Let’s talk about insurance—the thing no one really wants but everyone tells you is essential. If you’re anything like me, you've probably looked at life insurance as something that's just as exciting as watching the news with your dad on a Saturday night—you know it matters, but doesn't really feel like a priority. We all know that we should have it but let’s be honest, most of us push it off like that one phone call to the dentist’s office—I’ll deal with it tomorrow. Because honestly, who really likes paying for something they hope they never have to use? It’s like buying an umbrella and then hoping it never rains. And yet, that’s exactly what health insurance turned out to be: an umbrella I didn’t know I needed until I needed it.
For years, I was cool going on with my life without feeling the necessity of health insurance. It was something that sounded good in theory, but I figured I'd never actually need it. I was just minding my business, cruising through life, and ignoring the fact that medical bills are basically the adult version of those surprise “unwanted guests” who show up at your door unannounced. I’d pay my premiums, thinking, Well, it’s just another thing I’ve got to do to stay an adult, but I didn’t really feel the value of it until one day, I got hit with a medical bill so large that I checked my bank account just to make sure I wasn’t accidentally funding a small country. That’s when I realized: insurance isn’t just for people who might get sick—it’s for when life delivers a punch right to your financial gut. Suddenly, that monthly premium felt like the smartest thing I ever did, because unlike all my other half-hearted “adulting” decisions, this one was actually doing its job.
And let’s not forget about the potential mishaps that may come along your way when you're cruising down the road in your shiny new car—because of course, no good insurance story is complete without one of those. I never realized that the damage could easily set me back more than what I paid for that car itself. Never thought I'd find myself in a situation where I'd consider my insurance company as my newfound best friend. The insurance quotes that I had once dismissed as just another stack of paperwork suddenly started making sense. This wasn’t some scam to drain my bank account; it was an unsexy, practical, necessary safeguard against life’s little surprises. And life, as I quickly learned, loves surprises. You know, the kind where your insurance companies aren’t just the fine print at the bottom of a pamphlet—they’re the lifeline you didn’t even know you were holding on to. Whether it’s a house that suddenly needs a new roof or a plumbing disaster that turns your bathroom into a swimming pool, it turns out that insurance isn’t just a scam or a hassle; it’s the financial safety net that catches you when you inevitably fall on your face.
The Unexpected Reality Check: How Insurance Saved My Bank Account (and My Sanity)
At one point, I thought I had this whole “adulting” thing down. I had home insurance and car insurance—you know, the “big ticket” items that everyone tells you are a must. I was feeling pretty confident about my coverage, like I was invincible. Who needs health insurance, right? It’s not like I was planning on getting hit by a bus or suddenly developing a rare, expensive disease. And yet, somehow, I still convinced myself that health insurance was just some boring extra I didn’t need. Boy, was I wrong.
Let me break it down for you:
- Home insurance: Got that checked. The idea of something happening to my house? Sure, it seemed like a possible catastrophe, but I was okay. My house was new-ish, and I had no intention of hosting an accidental flood or fire (fingers crossed).
- Car insurance: Yup, another check. After all, if I crashed my car, it wasn’t like I’d be in the poorhouse. I had comprehensive coverage, which meant I was covered in case of everything from theft to the occasional fender-bender.
- Health insurance: Well… that one was for other people. I mean, who needs medical insurance when you're perfectly fine? If anything happened, I’d just pop over to the doctor and pay whatever outrageous price came my way. Nothing to worry about!
Enter reality check number one: I wasn’t invincible. And, as it turned out, neither was my body. You know how people joke about life throwing surprises (not the pleasant ones) when you least expect it? Well, turns out, life’s surprise for me came in the form of a medical emergency that landed me in the emergency room. One minute, I was living my best life, completely ignoring the potential for health-related mishaps. The next minute, I was stuck in a hospital bed staring at a bill so big it made my student loans look like pocket change. I had just gotten hit with a financial sucker punch, and it wasn’t from an invisible medical condition—it was the reality of my own ignorance.
That’s when it truly hit me: health insurance wasn’t some optional, throwaway expense that could be pushed to the back of my mind. It wasn’t something you could skip just because you felt invincible or because your body hadn't betrayed you yet. No, health insurance was the backbone of financial protection. In the midst of my minor panic attack, as I glanced at the hefty emergency room bill, I realized my monthly premiums weren’t a rip-off or an unnecessary luxury. They were more like a tiny, almost laughable investment in avoiding a catastrophic financial disaster. A small price to pay to avoid the terrifying prospect of turning into someone who has to remortgage their house just to cover medical bills. Suddenly, the "boring" payments I had been brushing off were starting to feel a lot more like a safety net—a much-needed financial lifeline in a world that can very quickly go sideways.
That moment in the hospital was the eye-opener I didn’t know I needed. As I sat there in disbelief at the bill, it became clear: insurance wasn’t just an afterthought; it was one of the smartest decisions I had made without even realizing it. Sure, I had grumbled about paying premiums every month, wondering if I was getting my money’s worth. But now, looking at the potential financial wreckage, I understood. Insurance wasn’t just another 'expense' which I thought it was. It was actually an investment I was making in my own peace of mind. It’s like buying a seatbelt for your finances: you might never need it, but when you do, you’ll be glad that it's there to hold you together when life hits you. Suddenly, those small, regular payments I had once resented felt like a safeguard against financial disaster, and I knew I wouldn’t make the mistake of underestimating their value again.
