We were lucky to catch up with Sarah Springer recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Sarah thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.
I started my career with insurance in 2019 as a corporate agent. The biggest risk I have taken is leaving behind a 2 million dollar book to open my agency and start from zero. One of the reason insurance is lucrative is because you receive residual income every time a previous client renews their insurance. My renewals alone were around $80,000 annually, so it was terrifying to lose that and completely start over when I launched my agency in 2022. I really just had to bet on myself and know that business ownership was the path I needed to take because it would be worth it in the long run.
Sarah, 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?
Finding my way to insurance was really unexpected. I was a teacher for 6 years and even hold a Masters degree in education. I knew the burn out was getting to me and my paychecks weren’t going to get bigger so I needed to make a change. I took a sales role in the logistics industry – knocking on 50 doors a day for about 8 months. In 8 months I never hit one of my goals and I was beyond defeated. I really felt like a failure and that I would never be able to be in a sales role. I started to think about going back to teaching, but I knew my heart was not in it. After 8 months of not hitting goals, I started to receive a lot of calendar invites for coaching and development – which translated to me that I was going to be fired soon. After teaching I had depleted a majority of my savings prior to starting the sales role, so I could not go another month without paycheck. I went on LinkedIn and immediately started replying to all my messages – “Hi, is this opportunity still available?” One of those opportunities was Goosehead Insurance. I was taking a $10,000 pay cut transitioning to Goosehead, but was promised commission would be great if I worked hard. I didn’t believe them, because that’s what the last job told me, and I never earned $1 of commission because I wasn’t hitting any of my goals. To say the least, I joined with a HUGE chip on my shoulder. I was no optimistic, but I needed the $40,000 salary to get by until I could find my “real” job. I was ashamed to tell my friends and family I was an insurance agent because I felt like I was in a lesser role that I was overqualified for. Well one month goes by and I hit a goal, get a bonus. Next month, another goal hit, another bonus. Real estate professionals were very receptive to me and wanted to send me business – I was shocked. I would say I was about 6 months in when I actually realized I was making great money and actually enjoying what I was doing. Fast forward two years – I hit top producer and was promoted to sales manager. I managed a team of 15 agents, while still selling and maintaining the production of a top producer. About 6 months after that, I realized how much insurance I was selling and how much I was giving away because I was a corporate employee. I decided then to open my Franchise and become a business owner. In 2.5 years I built a 2 million dollar book that I would have to leave behind and start from scratch – I had over 1,600 policies in force. Today I am just in my 13th month of owning my franchise and my book is already 1.6 million – I will pass my old 2 million dollar book before my 2 year mark. Just two months ago I hired my first producer who was #1 in her training class and is absolutely crushing it. This is only the beginning – I hope to have a 10 million dollar book one day, and to have over 15 producers at the Sarah Springer agency!
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
When I graduated high school, I had zero plans for college. No one in my family went to college – so why should I? Even if I wanted to go, how would I be able to pay for it? My grandmother who raised me told me if I was not going to college that I needed to move out and pay my own rent so I would understand what it was like to make it in life without an education – she knows all too well as she did not graduate the 8th grade and has had to work harder than anyone should have to just to get by. So that was it – I moved out – she co-signed on an apartment for me since I had no credit. I was next door to meth heads and paying $300 per month for rent, which I could barely afford. I worked the morning at a dollar store, left around 3-4pm straight to Sonic. I changed into my uniform in the bathroom and transitioned from Dollar store cashier to carhop. I worked at Sonic until midnight and woke up the next day to do it all over again. After a little less than 1 year, I had a mentor in my life tell me I was smart and she wanted to know why I didn’t ever try to go to college. I told her I couldn’t even afford to pay my rent, how could I afford college? She was a teacher and she invited me to the senior night where she would help me fill out applications for financial aid – she was the first person to tell me that I could probably get my college paid for because I was a first generation college student. I ended up going to junior college. Before I left, she told me I needed to stay focused, get involved in clubs on campus, and there was a chance I could go to a four year college. I took what she said to heart because I was not going back to live with the meth heads. I started applying to clubs and programs that summer before school even started. I interviewed and was selected to be an ambassador for the college – giving tours to prospective students and organizing activities around campus. I joined numerous other organizations. All this time, I enrolled in no less than 20 hours per semester and finished with 80 credit hours and a 3.8 GPA. Though not the Valedictorian, I was selected as the commencement speaker at graduation. At the end of the ceremony they announced 10 full ride scholarships and I was awarded a full ride to Texas A&M.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
Taking care of my clients – not just to get the sale, but forever. It’s one thing to be responsive and quick when you are trying to get a deal closed – it’s another thing to answer the phone and take care of someone who has been your client for 5+ years. I think a lot of agents get lost in the new business and they neglect their existing book of clients which is the biggest mistake you can make. Taking care of your existing clients builds your reputation and leads to more referrals. I think taking care of new and old clients sets me apart and has build my reputation. 
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.goosehead.com/agents/tx/houston/sarah-springer/?t=w
- Instagram: sarahspringer281
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BearaSarah
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-springer-377912159/