Folks, we have 3 storms of tropical storm force or greater churning in the Atlantic. While its too early to say how much work will spring from these three its safe to say that the 2010 Atlantic season has just turned the volume up to 11…

Follow Earl through the lens of Stormpulse…be sure to turn “Forecast Models” to the “On” position.

My coach, who I admire greatly, taught me the principle of the oxygen mask.

On a plane, when the oxygen masks drop, put yours on first before helping others put on theirs.  This is because if you don’t have oxygen, you’ll pass out and won’t be able to help others anyway.  The reason why this is so profound for me is that it seems counter intuitive – you love your kids, so you want to get their mask on first – but it doesn’t work that way.

This principle is true in all areas of our life.  If we’re short on “oxygen”, even simple tasks are overwhelming and our actions are ineffective.

From 5:30am till about 6:30am is my scheduled “oxygen mask” time.  What do I do during this time?  Pray, read scripture, meditate, visualize, plan and try to align my life with what’s truly important to me.  I’m getting my “oxygen” so I’m clear, focused and able to help myself and others the rest of the day.

Sometimes, however, I forget the oxygen mask principle, and it goes like this.  I love my work, so I get up thinking about it.  I walk to my oxygen mask place, but on the way I check my email.  My attention is caught by a few important emails.  I decide to attend to them, which leads me to other “urgent” tasks, and the next thing I know I’m full swing in my day and busy till night.

What I find, however, is that prolonged neglect of my oxygen mask time gets me off track.  I find that I’m busy but not effective.  I also find myself less able to keep my head when things get heavy, and even small things start to seem like big problems.

I’ve learned that life is all about getting crystal-clear about what you want and aligning your thoughts, feelings and actions with it.  Oxygen mask time does just that.  It allows me to remember what’s important to me and realign myself with it.  It’s a recharge, a re-focus, a perspective adjustment, and it keeps the ship on course.  Oxygen mask time does not need to be in the morning.  We need oxygen all day, every day.  Oxygen is about making sure your own needs are met so you can meet the needs of others and of the world (including your job).

We’re in the heart of the CAT season, and hurricane Earl is bearing down on the East coast.  I have no idea what will happen, but I can guarantee you that if you’re deployed you’ll need oxygen.   Working CAT claims can get very, very hectic, and the temptation to set aside the oxygen mask and get busy is immense, but take heed – this is exactly when oxygen is needed most!  Effective CAT adjusting is so much more than frantically running from loss to loss inspecting and taking pictures, I promise you.  A cool head, level attitude, purposeful, intentional use of time and strategy all require oxygen.  I actually enjoy catastrophe deployment, and have gotten to the place where I find it enjoyable and even relaxing (in a way).  With Oxygen, a CAT deployment means you’re busy and involved but not frantic and harried.  It means you’re strategic instead of running around trying to inspect every loss “yesterday”.  You discover that you’re helping real people in a real time of need and it’s tremendously rewarding (and lucrative). Without oxygen, the pressure can seem too much. Everyone wants their loss inspected first, and the carriers want the claim closed yesterday.  Using Xactimate is harder than it seemed in class, and your reports are getting kicked back.  Your GPS puts you 20 miles from the proper address.  Your computer crashes.  I’ve seen these types of set-backs – all normal parts of CAT life – crush folks who are short on oxygen.

When life heats up, the air gets thin.  In life and in CAT adjusting, make sure your mask is on first!

From Jeff Master’s Wunderground, the Top 10 Costliest Weather Disasters since 1980.  Number one, Hurricane Katrina.  Numbers two and three may surprise you -  drought.  I’m interested to know if one can buy a rider for drought on a farm/ranch or crop policy?

Hurricane Earl – now category 2 – is expected to become a major category 4 hurricane today.  From today’s CNN.com article:

“Earl could affect areas in the United States from the Carolinas to Cape Cod, Massachusetts, over Labor Day weekend, said CNN meteorologist Jacqui Jeras.

It is too soon to tell whether the storm could make landfall, she said. However, outer bands of the storm are likely to hit North Carolina beginning Thursday, kicking up large swells and possibly generating rip currents through Labor Day weekend, Jeras said.” (for the full article and projected path click here)

Although I can’t (in good conscience) wish for a hurricane hit, I do pray for opportunities for adjusters to be of service to those affected by a disasters.  Let’s hope earl gives us an opportunity to help those in need!

Independence!

