Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Arnitha Webb, Co-Founder of Insurancepreneur Vault Agency LLC, located in Sicklerville, NJ, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

I help insurance, and financial service professionals build 6+ Figure incomes. Insurancepreneur Vault Agency is an MGA operating as a consulting company, digital insurance agency, lead generation, sales agent, and agency ownership training platform. We also offer a pre-licensing program that helps individuals who wish to learn to sell insurance how to pass the state licensing exam in 30 days. Our Vision is to help families overcome economic downturns and create financial security so they can do more than survive.

Tell us about yourself

My journey has many branches but is rooted in entrepreneurship and a love for international travel. I've owned other brick & mortar businesses, even an insurance agency through a major carrier, Farmers Insurance, for a while. But what landed me here ultimately was due to life experiences, managing final arrangements for family members when they passed away. Each family member has vastly different plans or, in some cases, nothing at all, leaving the family to pull together funds and resources. Having family members avoid difficult conversations, hearing the beliefs about insurance, and personally realizing, even when I entered the industry, just how little I knew. It is a wake-up call to learn some 'things' later rather than sooner. The saying "if I knew back then what I know now" takes on new meaning. In 2015, I lost my husband. In 2016, I lost my mother. In 2017, I opened my first insurance agency. "I am passionate about making an impact," and I need agents all across the country and world to do that. I want families to do more than survive when life happens. My clients live all around the world because I also specialize in international and ex-pat insurance.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

Let me answer that in two parts. First, my biggest accomplishment as a business owner is deciding what NOT to do so that I can have the space to do what I should do. As entrepreneurs, we wear many hats, and I am a big-picture thinker. I see the vision far ahead of today's reality, so it is very important that I consistently assess what NOT to do today. Second, my biggest accomplishment would be building a local agency to a 6-Figure+ Book of Business within the first 12 months. I did not acknowledge my own success at the time; however, other MGAs were vying for my partnership which told me I was doing better than 'good.'

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

The 5 hardest things about being a business owner are:

  1. Not allowing doubt to creep into your psyche. You must guard your thoughts and choose the people you interact with wisely. Feed your mind with information that nurtures your goals and keeps creative thought flowing.
  2. Learning how to track your business. Business is math; math is money. Be clear and truthful with yourself as you invest in your business. You must invest in your business in order for it to become viable; if you don't believe your business is worth your own money, do not ask anyone else to invest in it.
  3. Absorb the mistakes and keep going. There are gems in the mistakes, but the key is not to dwell too long on them. Identify what you did right and wrong, what you could have done better, or if you simply went in the wrong direction. If the mistake caused a financial loss, this should add fuel to your passion to pivot and keep going.
  4. Understanding 'Time'. Entrepreneurs do not count the 'time' they put into their businesses. Our businesses are everything; therefore, time is not a factor.
  5. Learning things you have zero interest in. Being a business owner is more than doing the thing you love. Being a business owner is being a steward over an entity that is separate yet connected to you. Your business has to have its own "corporate" foundation, its own "brand," its own "financial stability," and its own set of day-to-day "operations" to survive. It is your responsibility to ensure all of that is in place and can run without you.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

  1. This may sound cliche, but before starting a business, please know your 'WHY'! If you don't have a clear why you will easily allow distractions, and you will not be able to pivot and keep going when things don't go as planned.
  2. Don't treat your business like a hobby. Your business can be the one thing that changes the financial well-being of your family. You can't rely on the job someone else gives you, but you CAN rely on yourself.
  3. At a minimum, develop a 5-year plan. Identify where you want to be within 12 months, 24 months, etc., and take action every single day to reach those goals from year 1 to year 5. If you are on the right trajectory by year 4, start planning to scale up to year 10.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://insurancepreneurvault.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AGENCY.BeYourOwnBoss
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/arnithawebb/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/insurancepreneurvault/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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