'The challenge is to overcome'

Laura Redpath, Senior Reporter

MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKER Professor Patrick Smith says life is difficult, and the recession should not spark fear.

The Northern Caribbean University professor said this yesterday at the Chancellor Insurance Agency awards ceremony at Hotel Four Seasons in St Andrew.

"There have been thousands of recessions since the Garden of Eden. The challenge these days is to overcome challenges," he said.

Employees from the Highgate, Mandeville and Kingston branches listened attentively, eyes glued to the professor, as he offered his words of advice.

"If you find you're not doing well," he said, "you need a shark in your tank. You don't make character out of cotton, you make it out of steel."

Smith said there are people who have a "dependency problem".

"Be it a woman, a man or the IMF, you need someone to solve your problems," he said.

While telling the audience that just like money, people have value, he kept his listeners entertained. Incorporating actions into his speech, such as ripping a thousand dollar note after crumpling it and trampling on it, he had the audience cringing.

"I heard that gasp," he said, his voice taking on a high pitch. "Somebody's breath left his or her body."

In keeping with his theme of difficulty being a "darling in disguise", he exclaimed, spreading his arms, "I love problems! And when we have a recession, we have more problems."

The great orator

Lorna Smith, Chancellor's unit manager in Mandeville, described Smith as "the great orator all the way from Mandeville".

Chancellor Insurance Agency recognised it top employees for the past year. Kaycier Grant-Clarke received agent of the year, cases leading and century club awards.

Other awardees included Robert Brown, rookie award recipient; Lenroy Sinclair, conservation award; Christopher Bunting, policy delivery award and century club award, and Othmar Whittaker, century club award recipient.

Olivine Barnes, assistant vice-president of Individual Line-Sagicor, told employees that every year presented a new challenge and 2010 would be no different.