The Currency of Reputation

My mother and I recently hit the wall in our “negotiations” with the insurance company in regards to my father’s life insurance. 

Dad had been meticulous with his finances all his life. In the plans he drew up in the event of his death, he had accounted for the insurance my mother would receive down to the penny. 

And so it was quite a surprise when the insurance company approached her with an “offer” significantly below the amount. Dad had been in touch with them as recently as August to confirm what the policy was worth, and yet the adjusters not only failed to account for a significant portion of the policy, but when we brought this to their attention, they came back with an even lower offer since dad passed away immediately after his birthday. 

Now this surely is a cautionary tale about always reading the fine print, and never taking the person who answers the phone at their word (often they make mistakes out of ignorance, and not malice), but it should also be a lesson about the currency of reputation. 

After our third, increasingly heated discussion with this company I made a few personal financial decisions. First, I was no longer comfortable leaving my family’s health and dental insurance in the hands of a company that, at best, used fine print tactics instead of sound business practice to increase their revenue.  I decided I would prefer a better rated, if slightly more expensive policy to handle my family’s affairs. 

Secondly, I decided to divest myself of shares in this company. I am not a person who invests looking for quarterly results which can be achieved paying attention only to the currency of... well... currency. Rather when I make an investment, I am looking for a company that will give good average returns year over year for the next thirty years. A good long-term hold company understands reputation has an inherent value. That value will outlast quarterly earnings, brand recognition and market fluctuations. I am investing in the businesses that have that kind of staying power. And reputation is key to that investment decision. Why else would your financial advisor have such an affinity for “dividend royalty” companies?  They have proven their track record year over year, building their reputation amongst investors.  Even more important, is the relationship and reputation a business has with its clients. 

At Liftoff Capital, we currently trade only in the currency of reputation. We have built a solid online environment, and an eloquent matchmaking algorithm. But without a good reputation from our clients, we will never be able to achieve our dream of becoming a world-standard catalyst for business growth and development. 

We are still in the initial growth phase - our first 1000 entrepreneur listings are guaranteed to be free for life!  And we can only succeed if we help our clients succeed!  So never hesitate to reach out and see if we can help you with your business. There is nothing to lose - we will never take a piece of the investment you find through us. And did I mention, you get a lifetime free membership if you are among our first 1000 entrepreneurs?  

There’a one more guarantee - no fine print.