Is it Friday yet?" seems to be an all-too-common refrain in a typical claim department. While I love the weekend as much as the next guy, I have to say that wishing away a workweek has always struck me as an unsatisfying way to approach a career. It has an almost inescapable corollary that what one does on the job doesn't have any real meaning or value.
Unfortunately, claim departments can be breeding grounds for pessimism. Maybe it is the fast pace, the challenging workloads, or the impatient attitudes we often encounter from insureds and claimants. While it is unlikely that becoming an adjuster is a realization of a childhood dream, I don't think the profession is such a bad gig. It can not only provide a decent living but also plenty of opportunities to help others and alleviate human distress. This is also a satisfying career when we learn to focus on the positive aspects of our work and limit our anxieties.
A Fresh Perspective
Let me first avoid the pitfalls of "Peter Pan advice." Claim adjusting can be complicated, difficult, and demanding. The people we work with and for can be critical and impatient. We see a fair amount of the uglier side of the human experience–greed, destruction, fraud, death, and pain.
That being said, I do think there is value in the field of claims beyond just making enough money to pay the bills and support a family. While ignoring ugly realities doesn't help anyone, finding a proper perspective can make all the difference.
In the immortal words of the Greek Stoic philosopher Epictetus, "People are not disturbed by things, but by the view they take of them." Examining the attitudes and perceptions you have adopted can go a long way in changing your outlook and your career satisfaction. Some people really enjoy adjusting claims, whereas others do not. If you are struggling with job satisfaction and know someone who is consistently able to maintain a positive attitude, then ask what you can do to cultivate a brighter outlook.
We Do Some Good Things
At my company, we have a central aim of "making the insurance experience better." Of course that's not our only aspiration, but in claims it is a goal an adjuster can always feel good about. In fact, I think that is the best part of an adjuster's job–the ability to make others' lives a little bit easier when they encounter difficulties or tragedies.
Although I don't work for a charity, I have helped thousands of people over the course of my career, just as every adjuster has. I have paid for medical bills and damaged property, directed people to resources and information, helped to combat fraud, and offered consoling words in times of trouble. All adjusters have these kinds of stories to tell, and I think it's these real examples that can make all the difference in improving our occupational attitudes.
The Anxious Among You
For those of you trapped in a pattern of anxiety, looking at the course of history may be of some help. Although wishing away your week can have a crippling effect on your attitude, having an exaggerated sense of the importance of a job usually does little to increase the quality of a person's life.
Even though your job has value, it is temporary. Your life will come and go; you will be forgotten as the generations pass. While wanting to live a life of meaning, striving for success during your relatively short career should never eclipse the importance of simple peace of mind. As Percy Bysshe Shelley illustrates in "Ozymandias," even the works of the greatest and most powerful fade and disappear with time:
I met a traveler from an antique land
Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. . . .
And on the pedestal these words appear:
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look upon my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.
The Balancing Act
I'm a far cry from a mystic, but I do find some of the ideas in non-Western philosophies enlightening. Lao Tzu remarked in the Tao Te Ching that "if you know how to be satisfied you are rich." Learning how you can be content in your work is one of the most important lessons to learn. While it is admirable to have a strong desire to achieve excellence, a mind overly focused on reaching goals can be perennially dissatisfied and anxious. If your primary aspirations don't include a personal sense of satisfaction and peace of mind, then your planned successes (whether realized or not) are likely to be anything but satisfying.
Barrett A. Evans, CPCU, AIC, is a regional claim manager with Insurance House in Winston-Salem, N.C. He may be contacted at bevans@insurancehouse.com.
© Arc, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.