Reality check number two hit me when I had a minor accident, and the car repair bill came through. I had always paid my car insurance premiums on time, confidently thinking I was completely covered. "I've got insurance, I’m golden," I would tell myself. But then came the rude awakening: the deductible. I clearly remember I had seen that fancy-word when I first signed the policy, but never clearly knew what it meant and never bothered to ask. And yes, you guessed it—there I was, slapped by an out-of-pocket expense I wasn't prepared for. That deductible felt like a heavy weight on my wallet.
But here’s the twist: the deductible wasn’t as catastrophic as it could have been. The truth dawned on me that while insurance doesn’t cover everything, it still makes a huge difference when things go sideways. Without that coverage, the bill could have been so much worse, and I'd have been stuck scrambling to pay a sum I couldn’t afford. That’s when I realized—I had been paying premiums for years, not just to cover the big-ticket items but to safeguard myself from the kind of disaster that could derail my financial stability. The deductible was a bitter pill, but it was nowhere near as painful as paying for the entire repair on my own.
The lesson here? Insurance isn’t a free pass to avoid responsibility—it’s a partnership. It’s a safety net that doesn’t always catch every single fall but does soften the blow when life throws an unexpected curveball. It’s easy to overlook the fine print and assume you're set for anything, but that’s where I went wrong. What I’ve learned is that paying attention to your policy, understanding what’s covered, and knowing the limits of your coverage can save you from getting blindsided. So, while my deductible stung, my insurance made sure I wasn’t left high and dry with a massive repair bill. And that’s why, despite the frustrations, I’m glad I made the decision to insure my car. It’s one of those things that doesn’t seem like much until you truly need it.
Why We Avoid Insurance: The Truth Behind the Hesitation
2. Fear of scams and mistrust: Let's face it: insurance has gotten a bad rep over the years. The industry is often associated with hidden fees, fine print, and claims that get denied for the most ridiculous reasons. This creates deep mistrust. People fear being swindled or paying into something that ultimately won’t benefit them. The concept of paying into an invisible service can seem like throwing money into a void. The mistrust makes insurance agents seem like slick salespeople preying on your insecurity.
On top of that, insurance agents often don’t help their case. We’ve all had that moment where someone’s trying to “sell” us on something we don’t need, and it feels more like a high-pressure sales pitch than a helpful conversation. The industry’s reputation for aggressive upselling, scripted pitches, and constant follow-ups only adds to the pushback mentality. Instead of feeling like a trusted advisor, the agent becomes another person trying to sell us something we don’t quite understand and are unsure we’ll ever use. It’s like the moment you’re stuck in a car dealership, and you’re just trying to browse without getting hounded every step of the way. No one wants to feel like they’re being manipulated, and unfortunately, that’s the experience a lot of people have with insurance agents.
3. Procrastination bias: There's a fun little thing we all suffer from called present bias—the tendency to favor short-term satisfaction over long-term benefits. In simple terms, we'd rather put off the responsibility of buying insurance because the rewards (i.e., not needing it) are so far out of sight. Plus, paying for insurance feels like a drain on our wallets now, without any immediate payoff, making it a hard sell for our brains
This mindset is especially dangerous when it comes to something as important as insurance. It’s easy to think, "I’m fine, nothing’s going to happen," until something does. And when that something comes knocking—whether it's an accident, illness, or unexpected event—it can feel like the worst kind of "I told you so." The problem with procrastination bias is that we’re more likely to focus on how it feels to not spend that money now, instead of the potentially catastrophic cost of not having insurance later. But here's the kicker: the longer we wait, the more vulnerable we become. It’s like postponing a necessary investment in our own safety and well-being just because we don’t see the immediate benefit, when in reality, the safety net we’re putting off could be the one thing that keeps us from falling into a financial abyss.
4. It’s a reminder of our mortality: Life insurance, in particular, forces us to think about our own death, and that’s a topic most people would rather avoid. The truth is, the idea of insurance forces us to confront uncomfortable thoughts about our mortality and the unpredictability of life. This discomfort leads to avoidance behavior where people rationalize that they'll “deal with it later,” but later rarely comes.
And let’s be honest, who wants to think about the “what ifs”? The idea of planning for something as uncertain and distant as our own death feels morbid, even though we know deep down it’s a reality we’ll all face. But here’s the catch: by avoiding the conversation, we’re essentially playing a game of mental procrastination. We’d rather live in the present moment, blissfully ignoring the inevitable, than face the uncomfortable truth that life could change in an instant. Insurance, especially life insurance, is a tool to help us prepare for that uncertainty. But instead of seeing it as a final “goodbye,” we can start viewing it as a gift—one that ensures our loved ones are taken care of, even when we’re no longer around to worry about it.
5. It’s seen as a financial burden: Let’s not sugarcoat it: Insurance premiums are often seen as just another financial burden we didn’t sign up for. According to behavioral economics, humans are loss averse, meaning we fear loss more than we value equivalent gains. Even if we know that insurance could save us money in the future, the immediate cost feels like a loss we’re not willing to take, especially when we don’t see an immediate return on that investment.
And let’s be real—when times are tough, insurance feels like the easiest thing to cut from the budget. If you're choosing between paying rent, buying groceries, or keeping up with insurance premiums, guess which one gets the boot first? Insurance doesn’t feel like an immediate necessity until the moment you actually need it. And by then, it’s too late. This is where the irony kicks in: the very thing designed to protect us financially is often the first expense we’re willing to sacrifice when money is tight. It’s like refusing to buy an umbrella because it’s sunny today, only to get caught in a downpour with no shelter in sight.
How I Evolved: From Basic Insurance to Life Insurance
