From baker to broker

I fell into insurance, no doubt about that. And let’s be brutally honest; I don’t think anyone has ever sat in front of a career adviser and uttered the words “I want to be an Insurance Broker.” If it has happened, I’d fall backwards from whatever chair I was sat on at the time.

In my teens, the majority of people didn’t have a clue what they wanted to do when they left school (other than perhaps being a Premier League Superstar or an acting genius to rival Cruise or Kidman). And I was no different.

So I ended up as a trainee baker in Sainsbury’s.

It had its perks – discounted bread or cakes at the end of a shift that had about an hour to live were welcome (only 50p, Mum’s happy and it will still make good toast). But for me it wasn’t enough. It didn’t challenge my brain.

I became stagnant and quite frankly I’d had enough of jamming doughnuts (yes, there is actually a machine for that) and nearly losing my pinky in the bread slicing machine. So it was “adios” to sneaking a bite of a freshly baked cookie whilst the chief bakery man wasn’t looking, and back to standing at the front door to the world scratching my head for inspiration.

Thanks Dad

Enter Dad, keen to help of course. He presented an advert from the back of the local paper – appreciate I’m going back a few years now but yes, that was a commonly used form of job searching. It read ‘trainee insurance broker’.

At this point, I’m under pressure. The parents want their house keep and my weekend beer and football funds are running dry, so off I trotted with a dose of enthusiasm, manners and a will to learn. These may seem basic but my upbringing was such that, I respected everyone regardless of title or position, took constructive criticism and always pushed to be a better version of me. These are all tools that have served me well in the past and continue to do so today.

The insurance broking world was a strange one at first. It wasn’t very exciting but it was a means to an end and allowed me to live a life outside of work that was simple but very fulfilling. The odd pay rise here and there kept me quiet and motivated but if truth be told, I was content and nothing more.

The thing I enjoyed most even in the very early stages, was the people. This industry is absolutely jam packed with brilliant people and I’ve been lucky enough to work with some wonderful individuals and groups of people who have helped me grow personally and professionally, have taught me the technical bits and who’ve been there for me in darker times but also celebrated some significant highs along the way.

Penny dropped

Ten years of tumble weeding along and the penny drops; “THIS IS NOW MY CAREER”.

I’m not going to play for Reading. I’m not going to be a back-up dancer for Little Mix at the O2. I’m an insurance broker and do you know what, I’m ok with it. In fact I’m quite happy. It happened without me really knowing it but technically I seem to know a fair bit now and I’ve even passed exams so I must know something right?

Whisper it quietly but if you look at the bigger picture, this is actually a really interesting job. I’m a sociable person and I get to talk to people all day, I get paid to network and I love meeting new people, customers and partners alike.

I am also entrusted with helping people protect their businesses; their pride & joy and often life’s work. I can’t stop disasters happening, but I can help put some preventative measures in place and get them back on their feet should the worst happen. I can be a support during the struggles and I can help people sleep at night knowing that together we have provided peace of mind for someone who has invested countless hours, blood, sweat & tears into their business. I love helping people so this is actually extremely rewarding.

The industry itself has countless opportunities for progression, there is always more to learn and always a pathway to those who want to go further.  The salaries are decent and 99% of firms in the industry offer excellent benefits packages, limited or zero weekend working and now flexible working so, what’s not to like?

So it’s not boring?

No, far from it – it’s actually quite rewarding.

More to the point, according to a 2021 report, there are approximately 1.1 million people employed in the Financial and Insurance activities sector in the UK. It’s a huge industry and whilst I stand by my initial comment about what we would or wouldn’t say to a careers advisor, many people do fall into the same industry that has served me so well for so many years.

Which makes me wonder if perhaps we should change the way we view insurance – related careers and start selling it to the next generation for what it is – a fantastic opportunity.

And I guess 1.1 million people would probably agree with me!