We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jason Candler. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jason below.

Jason, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

I’m not entirely sure where the idea for the 5 Dollar Difference experiment came from, but I’d recently read the book, Money: Master The Game by Tony Robbins and in the book, he did a presentation for a class of 5th graders so I guess that would be the inspiration for my 5th grade experiment. After my first experiment/presentation, I was so moved by the results of what the students did that when I met with my mentor I was I was over-the-top excited as I shared with him. He was moved by their kindness and recommended I write a book to tell their stories and inspire others in the community to give back as well… and here we are!

Jason, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I’m a father, and also a grandfather to two beautiful grand babies: Ember Lee and Ryleigh Grace… with a 3rd one on the way! When people say I’m “too young” to be a grandpa, I agree and say that’s why they call me “Funpa”! It’s like a grandpa, but younger and much better looking! I’m truly a big kid at heart and like his favorite author, Og Mandino, I worked as a life insurance consultant for a national company before starting my own insurance agency.

I’m passionate about giving back to the community, not only through my book, but through my agency as well.

We host a monthly fundraiser for Make-A-Wish called ‘Cocktails For A Cause’ where we buy the first round of drinks (boozy or booze-free) for everyone and we ask folks to make an in-kind donation to MAW. Last year, we raised just under $10,000 of those events!

We also host ‘Free Coffee Fridays’ where we feature a different local coffee shop and not only buy their coffee to serve in our office, we go to their shop once a month and buy coffee for anyone that comes through. At the end of the event, we tip the team and then match the tip amount to the shop’s charity/non-profit of choice.

Both events are a great way to meet people, enjoy some tasty beverages, and give back to the community.
A WIN/WIN/WIN!

When I’m not behind my computer, I love spending time outdoors with family and friends, exploring new hot springs, swimming in Lake Tahoe, cooking, photography, and training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu— in which I currently hold a purple belt.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

Building real relationships has been the most effective for us. In business and in life, people will only do business or socialize with people they know, like and trust and building real connections is the best way to hit all three.

I often have peers ask “how many leads I generate from this or that event”… and my answer is always the same: I don’t know because I don’t host these events or give back to get leads. I host these events to build genuine relationships, to show my support for individuals and businesses, to get to know people in my community, to understand what their needs and concerns are and to give back to the community.

I feel some business owners lose sight of what is most important because they’re focused on the transaction or sale. Build the relationship first and the business will come second.

Any advice for managing a team?

LISTEN. We have two ears and one mouth for a reason… we should listen twice more than we speak. Listening to your team, their wants, needs, concerns, and ideas is a great way to connect with them.

ACT. When they share something with you and it makes sense for the team and your business, implement it.

BE VULNERABLE. Being vulnerable is the fastest way to build a meaningful connection with your team. I often remind them that I’m new to managing this large of a team that performs at a high level and I ask them to extend me some grace and I do the same in return.

BE A TEAM. Plan your goals as a team, not from the top down. Ask them what they feel their personal goals should be as well as what they would like to see the company achieve. Start with the end goal and then work backwards to break it down into manageable chunks. As the saying goes, “you can’t eat an entire elephant in one bite… but you can eat it one bite at a time.”

PLAY. You need to play just as hard as you work. As a team, most of us spend 1/3 of our waking hours with our team members and if all we focused on was work, we would get burned out quickly. Our team has monthly team building events/outings where we close the office early and go to an escape room, play laser tag, race go carts, or have a bowling or mini-golf tournament. This increases morale and it’s fun to relax and enjoy each other’s company outside of the office.

Contact Info:

• Website: insurelocalnv.com
• Instagram: @jasoncandlerandassociates @jasoncandler5
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JasonCandlerAndAssociates
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-candler-b662053a/