After washing our
cars one Saturday afternoon in the winter of 2002, I took a goofy self portrait
of myself with a cigar clamped between my teeth. In July of 2011, I included
the picture in an article that I wrote titled, “Honest John”, which you can read
at the link below:
For more than 25
years, I was an insurance underwriter for several different commercial
insurance companies. If you’re not sure what an underwriter is, the article
posted below (which I wrote nearly 30 years ago) will provide a little more
guidance”
When I graduated
from college, the majority of the folks that were my parent’s age worked for
many years for the same company, and retired at age 65 after more than 25 years
of service. Although I know several people my age who have done the same thing,
that is no longer true of “the baby boomer” generation as a whole. Today’s
college graduates are advised that they could experience five separate CAREERS
in their lifetime. Ironically, that is essentially what happened to me.
When I worked at
CIGNA in the mid 1990’s, I was on track to have $1,000,000 in my 401-K, and
have a house that was paid for, by the time I turned 65. Life had other plans,
however, and I did not achieve either of those goals..
Without going into
a lot of detail about my specific career path, I’ll simply include a few
comments about each of the job titles shown on the picture shown above.
Used cars –
Although I DID sell new cars in 2 different states, I also sold an awful lot of
USED cars as well. Although used car salesmen are not held in high esteem, I
always was completely honest with my customers, and so were MOST (but not all)
of the people who I worked with.
Insurance – not
only did I work as an underwriter for commercial insurance companies, I also
spent more than 5 years (in two widely different periods) selling life
insurance for 3 major life insurance companies.
Investments –
During my more recent life insurance career, I also was certified to sell
investments, and I’m happy to say that none of my clients ever lost money.
College professor
– at the age of 56, I sold the house and the car and moved to China China
CPCU instructor –
during my lifetime, I have earned countless designations. The CPCU designation
is an insurance designation that is roughly equivalent to an accountant’s CPA.
I completed the 5 year course in 4 years (which enabled me and my wife to get a
free vacation to Hawaii
Philanthropist – I
am far from daddy Warbucks, but have contributed to a wide variety of charities
over the years
Marriage counselor
– on more than one occasion, I have had young girls who I did not know approach
me for advice on their relationships. Perhaps they were under the impression
that I had an honest face, but I’ll never know for sure.
Claims adjuster –
although I’ve never OFFICIALLY been a claims adjuster, I have been asked to
give my advise on some specific general liability claims, and was paid enough
for my efforts to buy a couple of new suits.
Public speaking –
for more than 25 years, I was a member of Toastmaster International. In
addition to give literally hundreds to speeches, I also earned more contest
trophies that I can count, and in 1993 I was named the District Toastmaster of
the Year (in a district that had 3000 members).
Author and
publisher – I’ve been writing articles for various publications for more than
30 years, and I became an online published nearly 10 years ago. I am probably
one of the few people you know who has actually received a check from Google,
as a result of my online publishing.
Book critic – I’ve
written evaluations of numerous books. My longest book report (about the Koran)
is longer than 4000 words.
Chef – both Sharon
and I LOVE to cook. In recent years, I probably spend more time cooking meals
than she does.
Travel agent –
I’ve made reservations for numerous trips in my lifetime, including for people
other than me
Mechanic – being a
grease monkey becomes less appealing as you get older, but I have spent many
hours in my lifetime doing mechanical repairs on my cars – and I still have the
cleanest and shiniest car in my neighborhood.
Preacher – due to
my Toastmaster background, I was asked (on 2 different occasions) to fill in
for the pastor of the day and give his sermon.
Notary public –
one of the companies I worked for needed a notary public on site, and I served
in that capacity for a couple of years
Pilot –
admittedly, my career here was brief, but I actually DID have control off a
single engine Cessna in the skies over Minneapolis
Athlete – I have
belonged to various gyms most of my life, and also have participate in a
variety of sports, including handball, racquetball, and bicycling. I’d also
include golf, but only for comic relief.
None of these
pursuits mean that I am a Renaissance man, but they DO prove that you can do anything that you want to if you set your mind to it.
