More than creating wealth and money for the future, financial planning makes you prepare for untimely expenses brought about by accident, disability or death of a loved one. It is for this reason that financial planning is very important in providing coverage against any sudden loss.
The awardees of the recent Insular Life (InLife) Agency Awards night couldn’t agree more. For Pedro Arela of Cebu City and husband and wife Antonio and Lina Abrantes of Davao City, the assurance of providing insurance proceeds and services of a trusted company like InLife, makes the untimely loss somehow bearable.
Antonio Abrantes of Davao Mega DSO is one of the awardees in the Unit Manager’s Category of the President’s Circle of Producers, while Arela is honored as the Master Agency Builder and Consistent Agency Builder Honor Roll.
“For 108 years now, InLife has been delivering continuous service for the Filipinos. As you know, insurance is a very challenging industry and InLife has stayed this long. That makes it a very strong and trusted company. Even during the World War II up to the Typhoon Yolanda mishap, InLife continued its service, paid the beneficiaries whatever is due them. That’s the quality of life insurance company that we really need, not those who will leave us or disappear especially in times we needed them most,” Antonio Abrantes said.
The awardees said, success is sweet but they truly have to work hard for it. “We have our various clients to take care of in this industry. We have to gain their trust as we build our integrity. Without integrity, we will never be successful in selling something that’s intangible and taking care of their hard-earned money at the same time. Commitment, integrity, and efficient after sales service – those are very important. Without them, it’s hard to prosper in this kind of business,” said the Abrantes couple whose children have benefited from their insurance business and are now highly successful in their chosen careers.
For Pedro Arela, it’s his passion — and the company’s as well — in helping others prepare for their future that has made him stick it out with the company for over four decades. “You know by having this kind of career, I have had the opportunity to help many others prepare for their future: income protection for the family and for almost everything. The best feeling is when you deliver the check that was promised by the company to the beneficiaries themselves,” he said.
InLife is an all-in-the-family business for Arela whose wife and three children are working together in his agency in Cebu. Arela said, the kids have witnessed in 43 years how the business has grown. They have graduated and practiced their professions and are now assisting him in the agency. “Because you know, what else is there for them to pursue? In this business, they can create wealth here and at the same time help others as well. Success is not a destiny, it’s a choice. My family started from nothing. Now we have almost everything we need in life. That’s why we are also extremely happy and proud seeing our agents enjoying their success in life especially now with the digitization of InLife. It has made our business a lot easier and enjoyable,” he said.
Last year, InLife made efforts to refresh and invigorate its brand. “This is how we will project ourselves to the world out there: as a dependable and trusted brand, who has been consistently evolving to be in step with the changing needs of our market, and bold enough to take the lead in digital transformation, yet retaining the warmth and care that only a truly Filipino company can give,” InLife Executive Chairman Nina D. Aguas said.
Suffice it to say, it is for their dedication and passion that these agency leaders have become part of the cream of the crop awarded in the annual InLife Agency Awards Night. This year, hundreds of InLife agents and agency leaders nationwide who performed outstandingly in 2018 received awards in various categories, during the celebration called “Ad Astra per Aspera (to the stars through hardship).”
InLife President Mona Lisa B. de la Cruz likened the top agents’ achievements to that of a star, noting that stars undergo extreme pressure before they are formed.
“You are here tonight because you battled many obstacles along the way, and emerged victoriously after. You are stars in your own right, formed as a result of the hardships you had to conquer,” she said.
She also challenged the company’s top financial advisors and agency leaders to continue to shine through their service to their clients and InLife. “You are the stars who help our fellow Filipinos navigate their lives toward reaching their financial independence. Be the brightest stars you could ever be, so that the people who rely on youwould always find their way through life.”