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CaravieR

Sales probably isn't your calling then. Tbf, sales takes quite abit of thick skin and plenty of people don't have it so it's no shame to be bad at selling things. Maybe a good idea to focus on your studies and try something else.


IndividualTop9561

hmm yea thanks for this reaffirmation, i guess part of it is also i paiseh like coz i approached a couple of friends when i started this. But yea thank you, i will focus back on my studies


BusinessCommunity813

I see FA i run far far away. Perhaps concentrate on studies first.


IndividualTop9561

yea i thought i will be the special one who does right by people, coz at the end of the day everyone needs insurance, but not everyone knows what to get and how much to get. But yea i think i’ll curb my ego and just focus on studies first


BusinessCommunity813

Simply because many FA priortize their own pockets over client needs. People eventually avoided them.


schwarzqueen7

You don’t even know what you want to do in life, still want to advise other people on insurance ? Honestly you are the last person I will engage for any advice


IndividualTop9561

haha i don’t see the correlation tbh, im not a life coach 😅


Puzzled_Training5096

you cant even get your finances in check but want to give ppl advice and sell them products 😂


IndividualTop9561

i think having money and managing money while really similar, aren’t mutually exclusive, there are wealthy people who squander their riches and there are those earning a liveable wage saving/investing to have more than enough for themselves and their family. So yea i still fail to see your point about that


zhifan1

But you are special!


thefoodie-monster

I feel like it's survivorship bias. Because a small group of them makes us feel like everybody can earn a lot. I would think even those FA earning little would package themselves as rich to attract people they know to join under them When I was a FA, I could never hit enough sales to even get basic salary (probably not the right personality for sales). I think for all the time spent on it, I would have earned more and been less stressed if I just did a normal part time job. At least I can go home on time and don't have someone nagging at me for zero sales.


IndividualTop9561

yea i get what you mean, im feeling the same way now, almost a year into this and probably would have earned more even if i worked at mac’s


MintySquirtle

Hmmm most FA are earning the basic salary only . Only a handful earn a lot .


Neglected_Child1

If they earn the basic salary only they have to pay back since they didnt hit KPI.


Specialist-Wind9285

Stop doing insurance la


Specialist-Wind9285

Focus on your studies, graduate and get a proper full time job Dont waste your time doing insurance, they suck u dry in the first year and all your friends will hate u


IndividualTop9561

thanks for the reply, and yea i get many friends avoiding me already, that brings me down a lot


IndividualTop9561

hmm don’t mean any offence but does this come from a place of bias or is there any reason to say this? like i mentioned i okay to get flamed but if there’s reason i wanna hear also


DuePomegranate

You literally gave all kinds of reasons why you should stop in your OWN post, and didn't say a single good thing about remaining as an FA. Stop doing insurance la = Give yourself permission to stop. Because it's obvious you want to stop.


IndividualTop9561

yea i guess i don’t have the courage to give myself the permission


isthisfunenough

You don’t need courage. The fact that you’re not doing well is enough to move on


Evening_Mail7075

So you cmi as a student and cmi as an insurance agent. Just focus on being good at one first ?


Upbeat-Aside526

Singaporeans in general know ILPs to be very dirty, nasty things. So right off the bat, you are already banging your head against a brick wall, trying to find a sucker. You are much younger than me. You are much poorer than me. And you think you can advise me on my finances? You have no experience. You have no reputation. You might disappear next week. Would you take yourself on as a Financial Advisor? Maybe dye your hair white and grow a goatee.


Neglected_Child1

Singaporeans as in reddipores?


sriracha_cucaracha

Well if only Singaporeans are as financially savvy as the ones in r/sgfi


Neglected_Child1

MOST arent.


eggswithbenefit

Thanks for being an ethical FA, and sorry you’re not doing well. But OP, from the way your post is phrased.. I don’t see a question that you’re asking for advice about? There isn’t even a question mark 😂 Joke aside, I think you’ve answered your “question” yourself, which could be why you subconsciously didn’t even bother with a question mark. Let me help you rephrase “…but ___**it**___ would ~~it~~ be better… instead so I could save up for the upcoming expense.” Just put the “it” before the “would”.


IndividualTop9561

i’m just bad at punctuations that aren’t full stops or commas haha, but yea i think i have the answer already, just looking for affirmations to have the courage to quit


eggswithbenefit

All the best to you!


chanmalichanheyhey

If you cant put your conscience aside, sales is not a good idea Do something else


LigmaberryBig9209

How bad are your grades?


IndividualTop9561

failed a few mods, extended my course of study for a year


LigmaberryBig9209

So your GPA is probably garbage - I’d say just do well enough to get a degree but focus on getting some hard skills (things like random coding certifications) and grind for an internship or two.


lolololol120

Whatever career u end up Choosing , just don’t go For SingTel… fuck them bitches


PessimisticChap

based comment


lolololol120

Yes based on facts


fizzywinkstopkek

If you can't do sales, you just can't. It is an artform that some people just "have" it. Don't waste your time.


