Just last week, I was approached by one of my friends who I had not heard from for a long time. He texted me saying how long it was since we last met and he wanted to meet up.

Knowing that he was an insurance agent, I told him upfront that I already had someone looking into my finances and I would meet him as a friend and not as a potential client. He agreed and so we met.

We had dinner at a restaurant at a mall nearby my place. Dinner went well and we caught up over the last five years that we had been apart.

And then it came. As we spoke about what had been happening so far, he started talking about how he was privileged to be put up for the Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) and being one of the top earners every month in his firm, to which I congratulated him genuinely for.

He then asked if I was willing to trust him to review some of my financial and insurance plans. I said no and changed the subject, which he complied with.

However, as we talked about getting hitched, it started to Segue way back into how I should be planning for the future and whether (again) he could have his input in my financial and insurance plans.

Again, I repeated my stand and said I wasn’t interested, and reminded him that I was a friend not a client. He apologised again and switched the topic.

It wasn’t until we were talking about parents and how they were retiring that he began saying how important it was for me to look into their financial health, suggesting again that I can trust him with their plans.

That was the last straw for me – I looked at him and held my ground. No means no, and I really hope you can respect my decision as a friend.

He became very apologetic, and the rest of dessert became very brief. We said our goodbyes and I never heard from him again.

I’m all for celebrating success in your careers and how you’ve achieved your potential. But if this is how you attained it, I honestly feel for you.

If you choose to surreptitiously get business from people around you in the guise of friendship, you’re standing to lose a lot more than you’re gaining.

Please respect my choice and keep the friendship alive. But I still have faith that the industry is bigger and better than these methods, and I wish you good success and achievement in your career.