In November 2010 I was diagnosed with leukaemia. My health had not been 100 per cent for a while, and in May 2011 I started chemotherapy.
Less than two years earlier – after a long career as a small business financial adviser – I had semi-retired to rural Victoria. The plan was to spend more time with my family.
For eight months I stopped work completely and endured the ups and downs that come with chemo.
To top it off, in November 2011 I was hospitalised and diagnosed with pneumonia, which required even more months of recovery.
I’m now in remission and feeling fit and well.
I currently have follow-up tests every three months and will eventually need more chemo and a bone marrow transplant.
But the most lasting legacy of the whole ordeal is how it changed my feelings about my work.
In the 16 years I sold life insurance, I focused mainly on the financial benefits and security the work provides – being able to pay the mortgage and provide for my family.
But since becoming a claimant myself, I now know it’s about much more than just protecting your financial situation.
It’s about being able to not worry. It’s about peace of mind. That should not be underestimated.
When I claimed, I didn’t need to say to my wife ‘What are we going to do?’, I just needed to focus on overcoming my illness.
In the hours after my diagnosis, we talked about many things, but luckily money wasn’t one of them.
That is what we do for our clients.
We are not protecting their mortgage, we are providing them with the ability to not worry about money at the worst time in their lives.
After I recovered from my health issues I set up a business with my brother, Risk Sales Tools, to help advisers specialising in life insurance and pass on the knowledge our father – a 33-year adviser and genius life salesman – taught us.
In 2014 I went back into the field and established an advice business in north east Victoria.
I am loving being back out there helping others.
As my Dad once told me:
“What a wonderful job we have, at the worst times in people’s lives when everyone else has their hand out for money we come with care and cash.”
Ben Day is a specialist life insurance adviser at Fitzpatrick Financial Services and a director of consultancy Risk Sales Tools.
Thanks Ben, I have been a risk writer for over 15 years in WA. It wasn’t until I had my first claim a couple of years ago that I realised what a great service we provide to our clients. Nothing better than handing a cheque to a wife when her husband has died suddenly allowing her to pay off the home and stop work to look after her three kids, amazing. Thanks for the reminder in this world of doom and gloom in our industry.
Yep, there’s theory and then there’s those that have been there and done that.
What an amazing story Ben and thanks for sharing. This is indeed such an honourable industry and stories such as your personal journey make it so worth while. Great news that your health has improved. Good on you.
Hi Ben
It is amazing how coming face-to-face with one’s own morbidity and/or mortality sharpens the focus. Facing Hodgkin’s Disease at age 16 has meant that throughout my 46 year career as an adviser, I have had a clear understanding of the value of our work and products.
Best wishes
Onya Ben. Takes courage to pen something like this, but courage is what we riskies need to get on with the job and ignore the noise from asic etc.
Thanks for sharing your story Ben. As all the focus of risk advice is currently about remuneration, the regulators & others in our industry forget about what it is we actually provide. Keep fighting the good fight!