Dear Subscriber,
It's been a great start to the year, with a busy first quarter that I haven't seen like this, since Mainstay's early days 25+ years ago.
Between doing amendments and renewals, I've also added a new client with another arriving soon. I've been speaking at several events, planning and running the CGIB events, sitting on some panels, providing feedback on new products being developed and helping with the Meet the Masters of Insurance Webinar Series.
If you have not heard of the MTM series, it's the brainchild of Lawrence Geller. For those of you who don't know Lawrence, he's been a leader in the industry for decades, and is the founder of "For Advisors Only".
The idea of the MTM Series is to record a variety of advisor stories in the insurance space to share their knowledge and wisdom for others to benefit from.
The series will follow the path they took in the insurance biz, and talk about what made them successful in their respective areas of speciality. These recordings will be available free for people to watch and listen and learn from. There is no one "right" path, but you'll see many common traits in the stories.
I'm so pleased to be invited to share my story in Lawrence Ian Geller's "Meet the Masters of Insurance" Webinar Series.
I'll be interviewed by Jim Ruta FDFS NEXT Thursday, March 21, 2024 at 11 AM ET and hope you'll join us.
Both Lawrence and Jim have been inspirational in my career development.
Lawrence was one of the big reasons I decided to be a specialist in employee benefits, and he taught me that giving back and sharing your best stuff can be both fulfilling and very rewarding. For me that has definitely proven true.
Jim was a great role model when I started sharing my knowledge, and helped me understand that there was a way to turn my passion of sharing into a business.
The link to register for the Meet the Masters Webinars is here: Keep doing great things...
Dave |
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| Seth Godin's Blog (and how I think it pertains to Employee Benefits) |
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AI chatbots highlight a challenge that is worth understanding. It applies to customer service, bureaucracies and teachers as well…
If you ask an AI a question and it’s not confident in the answer, it should say, “I’m not sure.”
That could be followed up with, “do you want me to guess” or “if you could give me more context…”
But proudly and confidently bluffing isn’t helpful. It’s really unusual to find this sort of humanity (even with humans), but it’s a great way to build trust.
Put another way... Be honest with your clients and prospects. Guessing doesn't help and saying, "I'm not sure, but will look into it" is almost always seen more positively, over guessing wrong.
Imagine a doctor being asked for a diagnosis the moment you walked into their office. Would you like them to give it, or would you rather they say...I'm not sure, let's run some tests.
"Fake it 'til you make it" may work for AA, but it isn't necessarily a great way to build a practice.
Bonus Post:
The independent bookstore down the street is carefully curated. Each book takes up the spot that a different book could inhabit, so the owner makes sure that there’s a great reason a title is included. Amazon, on the other hand, has no shelf space problem, and the Kindle multiplies it. As a result, the average book on the Kindle is virtually worthless, because once it’s easy to include everything, everything gets included. Amazon doesn’t promise to curate, they insist the purchaser does.
Christopher Nolan hasn’t made many movies (and has carefully kept his first student film hidden from view). If he puts his name on it, people pay attention.
YouTube has countless (actually countless, because new ones arrive faster than you can count the old ones) videos. And a significant number of them have less than ten views, and they don’t even deserve that many. YouTube doesn’t curate, they encourage the crowd to do that for them.
The long tail is a business model and a way of bringing work to the world. More is better.
Curation, on the other hand, offers a different reward for the publisher/creator.
Either your motto is, “we don’t sell anything, we sell everything” or “we put our name on this one.”
Lately, there’s pressure to be somewhere in the middle. To be sort of proud of each choice and sort of have a lot of choices. It’s a very difficult path to walk. Economic pressure pushes for more, now. But more now might be stealing from we stand for something.
Put another way... I do one thing, and one thing only. I do that thing really well and am going to put my name on it. Then I'm going to shout about it from the rooftops. |
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Coffee chats are like a virtual breakfast. Log in, ask questions, share problems, seek solutions and talk about what's on your mind. Best done from a computer, with a camera and a microphone. No CE credits, but also no cost, just show up.
Tuesday Mar 26, 2024 at 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM, EDT
CGIB HR Benefits offering review
QUICK.... PUT THESE IN YOUR CALENDARS NOW!!!! Thursday Apr 11, 2024 at 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM, EDT Tuesday Apr 23, 2024 at 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM, EDT Thursday May 9, 2024 at 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM, EDT Tuesday May 21, 2024 at 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM, EDT Thursday Jun 13, 2024 at 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM, EDT Tuesday Jun 25, 2024 at 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM, EDT
CGIB Members may join the meeting at the time above by visiting... |
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CGIB supports the volunteers that runs the breakfast meetings below.
