Protecting Client’s Happiness with Disability Insurance
Nov 13, 2022 | Written by Samuel Newland, CFP.
So, once you have permission to continue the conversation despite an initial no, where do you go now? Well, the fact that they rejected exploring a disability policy from the initial conversation indicates that there is something else – expectations of price, coverage, or prior personal experience – that is causing them to want to hold off.
You probably should not go straight into explaining all the reasons for having and looking into disability because you just were assertive to get the conversation continued. As “The Great Communicator,” Ronald Reagan, said, “If you’re explaining, you’re losing.” You will need to explain more reasons. But, as with anything, poison is in the dose and timing matters. You need to space out explaining with listening. And it is always better to listen first and explain second.
You can prompt them to open up about it by making an observation, posing it as a question with an upward inflection, and then waiting for them to answer. Negotiation MasterClass expert, Chris Voss, calls these Asking Labels™.
Here are some examples:
- It seems like there is something we have not discussed that makes you not want to look into it?
- It seems like there might be problems with affording an extra monthly bill?
- It seems like you might have something else on your mind about disability?
From there, be silent, listen to their answer, and demonstrate that you were listening to them by repeating what they told you back to them. At the end, you should get, “That’s right” repeated back to you, which is your signal that it is now your turn again.
Ultimately, the biggest reason for having a disability policy from a psychological perspective is that it is the financial protection from misery as a result of poverty. While we tend to have the belief that poverty is misery and wealth is bliss, only one of these ideas is actually true. And it is not that wealth buys happiness. More importantly, however, debating the truth of the relationship between happiness and money does not actually matter. Your client only cares what their personal experience has been with money and happiness.
So, the best path forward is letting your client tell you how their experience has been with money and happiness.
Here is how the conversation could go to give your client this same epiphany:
CFP: I have a quirky observation that my clients with money have all been happier than those who have lost it all. Does this surprise you at all?
Client: No. [chuckles]
CFP: It also has seemed like my clients with $1MM are as happy as those with $10MM, oddly enough. Right now, you have $500k, right?*
Client: Yes. That’s right.
CFP: Do you remember roughly how happy you were when you had $100k less?
Client: Yes.
CFP: Were you significantly less happy or about the same?
Client: About the same.
CFP: Knowing this, do you think you will be significantly happier having $100k more?
Client: Probably not.
CFP: Do you believe having a disability policy will significantly delay the timing of when you reach these financial benchmarks?
Client: No. Probably not.
CFP: Do you ever remember being broke, poor, or struggling with bills? How was that?
Client: Terrible.
CFP: Right? I agree. Do you think a disability policy would be a complete waste of money if it could protect you from the stresses of poverty and does not interfere with your personal and financial goals?
Client: No. Now it seems pretty reasonable.
CFP: Sounds good. Mind if I connect you with my disability experts to help you look into it?
Client: Not at all. Sounds like a plan.
By keeping focused on their personal experience, you can avoid the ambiguity and arguments very intelligent people can make against all of the studies on wealth and happiness. In the end, other people’s experiences do not matter to your client. Their life and experience are enough for making a good decision about protecting their happiness by protecting their wealth with a disability policy. And by framing all of the ideas as questions rather than talking points also makes it more collaborative and more rooted in listening and truth rather than telling them how they should or likely have felt.
We can provide help for free in 2 ways:
- Have any specific questions about the concepts or ideas in this article series or do not think it would be a bad idea to learn more about how to have better conversations
- Or how we can help your clients with acquiring the best life and disability policies for them
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