Maebell grew up in Cuba and was studying engineering before she moved to the United States at the age of 22. She landed her first job in the States with a bakery and began working really hard to learn English.
The bakery was okay, but the hours and the pay were not. After 6 months she said to herself, “I cannot stay here” and began looking for a new job. She came across a flyer that seemed exciting – it was a role in sales that offered commissions, training, and a career opportunity. Maebell accepted the sales position she discovered on that flyer for a cemetery and funeral services company in 2004. She liked helping families through these hard times find the best way to honor and celebrate their loved ones. And, it didn’t take long for others to notice that she had a strong work ethic.
A year passed and she was promoted to assistant manager and managing 15 people … then promoted again the very next year to the manager and managing 90 people. She did this up until 2015. A little fun fact, Maebell met her husband, Jose, while working there (a fellow co-worker).
Years later her husband made a career change to the insurance industry and eventually joined the Unique Writers team. He quickly realized Maebell would be great selling insurance. Over the years Jose would repeatedly tell her, “You would be so good at this” and she politely turned him down every time.
She enjoyed the work she was currently performing, however, the hours proved to be extremely taxing. “I made good money, but I didn’t have a life. I was very busy.”
That all changed in 2015 when she attended the Unique Writers “Gold Rush” conference with her husband. “I immediately fell in love. I said, ‘I want to be a part of this!’” What stood out to her the most from the conference were the personal stories of Joe and Spencer. “Joe’s story was really moving and touched me where I was at. I didn’t like how I could be fired at any time.” Then, after hearing Spencer speak Maebell said to herself, “I love that you can make good money and have a good life too. If he can do it, I can do it too.”
Immediately following the conference, she began going through the courses to get her insurance license. She was still working at her other job and doing the courses part-time; but 2-3 months later she had her license!
When asked what her experience has been like with Unique Writers, she had this to say, “The team has been awesome. They have helped me a lot. The online University has been so great since I live in Florida – it doesn’t matter if I live in California or not, I have access to these resources wherever I’m at – no matter the time of day.”
Maebell recently passed her 1-year anniversary selling life insurance and definitely made impressive strides. You’ll see her on a regular basis on the National Leader Board – finishing #15 in the country in 2016.
Maebell ended with this, “I absolutely love that they have great leaders and a great system to follow – it’s the packaged deal! I love that you can own your own business, have freedom, time with your family, and go on some really nice [incentive] trips.”
Maebell said that she was a little rusty getting reacquainted with the sales field. But once she jumped back in she said it was really fun. “It’s what I like to do. We don’t just make money … we get to help people too! With insurance, I can help a lot of people with all the products we have available that they need to protect them.”
Doors Will Open “It doesn’t matter how many doors don’t open for you. What matters is the one that does. If you focus on that you can make $1,000, $2,000 to $3,000 in a week. Do that every week for a year and you can make the money you want to.”
Be Positive “When you’re positive people are more willing to invite you into their home and buy from you. If you visit 6 people in a day and they don’t open the door for you, you know the next one that does, you can make $2,000 or more. That’s the one that matters. You have to stay positive. It makes all the difference.”
Follow The System “You don’t need to reinvent the wheel. They (Unique Writers) have a system that works. If you follow it every week and with positivity, you’re going to get paid really well for your hard work.”
She has been married for 8 years and has 2 kids – Camila (4) and Sebastian (5). She credits a lot of her success to “my two amazing parents who helped me a lot.” Maebell is a pro scuba diver and tries to go every vacation. She also added that she has “the best husband a woman can have!”
Before Unique Writers, Kris worked for the college he was attending. It didn’t take long to realize that building maintenance for the school and cleaning bathrooms and dorms wasn’t what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. Kris began learning more about insurance, different ways to invest money, and the importance of protecting families’ legacies when his dad changed careers and started in the insurance industry.
In 2012, Kris received his insurance license and through an Independent Marketing Organization (IMO) he went into business with his dad. They saw great success in the few years they were there. As time passed, and even though things were thriving for them, they began to feel that there was something more out there for the legacy of their business.
Kris and his dad moved to another IMO in 2015 and did quite well for themselves and their team. Again, they found themselves in a place where they were fortunate for the opportunities presented to them; but there was a stirring to find a place that fits the legacy they desired to build for their business.
Then in 2016, Kris saw one of the UW agents (Andrew) on Facebook and reached out to him. Kris met up with Andrew to talk about his experience and had this to say about the meeting, “It was his intensity to help as many people as possible that stuck out to me; as well as how successful he was his first year – especially without having any previous insurance experience. But what really struck a chord, was that this was the kind of company we had been looking for! Our agents would have a great system to follow and the opportunity to make a great income!”
Kris and his team made the official transition to the UW family in early 2017 and have been enjoying every bit of the experience. He expanded on his appreciation of the culture with UW and how helpful it is in providing new agents incredible opportunities.
“I like how the newest agent can learn as fast as possible and make money as fast as possible. We can ALL become successful. I also like how UW says, ‘This isn’t a ‘get rich’ thing.’ It’s not all hype. It takes grit and hard work. But if you really become a student of the business, put in the hard work, and stick to the UW scripts and system … then you will make really good money and help people protect their biggest assets.”
Kris also really enjoys going on appointments and helping people find coverage and the security their family needs in case tough times come down the road.
“In the past, we met more with clients in our office. Now, I love to meet with them in their house – they are more comfortable in their own space. I love seeing their excitement to open up their home … it really creates a better experience.
It’s also the small things that we’re encouraged to do that stick out to me … like bringing a small gift, maybe some chocolates, or stopping by just to say, ‘Hi.’ Clients will give me a hug or say things like, ‘You’re so nice’ … ‘No one has ever treated me like this!’ I know I’m building trust and lasting relationships when that happens.”
Kris has only been with UW for a handful of months, but with his strong work ethic and passion for helping people, start looking for him on the Leader Board!
Kris had tried calling a specific client several times and even stopped by the house on multiple occasions when he was in the neighborhood. He was persistent and finally, SUCCESS! He set an appointment to meet with her on a Saturday morning. When he showed up for the appointment, she was cooking breakfast for 4-5 kids and had totally forgotten about it.
She invited Kris in and began to share about how her fiancé had passed away months ago from cancer. “I turned to her and asked if he had any coverage.
She said, ‘No’ and began sobbing. She went on to tell me how hard it had been.” She also shared that she saw how important it was to have coverage and filled out an application with Kris right there.
“Helping her find coverage and feel secure in their family’s toughest time, made me feel so rewarded that I could help them out.”
“At Conference, Ted DiBiase Jr. and I were talking about one of the session speakers who said, ‘If you’re faithful with little, you’ll be faithful with more’ and how that applied to us. Even if you’re just getting started this will help you be successful in work and in life. What we do now, will help us when we become successful. We have to put in the effort, time, and work now if we want to see success and grow our businesses.”
Kris is a BIG family guy and loves hanging with them as much as possible – especially his 2 little sisters and 2 little brothers. He likes baseball (used to play when he was in school), being outdoors, on a lake, hiking and taking photos along the way. He also loves to travel. He said he has a goal … by age 30 he wants to travel to all 7 continents. “It’s great that the insurance industry allows me the freedom, the income, and the time to do that (travel) … while getting to be my own boss.”
