Zain Hasan is the Founder and CEO of National Insurance Consulting Group. He is a value-based employee benefits consultant, fueled by his passion for helping others succeed. He’s also a business leader and visionary setting new standards for insurance brokers. His unique experience of working as a representative for the nation’s largest firms allowed him to see that the market required a new type of consulting firm. 

Who’s your hero? (In business, life, or both.)

My wife. She is the most caring person that I have ever met. Her humility and sincere desire to improve the lives of everyone around her has made me a much better leader, visionary and executive. Every day I get to experience the selflessness she brings to her job in the corporate world. She spends the time to get to know the people around her, doesn’t let her ego cloud her judgment and is extremely disciplined in how she spends her time. Personally, she is the most caring and nurturing person I know. Professionally, she is humble about her amazing work ethic.

What’s the single best piece of business advice that helped shape who you are as an entrepreneur today, and why?

If you spend your life helping other people succeed, your life will follow suit. If you navigate your company so that you are helping other businesses succeed, your business will follow suit. The advice I got was to read “The Go-Giver,” by Bob Burg and John David Mann and help other people without expecting anything in return. Through a daily reminder of that philosophy, I have been fortunate enough to see my company reach unimaginable levels of success, but it makes it exponentially more exciting because of how much we are able to help other businesses through our services.

What’s the biggest mistake you ever made in your business, and what did you learn from it that others can learn from too?

I learned that when it comes to business, you can’t mix your personal life and relationships with your professional life and business decisions. You have to make business decisions regardless of the impact on your personal affairs.

If you aren’t willing to risk your personal relationships, do not bring them into your business. Employing or partnering with a friend or family member may seem like a nice thing to do, but the consequences will almost always outweigh the benefits. The best thing you can do is to avoid it altogether, especially at the C-suite/partnership level. I made the mistake of bringing one of my best friends into a C-suite role, and I was to keep my friendship and business separate. I lost a valuable friendship, and my business was also put in a risky situation, although I was fortunate enough to realize how to make the decision strictly from a business perspective before it was too late.

What do you do during the first hour of your business day and why?

I always use the first 45 minutes reading part of a book or audio book to ensure that I am mentally prepared for the day. I will always read or listen to part of “The Go-Giver.” It puts my overall goal in mind: solving the problems of other business leaders and adding value to everyone I talk to. I then spend the next 15 minutes making a list of the hardest things that our company has to face and write down my top priority tasks in order from the ones I enjoy the least to the ones I enjoy the most. If I begin the day with my toughest task, the rest of the day is significantly less stressful.

What’s your best financial/cash-flow related tip for entrepreneurs just getting started?

Hold on to your equity. Early on, you think it isn’t worth much because it may not be. At the same time, never make decisions on how to split up or give out equity without consulting at least one very experienced and successful entrepreneur (mentor) and a great attorney.

Quick: What’s ONE thing you recommend ALL aspiring or current entrepreneurs do right now to take their biz to the next level?

Join a professional organization with the people you’d want as clients in it. Forget about your business and try to help everyone you meet in that organization succeed without asking them for anything in exchange. Follow through and follow up. You will be surprised how many of your ideal clients will approach you when they see you selflessly helping others.

What’s your definition of success? How will you know when you’ve finally “succeeded” in your business?

I know I’ll have succeeded when we win a “Best Place to Work” award. Success to me is about the talent we can bring in and develop, and the best sign of that is a “Best Place to Work” award. That is my goal and I believe if we can become the best place to work, every other aspect of what most people use to categorize a businesses level of success will also be aligned. I want us to be the employer of choice — not just for the insurance industry, but for all industries.