The Times, They Are a Changin'.

AuthorRuchman, N. Stephen
PositionON THE LEVEL

* We live in interesting times. While I have been thinking about this column, I've noted a dramatic story on the news: The recent shooting at Parkland High School in Florida. Pundits, politicians and even corporate entities have weighed in on the issue of gun control, school safety and mental health. These voices aren't surprising, as we have seen this situation before, and it seems the only thing everyone can agree on is that this is becoming all-too common. I, myself, have been thinking about the families and the lost lives of the students. I used to pass this high school when I had a home in Boca. If I was driving by around 2:30 p.m., I would see the students there getting ready for the bus. The thought of these students not going home to their parents is nightmarish to me.

I don't want to make this column political. However, there's something about the Parkland story that I find more compelling than the horrible and unfortunately familiar school shooting itself. I've seen students on the news and at rallies for the past few weeks and they amaze me. They have been organizing, protesting and demonstrating: creatively, articulately and effectively. They are making a difference and I believe they may even be getting our politicians to compromise. It's a passionate movement.

While I was watching these kids (they are kids to me), it occurred to me that there is something familiar about what's going on; and that I've seen this passion before. I lived through the civil rights era; the Vietnam era--I watched students protest the conflict; they burned draft cards; they disrupted college campuses ... they organized, protested and demonstrated. The student protests of the late 1960s and '70s were a major reason the U.S. pulled out of Vietnam. It was a passionate movement.

And then, something else occurred to me: The Vietnam protesters are our high-wealth clients now. The baby boomers are our successful executives and leaders, even within our own insurance industry. We all know our workforce is graying. We need to invest in Young Insurance Professionals.

I respect the youth in our country. They are smarter than us in the older generation. They can affect change. We need to welcome them and encourage them to come into our industry, because our insurance industry workforce needs their passion, stamina and knowledge.

This is the age when we think millennials are doing new things, however, they are doing the same thing we've always done to succeed, just...

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