It's time toshift your mindset and to recognize that people are coming to youfor your expertise. Photo: Shutterstock)

Back in college, I worked for theUniversity of Missouri, and to this day, the coolest job I've everhad was working as an event manager for the Hearnes Center. This iswhere the magic happens when it comes to concerts and sportingevents. During that time, I got to work with some amazing people,one of whom happened to be Bob Dylan. And as Bob once said, “Forthe times they are a-changin.” As benefits professionals, boy,don't we know it!

I've had a lot of great rolemodels in my life and one of my most incredible ones has been mymother. Like me, she was an entrepreneur. She owned a Merle NormanCosmetics Studio and a travel agency in my hometown of King City,Missouri. My mom had worked for a number of years in the travel industry with American Airlines andAuto-Train (later sold to Amtrak) in Washington D.C., beforerelocating to Missouri with my father and working for a smalltravel agency. She later opened her own, and I remember that shesaw a major shift taking place in the industry when the airlinesdecided that they were no longer going to pay travel agents fees onairline tickets. She made the decision to start charging fees and Iremember her telling me, “If you don't value your time, no one elsewill.”

Fast forward about 15 years towhen we saw the dawning of a new market in New York City. Brokerswould now be allowed to sell insurance to individuals in our state,but 90 percent of the carriers would not be paying us. With so muchconfusion surrounding the exchanges and the complications of morechoices than ever before in New York, I saw an opportunity to buildout the consulting arm of my company—and I haven'tlooked back.

Related: How are brokers taking advantage of the latest techtrends?

It's time to shift your mindsetand to recognize that people are coming to you for your expertise.If you value your time, that will shine through and others willvalue your time, as well. It's a game changer, and you'll start tolook at your business in a totally different way. Things begin tobecome black and white when it comes to taking on newclients.

In my session at the BenefitsPROBroker Expo, we'll go through the main obstacles standing in yourway. These include:

1. Working for free
2. Taking the time to find out yourworth
3. Walking away from someone whodoesn't find you valuable

I'll break down how to figure outwhat you are worth—both the long way and the short way! We willalso go through examples of consulting jobs you can take on thatwill enhance your practice and increase your bottom line. Theseshifts will set you up to be seen as an expert in our industry andwill lead others to seek out your knowledge.

I have always been a fan ofEinstein's definition of insanity: “doing the same thing over andover again and expecting different results.” After years of freelygiving my advice and talents away for free, the light bulb went onfor me and I made a shift. I truly believe that the consultativebroker is the one who becomes a trusted advisor and is considered atrue partner. Partnership has a price that you shouldn't shy awayfrom. I look forward to giving you a peek into my practice, sharingmy methods with you, and explaining how you can move into thefuture free from fear and excited about what you can trulybecome!

Be sure to attend Susan L. Combs'Education Track session, “Show Me the Money: How to Charge Fees ina Commissioned-Based Practice” April 18 at 2:30 p.m. at the2018 BenefitsPRO Broker Expo.