At 26 Allan Oulate, a Financial Representative with Strategic Financial Group has a great sense of responsibility toward his family. His parents, sister and nephew live in the midst of political turmoil in their home country, the Ivory Coast in West Africa. Allan, who has been away from his homeland for more than 8 years, is motivated by the desire to financially support his family and offer them a safer and more prosperous life here. Allan came to the United States to attend Pomona College in Claremont, California. With a degree in economics, he searched for a profession that would give him the chance to turn motivation into financial stability.
His determination is evident. In little more than 18 months since joining the Northwestern Mutual Financial Network in 2001, Allan achieved Pacesetter First 40, Pacesetter Second 60 and the Silver Top 10 in the Western region for 2002. Allan continues to be at the top, which is evident by being the leader in the Gold category for the Western region in 2003 and the Platinum leader for the Western region in 2004. According to Allan, he wanted to build a career in financial services, and specifically with the Northwestern Mutual Financial Network, because the types of products and services available through the Network are not available in the Ivory Coast. "I’ve always enjoyed mastering and conveying complex concepts to others, concepts that will help them achieve financial success," he said. Heavily recruited after college, Allan chose the Northwestern Mutual Financial Network because of the company’s emphasis on building a business based on establishing personal relationships. "I interact well with people, and relationship-building is what sets the Network apart from the competition," he said. While confident in his ability to succeed, Allan also understands fear. He was unsure exactly how he would start to build a business with few resources and no substantial contacts. He developed a game plan based on three tenets:
- Avoid reinventing the wheel. Northwestern Mutual gives you the tools to succeed. The equations are proven. It’s your job to use the tools and meet your activity goals.
- Never give up. It’s frustrating to miss a goal, but personal effort must remain solid.
- Utilize the Network and do as much joint work as possible. It’s the most effective and efficient way to get exposure to different aspects of the business from more skilled people.
Allan continues to grow his practice with Strategic Financial Group and is hopeful that his family will be able to join him soon and enjoy a better lifestyle.
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