The Alimond Show
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The Alimond Show
George Lewis Wilson of Allstate - From Military Service to Financial Advisor: Mastering Client Relationships, Embracing Resilience, and Guiding Retirement Planning
What if you could seamlessly transition from a military career to becoming a trusted advisor in financial services? Meet George Lewis Wilson, a dedicated finance professional with Allstate, who shares his inspiring journey from the world of military service to becoming an essential guide for clients navigating retirement planning. George opens up about the challenges and triumphs of making such a significant career shift, emphasizing his dedication to truly understanding client needs through professional listening. He explores the foundational role of life insurance in financial planning and unveils his marketing strategies, including the smart use of social media and the power of word-of-mouth referrals, to connect with new clients.
In a deeply personal conversation, George shares his mantra, "everything works out," radiating resilience and positivity as he trusts the natural progression of life. This episode is not just about financial services but a testament to maintaining a positive outlook amid challenges. George's story offers valuable insights into the importance of resilience and purpose, making it a must-listen for anyone seeking inspiration in their professional or personal life. Tune in to discover how George’s journey can empower you, whether you're planning for retirement or looking for a career with purpose.
My name is George Lewis Wilson. I work with Allstate. I'm a finance professional. I help clients with their life and retirement solutions on the life insurance side of either term or permit. On the final services side of IRAs, annuities, the different structured managed funds.
Speaker 2:Okay, very nice. I also saw that you also help on the, I guess, retirement side. Talk to me a little bit about that too.
Speaker 1:It's helping clients who want to figure out when they want to retire, how they want to retire, how much they're going to need to retire. Because in these days, with the inflation and all the uncertainty, many people feel like they are behind on their path to retirement. Because of everything that's going on A lot of things they have with COVID and people not working and inflation People feel like they're not saving enough or they feel like they're not in the right position now to retire the way they want to retire. Maybe they won't retire in the next two, three years, but they may not be able to because of all the uncertainties. They feel like they're not. They haven't amassed enough income to retire because a lot of people may think they need a million dollars to retire, or less or more Depends on how their lifestyle.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, that's something to think about and that's where you come in and help them solve all those scary questions.
Speaker 1:I do the same thing for myself.
Speaker 2:So you know All right, and I'd like to ask you about your background. I know that you were in the military. Can you talk to me about your background in that and the transition from being in the military to now where you are today?
Speaker 1:Being in the military. I started my journey August 13, 1992, two days after my birthday, oh wow. I took my first airplane ride to Fort Jackson, south Carolina, for basic training and it accumulated on to different duty stations within the United States and in Europe. I've been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan and 2013, I was ready to retire. In the same sense, mentally, I was ready to retire. Financially, I didn't feel like I was ready to sit.
Speaker 1:Although things worked out for me because of the benefits of the military, they may not work out for someone else. So I wanted a career after I retired that gave me the same purpose I had in the military, because in the military there's a lot of training, a lot of repetition. The same thing with financial services A lot of training, a lot of repetition. So I wanted something that I wanted to learn more about money, more about life insurance, how, how things work. Yeah, so I in a meeting, um, I got um terry trawler who helped me. I'm getting the business, get my licenses and I made my kids my first clients with their life insurance, with their investments, when they were teenagers. So it has accumulated until eight years being in the finance services, really just helping people and also learning along the way.
Speaker 1:You know better ways of doing things. You know because the industry is constantly changing. Yes, the laws, the different, different products and services are constantly changing. So we, as professors, we are constantly training. We constantly get more product training, training, we constantly get more product training. So, doing things outside the norm that people may, professors, may not think they need, but you always need to do evolve. Yeah, I always need to get better.
Speaker 2:Yeah, absolutely. And now I'd like to ask so you're working with Allstate, what kind of plans do you guys have or services for any of the clients that are coming? Talk to me a little bit about that.
Speaker 1:Well, it all starts with fact finding. You got to know who they are. Being a professional listener you got to being a professional listener. You got to. I'd say about 80% of my job is listening. It's knowing who they are, what their concerns are, what keeps them up at night, what are they afraid of, their fears, what are their expectations, and from there you build a plan All plans with me.
Speaker 2:Start with life insurance. That's the foundation.
Speaker 1:Life insurance. Ok, then you build up from there with, with the investments, long term care and different other services, with disability insurance. Disability insurance you know we got um on the other side got auto and home that the other um professionals do okay.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that sounds good. I feel like a lot of people there's so many options for, like life insurance companies and like I don't know where to go, but it sounds like you're able to help and listen because you're a listener and guide them to what is best for their lifestyle and works for them.
Speaker 1:So yes, it's, it's. It's a challenge, but I love what I do.
Speaker 2:Yeah, awesome, no, I love that. And then talk to me about your journey being in the financial services and insurance sector.
Speaker 1:Like I say, it's a very challenging field, but it's also rewarding to seeing people open up yeah, and to really show a I'm concerned that I may not have enough life insurance covered, or I'm afraid that I may not be able to retire the way I want to retire, or is my resources going to last while I'm in retirement Of knowing you know, helping them figure out the best solution not from a judging point of view, from a concern point of view, point of view, and also myself put myself in their position and knowing where I was and where I am now really helps me help my clients.
Speaker 2:Yeah, absolutely Love that. I'd like to talk a little bit about marketing and how maybe you are using that, the marketing tools that are out there to get your name out there. The type of services that you have to reach potential clients, new clients. Are you an avid social media user? Are you more word of mouth? Tell me what your marketing strategy is.
Speaker 1:I use Facebook. I got my business page. I got my personal page. I got IG LinkedIn. I got IG LinkedIn. I get a lot of word of mouth from clients and also from the agency owners that I work with within Allstate.
Speaker 2:OK, very good.
