Today we’d like to introduce you to Brian Jolles.
Hi Brian, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I had always known I would be an entrepreneur growing up. But it wasn’t until my sophomore year in college when I had a clear vision for the ingredients that would define my eventual thirty-five-plus-year career that I continue to enjoy to this day.
My recipe: (1) I will truly serve others in a way that brings value into their lives; (2) I will be so passionate about what I do that I would do it for free if I had a way to pay my bills; and (3) I will wake up every morning and go to sleep every night feeling a deep sense of pride in my work.
While in high school, in addition to the typical jobs, mowing lawns, shoveling snow, bussing, and waiting tables, I started my first company – “Brian’s Odd Jobs and Home Repairs”. After coming up with a long list of offerings, and creating my one-minute presentation, I was hard at work knocking on doors. I never said NO to any job, small or large; I was fearless.
The problem was that I wasn’t at all mechanical. I didn’t know which way to turn a screwdriver and I brought on a partner who wasn’t much better. I would get the jobs and the two of us would go to the library and read books to figure out how to get them done. Before long we learned…this wasn’t our calling! But, as they say, “You learn from everything you do, and especially from your mistakes”.
What I did learn was that I could sell and that people put their trust in me. In my freshman year of college, I was hired to generate leads from door to door selling windows and siding. Right from the start, I loved the challenge and the competition. I liked meeting new people and I simply let negative experiences roll off and focused on the wins. Another lesson learned was to focus on the satisfaction of winning appointments and not on the money. The money would come and it was very good. But I also learned that the products and the services were not…so I quit.
I realized that I had an awesome responsibility to use my sales talent to bring value to others. I searched for a sales career path that would make a difference to the families and businesses that would put their trust in me. Right out of college, I started my career with the New York Life and very soon after that, I set off on my own as an independent insurance & financial advisor.
Alright, let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what challenges have you had to overcome?
Theodore Roosevelt said, “Nothing worth having comes easy.” I knew my career would be hard and that was exciting to me. I learned from my earlier experiences that it’s about getting up when you fall, making adjustments, and keep knocking on doors. Most people don’t see past failures and give up too quickly. My father taught me that you have to put in the time and effort to build knowledge and skills. Even though many a night, I could only afford mashed potatoes, I kept learning and knocking on doors.
In the earlier years, it felt too much like sales and it took some time to start seeing myself as a consultant. My transformation became clear when I began to focus completely on the needs of my clients. I knew my products and services and I made sure that I knew the products and services of my competition. Knowing that I was doing the best for our clients, meant that my recommendations came with a very strong conviction because I knew when, what, and why a particular product or service was the right fit.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Jolles Financial started out specializing in employee benefits. Our brand, from day one, was “Setting the Standard for Service.” My uncle, who had his practice, taught me that referrals are earned by helping employers and employees understand their benefits, being there when they need an advocate, and following up promptly to their questions. Every time we provided great service, we created positive ripples in the water.
My wife, Lisa Jolles, joined the practice early on as my partner. She immediately took charge of the employee benefits which allowed me to focus on the individual insurance and financial needs of both key executives and employees. With the expansion of our services, we became Jolles Insurance & Financial and Lisa took on a larger role as President.
Lisa’s entire team was focused on service and this was the big differentiator. Our motto says it all…“Brian makes the promises and Lisa keeps them.” 30 years later, we sold the employee benefits division for seven figures. Jolles Financial still lives by these same principles as we continue our focus on serving the individual insurance and financial needs of our clients. It’s the decades of creating positive ripples in the water that allow us to continue to enjoy our work, our friends, and our family.
After many years of helping our clients through health, disability, and death claims, we discovered a way to proactively add protection on the front end by promoting healthy living. After creating an extensive wellness program for our agency, we were awarded a small cash prize. We leveraged the money to start “We Promote Health, Inc.” (WPH), a 100% volunteer non-profit organization promoting wellness in workplaces, schools, and the community.
We are very proud of our annual “Howard County Family Wellness Day”, now in its 16th year, and the always FREE “Boot Camp in the Park”, a free exercise program for all ages and fitness levels every Saturday morning from mid-March to mid-November, in its 13th year. To promote Boot Camp in the Park, we brought the community together to set the Guinness World Record for the Largest Outdoor Circuit Training in 2011. But it was never about the record; it was about getting people off the couch and building community. Over 2500 individuals have participated over the years.
If you ever find yourself near Centennial Park in Howard County on a Saturday morning, come on out and join the fun!
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Growing up, I was quiet and shy except at home and with my family. My family laughs when I tell others this because they remember that I was always talking at home. Ironically, now that I’m older, my friends laugh because they can’t imagine that I was ever quiet!
I enjoyed sports and especially swimming. And I also learned early on how good it felt to give back to others. I remember a funny story when I was 16. After walking off a baseball field with my friends at the JCC in Rockville, MD, I noticed a slightly opened door on the side of the building. I thought it would be cool to check it out. I walked into a very dark room filled with boiler equipment and other obstacles. Eventually, I came to another door and I opened it. I found myself blinded by the light and standing at the edge of an indoor pool with a bunch of special needs kids and their parents all staring at me.
I didn’t know how to explain what I was doing there but I realized that I better have an explanation. An adult leader asked, “Are you here as a volunteer for the Guldelsky Swim Program?” “Absolutely” I replied. “Do you have a swimsuit?” he asked. “No, I guess I’ll have to come back next week.”, I said. “That’s ok,” the man said, “we have an extra guard suit in the office.” I was assigned to work with a young boy and, in minutes, we were in the pool.
An hour later, he hugged me goodbye and said, “See you next week!” All I could say was “Sure”, but I hadn’t made up my mind. The next week came and I couldn’t disappoint him. I was there every Sunday thereafter until the end of the program. It felt so good to be there for this little guy and I believe I got just as much out of it as he did!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.JollesFinancial.com
- Other: www.WePromoteHealth.org