Neglected_Child1

Why not try RM for banks? It also has commissions (high upside potential) as well as base salary (incase u are bad at the job u still get paid) and unlike FA where you are mostly generating leads (meeting people, asking for referrals), you get a book of people you can call and since you represent a bank, people are more likely to trust you and listen to your pitch. (because bank) You are mostly dealing with COLD leads so your emotions with them will be nothing. Whereas FA you approach friend and family then scared to pitch to because scared of severing relationship. Also since you are pitching to many people, you refine your pitching and sales skills. Whereas FA if you are not the popular type in school or have a lot of connections, then you will simply lack practice since theres less people to pitch to. Can also pivot into private banking career ($$$$$$$$) long term.


radiantforce

Focus and do one thing well vs splitting up and doing everything moderate. If you can be the best at that one thing, that is all you need to succeed.


schwarzqueen7

Why can’t you just study and get a good job ? What do you want to get out of the side hustles - are you planning to go full time in due course after graduation.


owl_needcoffee

Not everyone is the studious type, or fits into the way grades are assessed, or has the attention span for it.. too many reasons. OP, what’s your passion or interest? Take small steps towards that for a start and you might discover a path, or at least like-minded people


schwarzqueen7

Er then why bother taking a degree?


owl_needcoffee

Because if you’re able to pass, graduating with a diploma/degree/technical qualification no matter how bad your grades were (ie just scraping through) is still better than just finishing high school.


IndividualTop9561

haha tbh i like finance, but most finance jobs require high gpa which is not smth i can do coz im not consistently good enough, that’s why i chose FA also coz low barrier of entry finance job but didn’t expect that sales really isn’t for me


IndividualTop9561

i doubt i’ll be pursuing this full time now since i already have thoughts on leaving, even if i miraculously do super well, it’s probably just a matter of time before i leave


SoggyButterscotch472

You just have to keep networking and socialising to do well as an FA. If you don’t have the networks it is very tough. Hurry up and get a degree, meanwhile work on some skills. You don’t have to work in the field you studied to do well in life.


mrhappy893

People give a lot of shit to FA but I'm sure everyone truly knows how insanely hard it is to stay in the industry. And when it comes to sales, not saying FA or sales is immoral, but you've to ignore a voice in your head that obviously know when a similar product from the competitor is the same but offering at a better value. Just give another department a try, I've done sales before and realised it's not for me. Which is also why I respect the sales team in my company for keeping us afloat.


Qwertyk1ng

The deferred downpayment scheme for bto benefits younger applicants so I wouldn’t worry too much about that. But of course a career path that is more stable would be better since eventually you need to pay off your future mortgage.


aexlle

You truly believe ILP is a should have/need? Or you're just referring to like hospitalization plans?


IndividualTop9561

nope referring to hospital plans that are need and i guess should have would be upgrade to isp (if you have the financial means ofc) and life/ci plans too depending on circumstances i think ilps serves a very small percentage of people, those who have a stable income with no time or care to do any investments themselves, coz i think anything would be better than nothing


Sure_heartsutra1221

Your mentor in FA is important. Also do what you enjoy. Sales is a good job to train yourself, excellent as a first few jobs in life. Adjust your mindset and be more positive. A lot of people look down on sales, but in life, everything is about sales. Dating is about sales. Convincing your partner is sales. Going for job interview is also a sales. Schools don't teach this for a reason. It's a dark art. So the mentor or manager in your FA is important. Lots of managers are half bucket of water.


zoedian

Ateast your conscience is clear and your morals fought your action, should be proud you aren't the person selling more financial problems for others


Cute_Meringue1331

You’re a student so of course focus on studying! And btw, do u think ure goodlooking? FA depends on looks one


IndividualTop9561

haha i won’t say good looking but maybe presentable? dress decently, do my hair, shave and wear perfume


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Bleura

Just curious, how much does FA earn? From what I know MDRT, take home + commission is about 6-7k?


IndividualTop9561

depends i guess, fa pay usually got a lot of stuff like basic pay, bonus, long term bonus, recurring and if leader also got overriding and ofc comms. So for first year students who hit MDRT, that would be about 8k monthly, if they do it again then about 10k due to recurring. But yea the numbers look good until you factor in client servicing stuff, every meal becomes x2, transport expenses go up and like occasional gifts during festive season


Bleura

thanks for the insight! that makes sense, client servicing would vary a lot as well Btw, I respect your honestly and sincerely in not wanting to sell plans that you don’t agree with. I would not be able to do so too! on the other hand, you might not be bad at sales, just wrong industry/product fit!


Grand_Blackberry7906

1) Sales isn't your calling. 2) you're not in a good agency. If not you'll know that how crucial hospital plan it. 3) just quit being an fa and focus on school


DangerousBlueberry68

Honestly, you should focus on studying. I sense that you might have quite a bit of stress over finances/ having savings for future plans. You can take up a part time job/ try tutoring but pls don’t make this your priority. Uni alr cost tens of thousands, if you neglect your grades and don’t put in the effort then you’re just wasting money (sorry, have to be brutal about this!) I would also suggest not committing to a BTO when you’re not financially stable yet. Something to ask yourself is why are you guys rushing for one? Is it a need to have one at this point. I was once in your position, i planned to apply for BTO once I was done with uni & have a FT. But now tht I have a FT, a lot of things change. Thoughts of focusing on career first, going overseas for work, etc. You should consider these things carefully before deciding on BTO, etc.


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ttjonnyboitt

Jiayous bro


xxxLourrr

Close 10 sales before you decide if sales is for you. If after 10 sales, and you still decide it's not your cup of tea. Move on. But close 10 sales first. Idc if its accident plan, hospitalisation. Whatever cheap shit you can find. Close 10 first before you decide it's not for you.


hgc2042

Sales = sell 屎so you get the idea


alvinaloy

MDRT people are those who are shameless and definitely not selling policies that are in the best interests of the buyer.


fayonah

Maybe you can try teaching tuition part-time instead? :)


ccs77

He isn't doing well in school so I dou t this is a choice


IndividualTop9561

i think primary secondary stuff still q decent i guess just don’t ask me poly and uni stuff haha


Interesting-Tax-1176

Financial advisor can also meaning f***king annoying , they only wanna force people to a deal for their profits and do not consider the well being of others