When the call comes that a loved one has passed and you’re on the other side of the planet, I believe that the first instinct most people have is to drop everything and jump on a plane to be with family.  The challenge comes in when religious custom dictates that burial must occur within 24 hours.  That was the case with my grandfather on Sunday.  While Jennifer and I were enjoying our brunch, the 92 year old father of my mother passed away swiftly.  It was late Saturday night in my hometown.  Even if I received the call at that precise moment, there was no way I could have made it home in time for the services.  The flight I would have had to take, along with the time difference would have made it impossible without a flux capacitor.  Add to that the fact that I had (and still have) a small ear thing going on which would have made it extremely uncomfortable if not downright dangerous for me to fly.

When my mother called that evening, it wasn’t a wholly unexpected call.

I jotted down some thoughts at that moment that my sister read at the service.

Benjamin… A sale is made every time. Either you sell them or they sell you.

Just one of the many sayings that made up the Phil credo.

This expression, told to me on what seems like yesterday, has informed both my personal and professional dealings.  I think it’s called charm.  And Phil had charm in spades.  Understanding how people act and react is the cornerstone of an insurance salesman… But Phil was no Willie Loman.  He was a closer.  And his accolades from Lincoln National speak to that.

Benjamin, I’d tell them with pen in hand and contract on the table ‘There are only two questions you need to ask yourself… Do you need it? And can you afford it?  Of course you need it… now let’s work on how you’re going to afford it, okay?’  And that’s how you sell ‘em.

Sales was the best avenue for Phil, because he genuinely wanted to help his clients.  And I think more than that, he understood the power of empathy.  That may have been his greatest gift to our family.  He always knew how to reach people by putting himself in their shoes, and I have no doubt that he carried that thru to his children, who in turn impressed upon their children that same importance.

I will miss Pop Phil, of course.  But whenever I see a 50 dollar bill I’ll think of the one he carried in his wallet, the one that made him feel like he’d made it… and how he would ask:

Hey Benjamin, need some walkin’ around money?

Godspeed Pop.