Mastering the tools of your trade: Why power users lead the way

Just as builders are great with a hammer, and painters are great with a brush, we should be GREAT with the tools we use at work. Expert "power" users of tools are often more productive, perform better and have greater job satisfaction.

Yet so many of us settle for being mediocre users of the systems we depend on every single day.

If you want to be even more awesome than you already are, why not focus on mastering your trade tools? I'm talking about your laptop, mobile phone and software systems at your workplace.

The difference between an average user and a power user isn't just marginal – it's transformational. The rise of new AI power tools just reinforces the strong benefits of becoming a power user.

The path to power user status

How do you develop your skills to become a super user and master these trade tools?

The journey starts with mindset and motivation. Set a goal to be GREAT with the tools you need to use in your day-to-day work life.

With a growth mindset, embrace experimentation and stay in that magic learning zone for part of your working week. Remember, every expert was once a beginner who refused to give up.

Start with the fundamentals. Your laptop and mobile phone are your primary workhorses. Learn the operating system properly – whether it's Windows or MacOS for 99% of us.

Master those handy keyboard shortcuts and mouse gestures that can shave seconds off every task. Those seconds add up to hours, which add up to days over the course of a year and even more over your career.

Here's something that might sound basic but is absolutely crucial: get your typing speed match-fit.

This single skill will pay dividends in time savings for the rest of your career. You'll be faster at getting stuff done, period. In our digital-first world, your typing speed is like your running speed in athletics – it's foundational to everything else you do.

Blend formal learning with experimentation

For each software product you rely on, whether it's Microsoft 365 or any other platform, a similar learning approach applies. Try things, learn the shortcuts, click on buttons and see what happens.

Read the tool tips and help articles – they're there for a reason. Complete online learning courses when they're available. Don't be shy about asking your software vendor for suggestions – they want you to succeed with their product.

YouTube videos can be incredibly helpful, though you'll need to sift through to find the quality content. And never underestimate the power of tapping your colleague on the shoulder and asking, "Hey, how do you do this?" Sometimes the person sitting next to you knows a trick that could save you hours every week.

As your new superpowers develop, something interesting happens. You become the expert that workmates come to for help.

You become more productive and efficient with your time. You know the fastest way to get things done. You know when to use a hammer and when to use a jackhammer, and you're an expert at both.

The insurance broker's essential toolkit

What are the most important trade tools you need to master in the insurance broking world?

In my experience, there are four critical systems that form the backbone of successful insurance broking:

First, the Policy Management System (PMS) – what I like to call the "policy operating system." This is your primary system of record for the full lifecycle of policies and claims. It's where the magic happens, where relationships are managed, and where your business lives and breathes.

Second, a Document Management System (DMS) for workflow management and maintaining read-only, audited records of documents and client interactions. In our compliance-heavy industry, this isn't just helpful – it's essential.

Third, Microsoft 365 – email, documents, presentations, spreadsheets and online meetings. These are the communication and collaboration tools that keep your business moving and your clients informed.

Fourth, your devices – laptop and mobile phone. These are your windows into all the other systems, and mastering them amplifies everything else you do.

This isn't just another technology pitch – it's about reimagining how brokerages operate.

JAVLN research found that 70% of brokers spend over three hours a day on admin tasks. That's not productive, and it's not what your clients are paying for. They want your expertise and advice, not your data entry skills.

We offer both the PMS and DMS solutions. Together, they form a powerful, cloud-based broker operating system that does many things, and we're investing to make it even better. We've also built important integrations with Microsoft 365 because we understand that your tools shouldn't work in isolation.

When your systems talk to each other properly, you can focus on what you do best: advising clients and building relationships. 

The AI revolution: Your new power tools

Where do AI tools fit into this picture?

The recent rise of AI tools has been absolutely game-changing for those who have adopted them properly. The most popular for everyday use are Microsoft's Copilot, OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Gemini, but new tools are emerging constantly.

Sticking with our analogy, AI represents a completely new category of power tool.

If you already have a toolbox with standard power tools, AI tools are like adding a jackhammer or even a bulldozer to your arsenal. When used to its full potential, they provide enormous step changes in speed and quality, giving us genuinely superhuman capabilities when used properly.

With great power comes great responsibility. That's why having a safe use policy in place is crucial – proper AI governance isn't optional in today's business environment.

Develop your people

At JAVLN, we're driving forward with developing our employees to be "AI natives." We strongly encourage adoption of AI tools specific to each role and provide bite-sized training to build competency.

We want our employees to master these AI trade tools using a similar approach to learning any software system: experiment and try things, learn the shortcuts, read the documentation, complete training courses, ask vendors for guidance, watch quality YouTube content, and collaborate with colleagues.

The learning approach remains the same, but the potential impact is exponentially greater. 

Over the coming next few years or less, it would be fantastic to see our JAVLN customers become "AI natives" as well, and masters of their trade tools. It's a superhuman boost that can make insurance brokers be better advisors.

The professionals who master these tools will have a clear advantage – they'll analyse risks faster, generate proposals quicker, and provide clients with insights that used to take days to compile. This isn't futuristic thinking – these capabilities are available right now for those willing to learn.

Your trade tools are waiting. The only question is: are you ready to master them?

About the author

David Leach is CEO of JAVLN, a cloud-based broker operating system that helps insurance brokers master their trade tools and supercharge their productivity.