 
By Lucretia DiSanto Jones
“When somebody tells me they don't need
this association, I'm in a little bit of disbelief,” says
Donald Lane Boozer Jr., a 37-year-old member of NAIFA North Texas.
Boozer, who works with his father (and goes by Lane to avoid confusion
in the office), grew up in the business, so to speak. He attended
state association conventions with his parents and can remember
always thinking that being a member is “something that you
just did. I honestly didn’t know it was optional!” he
says.
The way Boozer sees it, nonmembers would be out
of business it if weren’t for members. “They are riding
in the wagon, and we're pulling it. Is it not worth $30 a month
to have someone speaking your voice in Austin and in Washington?
They've got paid lobbyists with support staffs that are keeping
them in business. They don't need us?”
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“You learn so much from your fellow members that you
start to hear fewer nos between the yeses.”
—Lane Boozer
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Beyond advocacy
But Boozer, Texas’s PIC chair, also sees the many other advantages
of being a NAIFA member. His father’s brokerage agency, Don
Boozer and Associates, supports 600 advisors nationwide, although
most are in Texas. Boozer knows how difficult it is for the advisors
he supports—especially the young advisors—to hit the
ground running day after day, so he says it’s a natural for
him to be a part of an organization like NAIFA—an organization
that its members can call home.
“This is going to sound cheesy, but the
greatest benefit of NAIFA membership really is a feeling of belonging,”
explains Boozer. “I think most young advisors don’t
walk in the office and all of a sudden a light switch goes on and
they’re a super agent. It takes a long time to become a super
agent, and I can only think of a few at that. We're all continually
learning. But it’s a great feeling that you have a place to
call home, especially as an independent, because you’re out
there on the street alone, and it can feel pretty lonely sometimes.”
Although his dad brought him into the business,
the road was no easier to navigate for Boozer, so he is thankful
for his NAIFA ties. “You get a lot of camaraderie and support
from the association. I don't think I would have survived in this
business without the support and the attaboys and the training and
the sales ideas that I get from other members of the association.
It's also kind of like being part of a team. When you are working
as part of a team, the result is better than if you were working
by yourself.”
A tangible outlet
The desire to be part of a team—and to see the fruits of his
accomplishments—may be what also makes Habitat for Humanity
an attraction for Boozer. It's a cause that he dearly believes in,
and it lets him enjoy one of his hobbies—carpentry.
“Maybe for me it's the need to create something
tangible, because if you think about it, we sell a benefit that
you can't see, at least not right away. Carpentry gives me that
immediate satisfaction,” Boozer says.
His involvement in NAIFA is another source of
satisfaction, both professionally and personally. “In this
business, you've got to hear one hundred nos to get to yes, and
that can be really discouraging,” says Boozer. “But
going to those monthly luncheons, or working on a committee or another
association task not only keeps you motivated and driven, it also
makes the nos a whole lot easier to hear. You learn so much from
your fellow members that you start to hear fewer nos between the
yeses.”
May 2005
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