Brent was fired after his first year as a Producer at a national shop.

Six years later he's running a solo agency doing $400k a year in one of the coolest niches we've heard of yet.

In this episode:

If you're a producer thinking about niching down, or wondering whether you can build something on your own without a big agency behind you, this one's your huckleberry.

Brent’s whole career is a case study in strategic asking.

Here's every instance that stood out from this episode:

1. Building his niche

With zero firearms carrier relationships, he got on the phone with an MGA program president and point-blank said: "This is who I am, this is my background, teach me how to write this correctly." He then did the same with a dozen other underwriters.

Those direct asks turned into years of mentorship.

2. Starting his own agency

Competitors? Brent treated them as a resource: "I just reached out to other agency owners and other people in the insurance industry and say, hey, I need an hour of your time. Teach me how to do this."

Brent literally reached out to competitors for help.

3. Finding his business partner

This one's the big one. Brent called Luke, a former client turned mentor, just looking for an investor referral.

"Do you know an investor in the space that I can partner with?"

Luke's response: "Nope, get your ass up here and talk me through this whole insurance thing."

Two days at a whiteboard later, they decided to launch the agency together. Brent didn't ask for a partner. He asked for a favor, and the ask itself revealed the bigger opportunity.

4. Branching into new sub-niches like DOD

Same pattern: "I had to go put on the learning cap because I hadn't done it... find a good team and say, hey, this is what we're gonna do. And they teach you that."

The through-line of Brent's success:

"Never be afraid to call and seek out advice."