Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Barbara Leanne Malone. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Barbara LEANNE, thanks for joining us today. How do you think about vacations as a business owner? Do you take them and if so, how? If you don’t, why not?

When I opened my business as a solo owner/agent in 2013 I took zero vacations that were not working trips. We grew, I hired agents to work for me and I was able to take my first unplugged vacation in 2020. I remember being so excited to leave the laptop behind and then I got a call from the office as I was in the lobby of the cruise ship that started with “I hate to bother you but” from one of my staff. I remember being gutted in that moment and thinking that it was going to be impossible to ever really walk away and disconnect as long as I was the PIC (person in charge). I’ve learned to set better boundaries in regard to my personal time and since I go to 6/7 day workweeks during our busiest season I try to get away for a long weekend every 6 weeks or so. It helps me stay balanced.

Barbara LEANNE, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

This business was started by myself and my now ex husband. He was in property and casualty insurance and he saw that there was a need for private health insurance. I obtained my insurance license in 2005 and I handled all of the life and health business under the new business to make sure there would be no conflict of interest. I grew the business through networking groups and referrals. When we divorced in 2013 I was awarded full ownership of the business I had built. The industry has changed and grown a lot over the last 19 years and I’m happy to say that we (the company) have grown and changed with it.

Our primary agency focus is under 65 health insurance, Medicare, Life and Dental/Vision. We work with quite a few local agencies in handling the health clients they don’t service. This partnership allows them to become a full service agency while not having to create a dedicated staff for this. In turn we refer business out by zip code to our local partners. We are 100% referral based and we have seen a good amount of growth every year.

One of the things that sets us apart from other agencies is that we specialize in Health and Medicare. When the Affordable Care Act passed in 2010 and went into effect in 2013 I watched numerous people I worked with for years go out of business. Rules changed, commissions got cut and things got really hard as an industry. We stayed in to help people even knowing it would take years to get back revenue wise to where I was pre 2013. It took me 5 years to get back to that 2012 level and now we have over doubled that. We spend a lot of time working with our clients and treat everyone on a personal level rather than a cookie cutter, one size fits all approach. We still make house calls when needed and when you call us you don’t get a random person but the same people you know. It makes a big difference when you are dealing with something as important as your health.

Have you ever had to pivot?

2010. At the start of that year I was a owner of a business I worked part time so that I could stay home with my kids and homeschool them. By the end of 2010 I was starting divorce proceedings to end a 20 year marriage (and 24 year relationship) I went to work full time so I could support myself and my kids and they were enrolled in a brick and mortar school for the first time ever. They were 15 and 13. It was what I refer to as the birth of my 2.0 phase of life. The old life was gone and I started life again at 40. The divorce took 28 months and was as brutal of one as I’ve ever heard of for all involved but now, 14 years later we are in a new and better place.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

We partner with other local agencies and make sure to not compete if we have overlapping lines of business. For example, in my industry most all of us offer life insurance but if you are referred to me from another agency and ask me about life I will tell you that I do offer it but I won’t offer it to you. I will send an email while we are talking to the person that sent them to me and let them know that client x is interested in life. A quick sale is not worth a relationship built on trust. It is a philosophy that has served us well.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.covermyassets.com
• Instagram: covermyassetsinsurance
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CoverMyAssetsInsurance
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10862986
• Other: www.fitandfluffy.com
  The fitness/health/mental heath blog I write