043: The Hardest Part of Running a Brokerage - with James Mant

<p align="justify">On today's episode, we’re excited to be chatting to James Mant, Managing Director of Greenfield Insurance Services. He talks with us today about his personal and professional journey through the insurance industry.</p> <p align="justify"> </p> <p align="justify">LEARNING OBJECTIVES:</p> <ul><li> <p align="justify">The most difficult part of the pandemic on the business was managing the expectations of both staff and clients.</p> </li> <li> <p align="justify">An important lesson learnt since going it alone is to always look at what the worst case scenario of a business decision could be before making it.</p> </li> <li> <p align="justify">The hardest part of running a business can be staff management because it’s important to get the culture correct.</p> </li> <li> <p align="justify">When thinking of going it alone, plan properly, underestimate your income by half, overestimate your overheads by 25% and have a brilliant support network around you.</p> </li> </ul> <p align="justify"> </p> <p align="justify">BEST MOMENTS:</p> <p align="justify">‘’When times are good and businesses are profitable, they're almost too busy to look at their insurance needs. When you get a downturn, it's one of the things that gets analysed first, like can we save money on insurance?’’</p> <p align="justify"> </p> <p align="justify">‘’I think the biggest challenge has been the loneliness, without any doubt, that's taken 12 to 18 months, I think, to get used to. I think in the very, very early stages, it felt very lonely.’’</p> <p align="justify"> </p> <p align="justify">‘’What is a business pressure can also turn into a personal life pressure. I think you can cope with one or the other but not both at the same time.’’</p> <p align="justify"> </p> <p align="justify">RESOURCES:</p> <p>Greenfield’s website: <a href='https://www.greenfieldinsurance.co.uk/'>https://www.greenfieldinsurance.co.uk/</a></p> <p>James’ Profile: <a href='https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-mant/'>https://www.linkedin.com/in/james