Insurance agent jobs require just the right balance of commission-driven ambition with an analytic approach that is adapted toward individual clients. That's why when to comes to the general perception that insurance agents are pushy and only care about their commission is completely different than what people feel about THEIR agent.

Insurance agents are primarily of two types, independent insurance agents and captive insurance agents. A captive agent belongs to a particular company and sells products offered by that company alone. An independent agent has no such mandate and is free to choose whichever company’s product he will sell.

Sometimes referred to as insurance sales agents, help clients choose insurance policies that suit their needs. Clients include individuals and families as well as businesses. Captive agents work for an insurance company, and only sell that company's products. Independent insurance agents, or brokers, represent several companies.

Types of insurance include property and casualty, life, health, disability, and long-term care insurance. Many of them also sell mutual funds, variable annuities and other securities. It are those individuals who specialize in marketing and selling different policies on behalf of an insurance company.

While the bulk of the work in insurance agent jobs focuses on selling different insurance products and policies, there is also a great deal more that determines the success of an insurance agent. In fact the most successful are not considered the best sales people.

They need to be very hard working in order to be successful. Basic education is definitely the most important requirement. Other than that an agent needs to be extremely attentive, must have the ability to listen to his clients and understand from the perspective of the client.

The reason for their success is often sited as their willingness to go the extra mile when servicing their clients - even though there is no direct compensation for their actions. These people have the instinctive belief that if they do good and help their clients they will make money in the short term and perhaps a great deal of money in the long run.

A lot of this has to do with the process of becoming an insurance agent. While a four-year degree may or may not be required to become an insurance agent, there is no prerequisite coursework that will act as a guarantee for insurance agent jobs. What they learn in their company programs and even the CLU process is how to apply planning strategies to particular situations and how cash delivered at the time of crisis becomes the mortar that holds their strategies together to make the dreams of their clients come true.

An undergraduate focus in accounting or business and an MBA can certainly help a prospective insurance agent on their path to becoming an insurance agent. Along with a degree, insurance agent jobs also require that the candidate has been certified, a process that varies from state to state.

Once one has been hired, a new employee will find that a strong background in financial planning will not only benefit their own sales, but also improve the chances of positively impacting their clients. Insurance agent jobs give high performers the chance to earn a high level of commission, while also building a rapport with their clients.

When considering becoming an insurance agent, it is important to recognize these common responsibilities that are found in insurance agent jobs. Many insurance agents will work a 40 hour week, and sometimes more depending on whether or not the position is commission-based.

The nature of the commission-based salary is common amongst insurance agent jobs and can be taxing and time consuming, but also offers great opportunities to increase income.

Becoming an insurance agent can require a lot of education, but the job satisfaction that comes from being the only person alive who brings cash to their client's funeral makes the hard work and study worthwhile.