The November 2018 state elections will be the most significant election in many years.  We will elect a new governor after 8 years of Democrat, Mark Dayton, as well as a new House of Representatives.  Its been nearly three decades since we have elected a governor from the same party as the previous governor.  There have been only two years in the last twenty where a single party has controlled the house, the senate and the governor’s mansion.  This will all be decided in November and with the political climate, could the future of your business be in jeopardy?

With the Republican controlled MN Senate not on the ballot this year, the contest for the MN House of Representatives has attracted the attention of lobbyists and interest groups including our association’s political action committee, MIIAPAC. The Republicans control the House by a 77-57 margin. The Democrats will have to win 11 seats to wrestle away the majority. It will be a difficult task given the strong support for Republicans in greater Minnesota. 

MIIAPAC is in the process of awarding contributions to legislative candidates. Our top priority continues to be support of insurance agents and insurance professionals who seek public office. We have already sent some support to five insurance agent-legislators seeking re-election. We will also begin to review other insurance professionals that may be seeking office for the first time.

MIIAPAC also continues to support candidates who have advanced the MIIAB’s legislative agenda and who have advocated to agents and their customers. To do so, we need additional contributions from MIIAB members to elect the right candidates.

WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT TODAY!

As your lobbyist, I ask you to consider a contribution to MIIAPAC of 25, 50, 100 or 250. With additional funds, we will be able to get involved in the important races for governor and Attorney General.

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It’s one thing to know why you’re doing something, who you’re selling to, or even what makes your product or service better than the next guy’s. But, until you can adequately and effectively answer for how, your idea, product, sales, or whatever you endeavor to achieve may not become all you hope for.

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When people are asked what makes for a great salesperson they’ll often cite characteristics like listening, asking great questions, caring more about the buyer than themselves, building rapport and being liked as people, handling objections well and shutting up. These are all behaviors that can be found in the three values every great salesperson must possess.  

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It’s one of life’s universal lessons: Look both ways before crossing the street. Parents have been impressing its importance on every generation since Henry Ford tinkered with the internal combustion engine. 

However, many of us forgot that good advice, or assumed it didn’t apply, when crossing from one decade of business into the next. 

From the 1970s into the 80s, 90s and 2000s, the prevailing assumption was that the future would be relatively similar to the past, and that major changes only took place over long stretches of time, which provided plenty of leeway to adjust.

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