Speaker 1:Love that. Where do you see yourself in the next five years with your business and then just with yourself, Just growing, just learning, just helping people. I work pretty much remotely. I would like to have an office with other finding professionals. I always work together as a team because all the learning the younger generation a lot of professors are getting younger and there are people that's going to need their help. That's more relatable to the younger generation to help them along better, better. They are more financially set in their younger years than waiting until they're older and the wind is causing people to have more stress and more worry.
Speaker 2:Yeah, absolutely. I'm glad you're thinking about that. Start young, so that way you prepare yourself and there's no surprises that can be very scary.
Speaker 1:Being in the financial services, things I learned in the last eight to 10 years. I could have used 10, 15 years when I didn't really take the time to learn, take the time to really stress that for myself.
Speaker 2:Yes, no, absolutely. So now here's where you come in and help guide them and all that good stuff yeah. And now I'd like to know why is financial literacy important for anybody who's listening? Talk to me about that.
Speaker 1:Finalist. It helps you make better decisions with the help of an expert like myself to help you guide you in the right direction. Helps you manage your money better. You know the more you know. You know growing learning. That leaves us distressed because a lot of people are worried about their finance as one of the concerns that keep people up at night. That really caused a lot of grief and stress in people's. You know, even if you're single, you're married, it's a lot of stress around money.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, Money makes the world go round, but it also drives you crazy.
Speaker 1:Yes, it does money.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, money makes the world go around, but it also drives you crazy. Yes, it does. All right, and now I would like to talk to you about what kind of resources are you using to, I guess, stay up to date. Does Allstate maybe provide programs where you could keep up to date with the latest changes in the financial industry?
Speaker 1:We have trained at least three, four times a week. Oh wow.
Speaker 2:Okay, that's covered there. We have training at least three, four times a week. Oh, wow, okay.
Speaker 1:That's covered there. Constantly product training from the wholesalers we use with Lincoln, financial, protective, salmon's, all the Voya and all the different platforms that we're on. We're constantly doing training. Love that. We're constantly doing meetings during the week I have three different, I say coaches Wow. So within Allstate that I meet with all three of them to make sure that what I'm doing is the right thing. Make sure that you know I'm up to date on everything. Make sure your this training is done. Make sure this training is done. So make sure that that only thing they do is help me be more knowledgeable for my clients.
Speaker 2:Absolutely, yeah, and have you noticed any trends of services going up that you're like whoa, this is really probably. Everyone keeps getting this or asking about this.
Speaker 1:Life insurance has risen. The people buying life insurance and making that more priority over 40% since COVID.
Speaker 2:Oh wow, why do you think that is?
Speaker 1:People are. People are reacting to the situation. It made people more aware that anything can happen and COVID really showed that anything, anything can happen.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so I guess you guys were really busy during those times.
Speaker 1:Yes, yes, yes, we were Luckily yes, yes, yes, we were, luckily, yes, yes.
Speaker 2:And now I know you said you'd like to have your own office one day and have other professionals working around you. What kind of professionals would you like to have, personality-wise, and what kind of people would you be looking for?
Speaker 1:Motivated yeah.
Speaker 2:Willing to learn.
Speaker 1:People that have a genuine concern for someone else. When you do the right thing by people and do it the right way, everything falls into place. It's not about the money, it's about helping people. But if you do it right, the income will be there.
Speaker 2:Yeah, no, I love that. I feel like that's also like the military coming out and you too, like service for others and being there. You know you're here for us, for our country, and you also want to help the people in this country too.
Speaker 1:Military is about training. Yeah, so you're training. You know I got trained, so you train someone else. Maybe train someone else. It's all about training someone else to take your spot. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Got it. Thank you, and now is there anything that I have not touched on? Maybe I know you brought like all these things, that maybe you want to share anything of that nature oh no, what you know a lot of I I went off my head.
Speaker 1:I I read over it. I just uh, we want to just, you know, just talk and not just like look at the paper. Yeah, I've written stuff down, but a lot of it already I had in my head. This just just has some notes to go over. But I I appreciate the the opportunity to come here and to be here and my journey is this I'm 52 years old and I see this going for another. You know I did 21 years in the military. I can do this for a ton, not 21 years.
Speaker 2:Wow, I love that, like your motivation and determination is right there, like you're ready, bring it on, let's go. I love it. And your motivation and determination is right there, like you're ready, bring it on. Let's go, I love it. And what do you like to do outside of all of this, like when you're not working? What do you like to do to unwind and have fun?
Speaker 1:I love music, sports, going to trail, go running, go walking, going to gym and some days just getting my lazy boy and and and just relax yeah, that sounds good. That sounds like about right, that sounds really good so just some days, just be at home and, um, I like to binge watch um different shows. I usually don't watch a lot of tv, unless it's I'm like having really nothing to do on the weekends, or it's cold outside and it's raining, or I just like to be in the house and just binge watch.
Speaker 2:What do you like to binge watch?
Speaker 1:I like Law and Order. Okay, the series Chicago series PD Fire.
Speaker 2:All the crime stuff, it looks like.
Speaker 1:I like the crime stuff, I like a good drama. So I like a good movie, yeah so, and I like the Quiet Time too.
Speaker 2:Yes, quiet Time is nice. Well, thank you for sharing that. I'm going to ask you a question that I like to ask everybody at the end, and it's do you have a quote or a saying that maybe has spoken to you or you've used as inspiration throughout your life that you would like to share with us?
Speaker 1:To me, everything works out.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Even if it's a bad day, everything works out.
Speaker 2:The way it's supposed to and needs to right.
Speaker 1:Exactly.
Speaker 2:Yeah Well, thank you so much for making time to be here and sharing your story, your journey and the awesome services that you provide here with Allstate. It was a pleasure to get to speak to you.
Speaker 1:Thank you for your time.