MRL #134- How Top Producers Keep Growing (While You Stay Stuck)

I had the privilege of talking to a pretty badass Producer out of Georgia last week.

Like many producers past the $1M mark, he relayed to me:

“Micah, I’m drowning. My renewals are nonstop, my inbox is full every morning, and I can barely keep up with service work. How the heck do you still make 40 calls a day?”

My immediate response was:

“Dude, I don’t make 40 calls a day anymore. I’m buried up to my gills most days like you.”

You see, I just crossed the seven figures mark myself.

I don’t share this to brag.

I share it to setup the point of this newsletter.

How writing your next million is different than writing your first.

For me, hitting $1M is pretty straight forward. I’ve done it twice now in my career.

But going from $1M to $2M or $5M? That requires a new skill set entirely. One I’m still cultivating myself.

Luckily, I’ve worked with dozens of Producers over the years who have.

From my observation they do 5 things extremely well, which I will outline shortly.

But, before I do, let me be clear.

I’m sharing this with you because I’m living it in real time. Not because I’m a self-proclaimed guru.

I’m just an ordinary Producer, like you, in the trenches, trying to evolve and grow. And hopefully helping a few people along the way.

So, please don’t take this as me preaching from my ivory tower, because that ain’t me.

Fair?

Fair.

Ok. Let’s continue.

1. Top Producers Leverage Their Network for Referrals

I have not done a great job of this over the years.

I’m not the most gregarious guy around. So wining-and-dining people isn’t really my thing.

But, Top Producers? Most do.

To implement this into my game moving forward I plan to build relationships through business conversations:

• financials

• cash flow

• hiring best practices

• exit strategies

• etc

I may never play the dog-and-pony show, but I can still add value via my growing business acumen.

Staying in front of biz owners with value in hand will keep me top of mind and hopefully lead to more referrals.

2. Top Producers Manage Their Time Extremely Well

No matter how busy they get, Top Producers still find time to get in front of prospects. Period.

Why? Because to grow, they have to keep getting more at-bats. And the only way you make that happen is by managing your time effectively.

Moving forward I plan to be ruthless with my time. If it’s not a “hell yes” it’s a “hell no”.

I may not be able to hit my signature “40 calls a day” anymore, but the priority has to stay the same:

Protect my time. Prioritize prospecting where I can.

3. Top Producers Are Usually Great Team Builders

By necessity, Top Producers must be leaders.

Because to write a boat load of business you have to have a team behind you all rowing in the same direction as you.

The days of me winging it are over.

Moving forward:

Everything needs an SOP. Everyone must understand expectations. My team and I must all be on the same page and playing from the same playbook.

It starts with me.

If I don’t build a team, I can’t grow.

4. Top Producers Leverage Their Time, Money, and Expertise

Top producers know “what got me here won’t get me there”.

With time being their most valuable resource, they look for smarter ways to play the game.

Most often, they do this with leverage.

• leveraging their money by hiring a junior producer

• leveraging their time by investing in better tech

• leveraging their expertise into a book

I haven’t completely figured this piece out yet.

But what I know for sure is I will be making much better use of my book “The Business Insurance Playbook”.

I plan to “leverage” my time and IP by sending it in advance to any prospects I call on.

More on my “leverage” adventures in newsletters to come.

5. Top Producers Continually Raise Their Revenue Floor

Top Producers are always culling the small fish to make room for bigger ones.

Instead of $10K minimums → $15K
Then from $15K minimums → $25K

One thing I’ve noticed? Your stress and workload don’t have to double to double your revenue.

Your client count does that.

So, I’m being picky about what I chase moving forward.

If it doesn’t move me toward bigger, cleaner, better accounts?

I’m out.

What Got You Here Won’t Get You There

There’s comes a time where we all realize:

I can’t outwork this stage anymore.

I have to outgrow it.

That’s where I’m at now.

For you it may be $250k, or $500k, or $750k. The number doesn’t really matter.

All that matters is, if you’re stuck, overwhelmed, or buried…

Realize you’re not failing, you’ve just outgrown the version of yourself that got you here.

The next version is waiting.

But you have to do the work to become him.

Ok, that’s enough for now.

Thanks for reading. Hope this helps.

If you’d like to learn more about the step-by-step system I used to hit $1M, you can:

Grab the Producer Playbook here.

See you next week.

Kick ass take names,

Micah

P.S. Producer Games Launch Delayed

Producer Games is our new app for Producers that gamifies prospecting with a national leaderboard. Track your calls, emails, or drop-in numbers while seeing how you stack up against producers across the country. Competition, accountability, gamification all in one.

It was supposed to launch Nov 1st, but we ran into some technical difficulties.

We’re looking at Dec or Jan. Updates to come.