Please find the details for your closest location below. Ajax, Atlantic Canada, Cambridge, Edmonton, London, Markham, Oakville, St Catharines, Toronto, Vancouver, Vancouver Island, Windsor or the Virtual National Meeting
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HOLD THESE DATES Halifax/Moncton April 2, 2025 - Price vs Value, Growing your block Toronto May 7, 2025 - Full-day multi speaker event Calgary June 3, 2025 - Full-day multi speaker event Vancouver June 5, 2025 - Full-day multi speaker event Toronto Nov. 5, 2025 - Full-day multi speaker event |
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| Get Onto Slack and Stay Connected 24/7 |
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The CGIB SLACK channel is a great place to pose questions, share info and learn a ton from your fellow members. The info and discussions that are posted there are unlike anywhere in the industry with documents, videos and information available in MEMBERS ONLY to make your life easier.
NOTE TO ALL SLACK USERS: We now have 80+ channels in Slack to handle different topics. Please take a moment to add these channels to your menu. To do so, just click on the + next to Channels on the top left. Browse the channels and then click JOIN to add each of them. By doing so you won’t be missing really great info. |
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We think the information contained below is of value and encourage you to read the articles and check out the events of interest. These articles and events are not created by CGIB, so please contact the organizers for more information. We take no responsibility for the websites, events, organizations or their content.
This is great information to share with your clients and prospects in newsletters, blog posts and e-mail sharing. |
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You asked for it… Looking for a discount to get to the articles in Insurance Portal Use the promo code CGIB which gives a 30% discount on our PRO Level subscription for 12 months. Sign up here
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Want to provide your admin and support staff with basic knowledge? Want to dig into something more detailed for your benefits/insurance business? Business Career College (BCC) has an extensive catalogue of online CE courses with a number of group benefits specific courses covering topics ranging from contractual concerns, plan designs, and underwriting requirements, to product specifics and integration with government benefits. Courses consist of narrated videos with short, online quizzes. The full catalogue includes over 60 courses, podcasts, and videos covering topics from the world of insurance, investments, financial planning, taxation, and ethics with a focus on technical content and real-world application. Courses are accredited for the maximum categories of credits and can include provincial Life and A&S credits, FP Canada, Advocis, and more!
Use the code CGIB25 for 25% off the yearly subscription Price. The regular retail price is $200/year, CGIB members save $50/year!!!
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Prospecting: It's not who you know; it's who knows you! (1.0 CE Credit) March 20 at 10 AM EST
Elevate your prospecting game by improving your visibility. We’ll cover effective branding, raising awareness, leveraging social media, engaging in community involvement, and how to form strategic partnerships in this hour-long Zoomcast.
Gain insights from case studies and ask questions directly to our experts!
In this Zoomcast, we’ll look at: - Branding
- Awareness
- Social media
- Community involvement
- Strategic Partnerships
- Case Studies
- Q & A
This Zoomcast will be presented by The Benefits Trust, Canada’s largest independent third-party administrator. __________________________________________________________________________
2024 Drug Benefits Outlook: Policy and Trends Updates from Industry Leaders
Wednesday, April 10 · 12 - 1pm EDT
Get the latest insights from those “in the know” on the group insurance and pharmaceutical industry at our GIPC Spring virtual event.
__________________________________________________________________________ April 22-24-29, May 1, online
Join this course to learn the key components of Canadian Group Benefits, how to manage programs better, minimize costs, and bring immediate value-add to your organization. Members save $ 480 on registration fees. Already a member? email ontario@cpbi-icra to receive the promo-code. __________________________________________________________________________ Benefits Together 2024 SAVE THE DATE! April 24, 2024m 8:00 a.m.– 2:30 p.m. Islington Golf Club, 45 Riverbank Drive Toronto, Ontario Medavie Blue Cross is thrilled to present you with actionable insights from industry experts, focusing on pivotal trends shaping the wellbeing and productivity of today's workforce. This year’s exciting agenda will shine a spotlight on: - How artificial intelligence is transforming health care and health benefits
- Simple and surprising ways that optimal sleep supports a healthy workplace
- The crucial role of resilience in combating rising stress levels and burnout among employees
Mark your calendars for this in-person, invitation-only event. _______________________________________________________________________ Join Canada’s premier virtual group health benefits event!
For two decades, the TELUS Health Annual Conference has stood at the forefront, illuminating the health benefits management landscape with unparalleled insights and trendsetting perspectives.
Save the date today for your exclusive access to:
•Comprehensive drug data trends and national benchmarks. •Insights on health benefits trends. •Continuing education credits.
Join us on April 23 and 30, 2024
Registration opens in February 2024** |
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Need help? Have questions? Looking for something?
Reach out to CGIB - Dave Patriarche - dave@cgib.ca - 905-886-9203 |
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