHODS

shoulders thrown back, and one foot slightly forward. A sword is buckled to his side. His right hand clasps the hilt of the sword, while with the other he holds the sheath. A look of confidence and fixed determination is written on his face. On the pedestal is the Latin word, "Credo," "I believe I" It is the man who believes, who dares and who does that succeeds as an insurance solicitor.

The truly successful agent will keep abreast of his profession. He should be a student and reader. There is always danger of getting into a rut. A stereotyped canvass will not succeed with all classes. Versatility is necessary, and should be cultivated. This can be done best by reading current insurance periodicals and gathering new ideas from available sources, such as the weekly meeting of local agents and the general gatherings of underwriters. Not only should the insurance agent be a subscriber to and a reader of leading insurance periodicals, but he should read and digest the best of books treating of the subject, arid these books are rapidly multiplying. From such sources he not only receives and imparts new ideas, but he imbibes a spirit which is often more valuable than the letter. Impulse and suggestion are often more helpful than information. An intelligent knowledge of current events is also a good quality to put into our "kit" of insurance information. A knowledge of what is happening in the local community and in the world of affairs often gets an interview, and what is better it is an index of an agent's good citizenship. The agent who neglects to inform himself of the kaleidoscopic changes of present-day history is not a good citizen, or at least he appears so in the estimation of the average American.

Specialize. By L. Seton Lindsay.

This is the day of specialists. Business and the professions have become so complex and many-sided that the all-around man has faded into the background. This is especially true in life insurance, and the life insurance man who attempts to represent several different life insurance companies, and in addition to handle fire, accident, casualty, and other forms of insurance, never makes as great a success as the life insurance man who picks one good life company and devotes his whole time and thought to the business of that one company.

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