Many, many of us experience tremendous frustration in our career, living day after day, year after year in a work situation we find confining, stifling and which frankly just doesn’t fit us. Perhaps we’re stuck in a cubicle. Perhaps we dislike our manager. Perhaps we’re selling something we don’t believe in. Perhaps we can’t seem to make a difference or get ahead.

But then we meet someone who has taken a different path; they’ve developed a career that has lead to freedom, travel, and time with their family. They can be their own boss, lose the suit-and-tie, work their own hours, and they see a direct connection between how hard and how smart they work and the results in their life.

If you dream of making a career change that will allow you this kind of independence, we’ve got good news for you; you can do it, it’s not too late and now is the time to make the change. But How? Well, there’s more than one way, but we have found that our own careers as Independent Insurance Adjusters have afforded us just the freedom we desire, and we want to show you how.

We make our own hours. We travel as much as we want. We dress respectably but casually. We help folks in need, and have fun doing it. We can work hard for a short period of time and take it easy the rest of the year if we choose. We can work with our spouses. We can develop claims companies, hire adjusters under us and grow a business as large as we want in a stable, recession-proof industry. We can stay right where we are, handling daily claims in our own hometown. Perhaps we do our paperwork on Mondays, and do our inspections on Fridays. Heck – maybe we hire someone to do our paperwork and focus 100% on inspection, or dispute resolution, or consulting! The sky’s the limit, and we personally know literally hundreds of folks who’ve found the independence that we have.

We have found that it is one of the great ‘undiscovered’ careers for folks who want independence and great pay, and we can get you trained and ready for your new career in as little as a week! We invite you to call today to talk with one of our Adjuster Training Consultants to see if Insurance Adjusting is a good fit for you; the time is now to make a change!
We’re here to help you make the career change you’ve been dreaming of.

Claims Magazine has an interesting report on how the BP oil spill could impact IA supply heading into the teeth of Hurricane season.  The article states -

Even if just 10 percent of the independent adjusters wound up working oil spill claims, it would leave a large gap in the number of adjusters from which to draw. Actions would have to be taken in terms of training others to handle catastrophe and property claims, or another source would need to be found (i.e. contractors).

Time will tell, but this could be a prime year for new and aspiring adjusters to prove themselves.

The best just got better.

AdjusterPro is tremendously excited to announce that our Oct. 7th-13th Tx Total Adjuster Program (Tx All-Lines Adjuster Licensing, Adjusting 101, & Xactimate 27 Training) will be conducted at Vale Training Solution’s state-of-the-art facility in Arlington, Tx.

Combine AdjusterPro’s straight-talking courses and dynamic instructors with Vale’s advanced training environment (full-sized mock “Vale House”) and you have the most powerful adjuster licensing & training session available anywhere.

Here is a full breakdown of the schedule:

• Texas All-Lines Adjuster Licensing – Oct. 7th-9th
• Practical Adjusting 101 – Oct. 10th
• Xactimate 27 Training – Oct. 11th-13th

Register online 24/7 or call (214) 329-9030 with questions.

If you are looking for employment within the claims industry and aren’t routinely checking out www.greatinsurancejobs.com, you are missing out on one of the best adjuster job resources on the web.

My recommendation:

1) Click here to visit the website

2) In the top-left under Search Insurance Jobs, specify Claims under -Select Career Interest-

3) Select ALL under -Select Insurance Discipline-

4) Select All States under -Select State-

5) Click on Search Jobs to see the 1,000 or so current listings

You can later go back and narrow your search to one particular discipline (e.g. Property & Casualty) or state (e.g. Kansas) but get a feel for what’s out there on a broad level first.

I’d then recommend creating a profile, uploading your resume, and signing up to be emailed when new positions (fitting whatever criteria you are looking for) become available.

Utilize every available online resource, knock on as many doors as possible, and the right opportunity WILL present itself.

…. Insurance Adjusting is a recession-proof industry!

As our economy continues to slide, many are surprised to find that their once-strong industry has “dried up” – there’s just no work.  Take, as example, several jobs surrounding the housing industry – home inspectors, appraisers, real estate agents, and the entire gambit of contractors – have all watched their jobs disappear as the housing bubble popped.

If you find yourself in an unstable line of work, take heart!  There are stable industries, and you’ve just found one.

