Life Brand at work

Tolbert Chisum came from a family with rich history but little material wealth. His father died when he was 13 years old. He became the first in his family to get a college degree, enjoyed a very successful career as an insurance sales executive, and later became one of the founders of North Shore community Bank & Trust company. Tolbert has created an exceptional life based on philosophy of continuously working to add to the value of the lives of people around him.
As young man Tolbert was insecure and unhappy, when he reached his early thirties, he realized that his life had veered off track.
He had become so focused on attaining the material wealth he had not known as a child.
“As a boy, I didn’t’t realize how poor we were because I had nothing to compare our situation to. Ignorance was bliss in some aspects,” he said.” But as I became an adult I began to realize what others had, and I became determined to make more and more money. Then, as I became successful financially, I realized I really wasn’t happy. People were telling me that I was great guy and a success, but I didn’t feel good about myself”
He was an aggressive insurance salesman, eager to learn and succeed. His job was to sell group insurance, pensions, and employee benefit plans to business. He was taught to peddle as much coverage as his customers would buy and to collect the biggest premiums possible. Tolbert learned his lessons well. In his first few years, he became one of the top salesmen for his company. He earned more money than he had ever dreamed of making.
Still, he realized he wasn’t happy with himself or with his work.” At first, I thought that I was in the wrong business, so I explored a few other opportunities, but then I decided it wasn’t the business that was the problem. It was an excellent company, but I didn’t like playing the rules that I’d been taught for selling their products. I’d become successful by their rules and not by mine.”
He decided that if he was going to stay in the insurance business, he was going to focus on providing maximum value to customers. Quit pushing products and instead start doing things the way clients would want somebody to take care of them and their business.
Even though many of his customers were paying less, his earnings began to soar. Why?
Clients gave him their absolute trust when they saw that he was willing to put their interests first. When people trust you, wonderful things happen. Clients began insisting that he meet their friends and relatives and handle their insurance business. As a result, his influence and his good works expanded even more
Tolbert did not consciously set out to build a quality Life Brand in his work, his relationship, and his community, but that is exactly what happened.
“Your brand is built upon who you are and what you do” he said. “I always tried my dead level best to do the right thing, and so my brand came to represent as close to absolute trustworthiness as you can get. People trust me because I work hard to earn their trust. In the community, I’ve built a brand as someone who wants to give back. I’ve found that the happiest people I meet are those who are givers”

Richaard Wong,
Best Practices, Training & Development