In their song “Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys,” which topped the charts back in 1978, Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings advise moms everywhere not to let their children grow up to be cowboys, encouraging them instead to “let them be doctors and lawyers and such.” After all, those are the two professions parents dream about for their children, aren't they? The funny thing is, as insurance agents, we're a little of both—half doctor, half lawyer. Our parents should be proud.

But most health insurance agents don't go to medical school; in fact, no higher education is required to obtain a license. Nonetheless, brokers spend all day talking with clients about medical issues. Our job is to help Americans finance their health care expenses, and that's impossible to do without having a few conversations about health care.

With no formal training, a lot of agents just wing it. We stumble a little at first, but over time we learn which medical conditions scare insurance companies the most, which lifestyle choices cause these conditions, and what medications are most-often prescribed to treat them. We advise people to go to an urgent care center rather than the ER if it's not a life-threatening emergency, take generics rather than brand names because they're “chemically and therapeutically equivalent,” and get an annual physical so they can catch conditions early.