An LIC Agent Who Earns Five Times More Than the LIC Chairman!

“Failure will never overtake me if my determination to succeed is strong enough.”

- Og Mandino

Bharat Parekh

While still a teenager, at the age of 17, Bharat Parekh risked being an outcast among his collegemates. Not that he indulged in anti -social activities, nor were his friends caste-conscious; all he did was don the role of an agent for the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC). It was for Rs.300 a month in 1986 that Parekh sacrificed the charm of college days. Not that he grew up money-minded, but he too was faced with the bane most middle-class boys still face in India – getting their sisters married respectably.

Parekh, who missed out on watching matinee shows and playing cricket during his youth, is now a millionaire, who can afford most luxuries of life. As an agent, his annual income is over Rs.4 crore, around five times more than that of the LIC Chairman. In 2013, he topped the list of ‘top of the table’ qualifiers by earning a sum of Rs.1,64,59,383 as his first year commission, excluding bonus commission.

The sweat and toil behind selling 1,000-odd policies a year helped Parekh marry his five sisters off in accordance with the demands of Indian tradition. But the journey was a rough one. “I was the youngest in the family after five sisters. I needed a job to financially support my family,” says Parekh. “My sisters asked me if there is anything else I could do. My friends in college stopped talking to me.”

“An LIC agent was looked down upon and the perception was that only those who had nothing else to do in life became LIC agents.” Even getting recruited as an agent was difficult, given the minimum age for the job as 21. But Parekh managed to find work under a development officer at 18 and has never had to look back since then. His first few years in the business were quite mediocre as admitted by him. It was sheer discipline, hard work and commitment that propelled him on to the road to success.

He sells around 1,000 policies a year, the worth of a policy being Rs.2 lakh on an average, and manages to generate a premium of Rs.200 crore for the corporation, the highest generated by any agent in India.

Even as collegemates looked down on him and LIC was still a taboo for the middle class, finding a prospective bride was an uphill task for Parekh. “I had to produce my income- tax returns to prove to my potential father-in-law that I earn enough to take care of his daughter and bring up a family,” says Parekh.

“We are a happy family now. But building one was probably more difficult than convincing someone to buy an insurance policy,” says Parekh. Married to Babita, Parekh has no intention to abandon his career of three decades. “It is the world’s best profession,” says Parekh, citing the independence it provides and the sky-high opportunities to earn. Yet, not all LIC agents are as successful as Parekh. What, then, is his success formula? “Money is not everything,” says Parekh. “I try to understand the family and educational background of a person and then suggest which policy he or she should buy.”

Indeed, LIC agents also play the role of a wealth manager, or a fund manager, for many who are financially illiterate. “I converted a term plan into a pension plan for a rich, uneducated, widow to ensure her a regular income. Money does not stay with anyone. So it is necessary to have a regular income.”

"An LIC agent was looked down upon and the perception was that only those who had nothing else to do in life became LIC agents."

- Bharat Parekh

Here is what former LIC Chairman, T.S. Vijayan had to say about Bharat Parekh, “Any number of salespersons have like fleeting meteors flashed across the horizon and sunk into oblivion. Only rare become POLE-STARS. Steadfast in purpose and relentless in resolve, they spread their guiding light in all directions. Bharat Parekh is truly a pole-star. I have known Bharat Parekh for more than a decade and have admired the way he has reached dizzying heights from humble beginnings and yet retained his disarming humility and overpowering simplicity. And now, like the pole-star, he spreads the guiding light of legendary success through his lucidly illustrated book Adding More to Life.”

In his foreword to the book Adding More to Life, Vijayan says, “All of us are born with two great gifts, our mind and our time. It is up to us to do what we please to make most of both. How much we are able to put them to maximum use will determine our destiny. The choice is ours.” Having himself made a choice to succeed, he takes you through a gripping journey of a profession that promises ‘freedom of action’, ‘flexible working hours’ and ‘unlimited financial opportunity’. “Here is a book completely free of jargon but thoroughly experiential in its essence as it demystifies a profession often considered difficult and uncertain and goes on to reveal the secrets of translating trust into future business.”

Every chapter of the book is like the rung of a smooth ladder that elevates you with ease till you realise how high you have ascended. Beginning with the concept of Human Life Value, which is the basis of determining the insurance need, he sets out the fundamentals of goal setting, laying the foundations to build a towering career in marketing insurance.

The most difficult step of a child is the first step. So is for the salesperson. This book guides you to take that step without the fear of a fall as you go through the absorbing delights in ‘Good Morning Mr. Prospect’. He provides answers to the haunting question – ‘How to face the Big No’, the stage where a multitude of salespersons fail and drop out.

“Bharat Bhai”, as he is fondly addressed by his clients and friends, is a simple and unassuming person. His striking leadership qualities are evident in the way he motivates his team and manages his flourishing life insurance business. He has given several motivational speeches and conducted training programmes all over India. He has released several audio cassettes – ‘Way to Success: How I earned 50 lakhs commission in a year’, ‘How I reached the Top of the Table’, ‘Meet the No. 1, Be the No. 1’ and ‘Do the Best.’

He has a 25-member team of the dedicated professionals and a fully computerised office in a prime locality of Nagpur. He currently services approximately 25,000 policies and hopes to continue his endeavour in giving life insurance cover to more people.

Bharat Parekh, popularly known as the Architect of Human Happiness, is the Founder -CEO of his company. He is recognised amongst the most successful Wealth Managers in the country, having an experience of over 25 years in life insurance industry. He provides customised and need-based solutions to the financial requirements of the clients. He has the unique distinction of qualifying ‘Top of the Table’ (TOT) 10 consecutive times – the highest international recognition for the financial planners.