Insurance has become a true foundational necessity in our society.  Individuals and businesses have come to rely on it, but more importantly for job stability the banks and lending institutions absolutely require it.  Take home insurance, for instance – no bank will offer a home mortgage without insurance in place.  Even if the homeowner defaults, the mortgage company takes over payments or has their own policy for the home!  The same is true in every area of insurance – liability, workers’ compensation, automobile, marine insurance, the list goes on and on.

Moreover, losses occur regardless of the economy!  Hurricanes don’t care if we’re in a recession.  Kitchen fires don’t care if the economy shifts.  Auto accidents happen regardless.  And insurance adjusters are needed to adjust these losses, all across the country, and year-round.

All this means that insurance is here to stay – in good times and in bad – and so are insurance jobs.  So hop off of the merry-go-round, and let us help you get feet on solid ground by giving you the tools to succeed in a career in insurance adjusting.

Call one of our Adjusting Career Consultants today – you’ll find them tremendously helpful in deciding if a career in Insurance Adjusting is for you.

The slumbering Kraken of the Atlantic is beginning to stir.  Near the Cape Verdes Islands off the west coast of Africa, Tropical Storm Danielle portents that the 2010 Hurricane season’s most dangerous formations are awakening.  Per Jeff Master’s blog:

Danielle is a classic “Cape Verdes”-type of storm common during the peak part of hurricane season. Cape Verdes-type storms are so named because they form from tropical waves that come off the coast of Africa and pass near the Cape Verdes Islands just west of Africa. Cape Verdes hurricanes are the largest and most dangerous types of hurricane in the Atlantic, since they spend a long time over water have and have of opportunity to reach full maturity. Danielle is over warm 28°C water, is experiencing low wind shear of 5 – 10 knots, and is embedded in a moist environment–conditions which favor intensification into a hurricane by Tuesday.

Coca Cola, Blackwater, Malboro, Starbucks, etc.  – every company has a “brand”, for better or worse.  Companies work very hard to mold and protect their brand.  A brand can take years or even decades to develop, and can sometimes be destroyed in a day.

Wikipedia explains that the word brand began simply as a way to tell one person’s cattle from another by means of a hot iron stamp.  The meaning has evolved and expanded, but the point is clear – it’s your “mark”.

I’ve been working on my own personal website as of late, which has led me to reflect on my own “brand” – who am I to the public?  what is my mark?  In other words, when people think of me, with what do they associate my name?

More from Wikipedia: “A brand is the personality that identifies a product, service or company (name, term, sign, symbol, or design, or combination of them) and how it relates to key constituencies: Customers, Staff, Partners, Investors etc.” and goes on to say “The experiential aspect consists of the sum of all points of contact with the brand and is known as the brand experience. The psychological aspect, sometimes referred to as the brand image, is a symbolic construct created within the minds of people and consists of all the information and expectations associated with a product or service.”

I want my “brand image” to be one of integrity, excellence, honesty, effectiveness and – frankly – love.  Love of God, others and self.  I want it to be clear that I strive to be the best Adam I can be and that I give it all I’ve got.  Of course I can’t create this image by writing the right stuff on my website; I’ve got to be excellent first – the “brand” of excellence will follow, sure as night follows day.  I’m building or pulling down my brand every day by my actions.  What I do in business and how I treat others is a reflection of who I am inside.

I invite you to join me in reflecting – what’s your brand?  What do you want it to be?  Is there a disconnect between what it is and what you want it to be?  How do your family, friends, coworkers and others with whom you interact see you?

Ultimately, your brand will be an essential part of your career as an adjuster.  Once you’re in, you’ll see that the adjusting business is a actually a pretty small world, and your reputation will come to mean the difference between a flash in the pan and a long career as a respected professional.

What’s your brand?

Most folks who are learning Xactimate use a “demo” install to learn.  This way they can learn the sofware without having to pay for an active subscription until they are deployed.  For years, Xactimate allowed for a 30-day demo by using the code DEMO-XM8 during the install.  However, Xactimate changed the demo process dramatically when they introduced Xactimate version 27.

Version 27 requires that you go through their order process and order the demo (either disc or download) in order to get a unique code which is then used to access Xactimate for a trial period.  The Xactimate 27 trail period has been 15 days since the date that you placed the order.  However, recently Xactware has extended the trail period to 30 days from the date that the order was placed.  This is good news – the 15-day trail period has been problematic for students who want to tinker with Xactimate prior to attending class.

Here is the link to order the demo (click here) – be sure to choose version 27, not 25!