Remembering Dick and Myra Larkin - National Association of ...

Savannah ConferenceCongratulations for putting on anothergreat conference. The location wasbeautiful and the cost was reasonable. I’lldefinitely consider coming to the nextone and will invite some of my fellowagents as well. I thoroughly enjoyed the“Kick in the Attitude” presentation fromSam Glenn. He did an outstanding joband I would enjoy seeing him again. Troyand Lynn McDonald left no stones unturnedas to growing your agency. Whata great couple!I learned quite a bit from otheragents around the country; some of thestuff going on in their regions is sureto come to ours. In my opinion, thevendors added value to the conference.Many of their products and services canbe used in our agencies.. . . . . . . . . . . .I joined NAPAA the day before I attendedthe national convention in Savannah,Georgia this spring. This was aftermany years of being told by our managementteam that NAPAA is a forbiddenorganization of negative and disgruntledex-agents. Contrary to what we are toldas Allstate agents, I found that NAPAAis represented by positive, knowledgeableprofessionals. The NAPAA conventionwas inspirational, educational and inforlettersto NAPAAmative. I am glad that I joined and thatI now belong to an organization that listensto Allstate agents nationwide andresponds to their needs. Thank you.. . . . . . . . . . . .The conference was fantastic. Theguest speakers were very inspiring. Iknow our sales will show a positive impactfrom our attendance.. . . . . . . . . . . .It was a great conference at a fabulouslocation. It was great to hear, firsthand,former Canada Allstate agent JimDorey talk about the Canadian experience.What goes up must come down,as I see it. I truly believe that everythingthat happened in Canada will eventuallycome to the U.S. It is only a matterof time. The only difference is thatwe have a TPP. All the company has todo is exercise the “right to terminate”clause in our contract, pay the TPP, andkeep all the policies and renewals. Thenthey’ll offer the “New” Allstate agencymodel to those who want to stay andbecome employees again, without renewals.Makes good corporate sense,doesn’t it?In the meantime, expect more terminationletters. Better have a plan “B” inplace, so you don’t get caught by surprise.. . . . . . . . . . . .The only reason I didn’t come tothe Savannah conference was because Iam having some problems with mobility.I was really sorry to have missed it.It would have been wonderful to see youand the wonderful NAPAA membersthat I met in Reno and Memphis again.With all the production requirementsand other pressures, I could use somenew ideas and inspiration. I’m seriouslygoing to have to go on antidepressantssoon because I’m so stressed out. Sorry toshare something so personal...but I guessthat’s where I’m at.. . . . . . . . . . . .We had a great time. We are lookingat some of the products presented by thevendors. What we learned is how diversethe regions are. All things are not yetequal across the country. Since the companycan fire us for not selling its productsat the price they charge, I’d say it’s timeto develop some viable exit strategies. It’shard though, because agents don’t get togetheranymore, so it’s hard to figure outwhat is actually going on. Guess they’vegot us right where they want us. I’m gladI have the ability to keep up with currentissues via the NAPAA Forum andthe weekly DirectExpress newsletters.Canada and New Jersey are warnings weshould be tracking.. . . . . . . . . . . .I came to the conference a little downbecause of the state of my business. Thevery first speaker was Sam Glenn andhe talked about improving your attitude.I found the experience uplifting. TroyMcDonald’s session gave me some greatsales ideas and a good way to position mybusiness.. . . . . . . . . . . .Jim,Hope you made it home from theSavannah conference safe and sound.We had a good run home to Canada.I tagged up with a Mercedes and motorbikea good portion of the way andthey had radar so we broke a couple ofrecords! It’s funny, yesterday we wereenjoying the island breezes of HiltonHead and today we’re back to the frozentundra here in Northern Ontario. Thereare still patches of snow and the lakesare frozen.On behalf of my family and myself, Iwant to thank you, Nancy, Bob and theNAPAA Board of Directors for yourfriendship and gracious hospitality. Iwas surprised that Jim Dorey invited meonto the stage. To top things off, I did8 — Exclusivefocus Summer 2009