I had the pleasure of interviewing Jesse Doherty, a passionate and charismatic life insurance agency owner from Vancouver, BC. Jesse has worked with American Income Life Insurance Company for many years, cultivating millions in sales, touching countless lives, and helping careers blossom in the process. All of this after starting with no prior insurance or sales experience whatsoever. At this point of your journey, what do you think makes you an incredible team builder? I asked him, What sets you apart from your colleagues that has led to the creation of so many success stories under your leadership? Jesse Doherty replied, “I always tied my success in any section of business back to exceptional mentorship and leaders that have helped me along the way. If you think about it, most success in your life comes from the skills that you’re taught by someone else. Your parents are your first mentors, and after that, you need to intentionally seek out mentors in other areas of your life that help builds great relationships and help you grow. Creating a culture of support, community, and solid relationships is the key to building any successful team. I feel like it’s the long late-night phone calls, going through the ups and downs, and working through adversity that forges a resilient team. That’s how you get results.”
Next, we delve into the times we’re currently living in, obviously for the past few years communicating like we were accustomed to in the past just isn’t possible anymore. Yet, society still managed to figure out a new way to get by and get business done as usual through video calls. Has the ‘Zoom era’ given you and others in similar positions an advantage? In what ways does it work adversely? I asked Jesse Doherty. “Through all the craziness in the world, the “Zoom Era” drastically changed our business for the better…..forever. I worked in shorts all summer and sweats all winter.” He laughed, “On a more serious note, it’s allowed us to help a lot more people. Being able to work and hire in multiple territories allowed us to grow exponentially. Adversely there have for sure been some challenges. Internet issues, clients’ cell phones/tablets/computers dying mid appointment, people not showing up for their zoom appointment. The pros far outweigh the cons though,” says Jesse. “With that being said, at least in terms of how businesses function, some freedoms that we’re accustomed to were taken away, like meeting with clients in person. However, we found better ways to do things despite the difficulties we had to go through”
Later on, we dove into some of the inspirations behind why Jesse Doherty does what he does. What about your upbringing or personal life lead to you becoming such a thought-provoking leader in this industry during these past few years? He says, “All credit is due to my parents. They instilled a high level of confidence in me from a young age and I’ve carried that with me my whole life. Beyond that, I’ve always had an immense amount of support from my mentors and my team. Having supportive, positive, and open-minded people around you allows you to advance and grow every day.”
I asked Jesse Doherty, What led you to develop your career to this stage? What have you learned since it all began that you think is the most important thing for people to know? Has the digital age led to circumstances that in some ways made it easier to do your job? “Easy? If I could put a cry-laughing emoji here I would. It’s been a great ride but not an easy one by any means. I feel like people start in the industry and think they’re going to print money overnight. Making $100k, 250k, and 500k isn’t easy, it’s the complete opposite. I was a truck driver before I ever got into insurance so I never had any business or sales experience. The most important thing is, that you have to keep showing up every day no matter what. I’ve had bad days, weeks, months, and I even had a bad year in 2018. I just kept showing up. I don’t think this global issue made our business easier per se but it changed it for the better. I always tell our team there are 3 keys to success. 1: show up every day, 2: work your ass off, 3: ask for help.”
For many people, the past few years reshaped the landscape and everything in our lives from the ground up. I asked Jesse where he sees his career going from here due to the changes brought about during the 2 years. Jesse Doherty explains that it’s much deeper than that, “Not just my career, it changed my life for the better. Amidst the unfortunate circumstances happening around us, I think it brought a lot of people closer together. The changes also allowed me to move back to Vancouver from Toronto to be closer to my family but still run my business effectively. Career-wise it allowed us to serve more people across North America and be much more effective in doing so. Working on our computers allows us to work from anywhere, I’m in the Arizona sunshine as we speak.”
Most people have qualities about their personality and overall vibe that make them great at sales, what do you think led to your success, particularly in terms of your character that attracts people to you? “Above all else, it’s the ability to care about bringing value to the person you’re providing a service to. When you remove the monetary compensation from a sales transaction and focus on how to help someone and provide the best value, that’s when you win at sales. Moving with integrity is also a big part of how I’ve been able to surround myself with amazing people. We all share the same core values. That allows us to move as a unit”, says Jesse. Above all else, he believes in putting the thoughts, needs, and feelings of a client as his top priority due to the nature of his career. Through creating genuine life-long friendships with colleagues and clientele, it’s safe to say Jesse Doherty will be in business for many years to come.
Find out more by following him at @JesseADoherty on Instagram