OP-ED, ETC.
Remembering Tom Wolff, NAIFA’s Past President
David F. Woods, CLU, ChFC, LUTCF
Another member of the greatest generation of classic life
insurance salespeople is gone—Tom Wolff. I mean no
slight to giants like Norm Levine, Ben Feldman, Buddy Zais,
John Savage, etc., when I call Tom “The Chairman.” These
standouts defined, embodied and dominated the life insur-
ance industry in the last half of the 20th century.
Virtually all of us who came of age in the industry then
strived to emulate these giants. When we did, we succeeded—
we qualified for MDRT, we led our companies, we served our
communities and were leaders of NALU (NAIFA) and other
industry organizations.
Tom, like the others, was larger than life. This group tran-
scended the ordinary even in ordinary situations. For ex-
ample, a casual question to any of them about a sales idea
inevitably elicited a Delphic-like response that opened a new
understanding of the question itself. They were all giants with
a deft and gentle personal touch that you never forgot.
Tom personified those giants. He was compassionate, cre-
ative, tireless and always prepared. He had a ready smile for
everyone and was immensely proud of what he did.
All who knew Tom have stories about their special rela-
tionship with him. A few weeks before he died, we reminisced
about the midnight oil we burned as I prepared for a major
speech when I ran for NALU secretary in 1984. We went over
the speech until he was satisfied. He said: “David, there are
times in your life when what you are doing is so important to
the rest of your life that you have to pay whatever price is nec-
essary to get it right. I know you’re exhausted, but this is one
of those moments.”
I was exhausted? It was 3 a.m. in Kansas City, and Tom
had flown in that afternoon from Hartford. He was tired but
was urging me to stay the course! Like all the greats of his
generation, he was that kind of guy. There were others like
Tom, and some are still with us. But I’m sure all would join
me in saying to Tom Wolff: “Thank you and Godspeed, Mr.
Chairman.”
David F. Woods, CLU, ChFC, LU TCF, is past president of NALU (now
NAIFA), retired NAIFA CEO, retired LIFE Foundation president, an
MDRT member and a JNR award recipient. He is on the IMSA
board and an agent emeritus with MassMutual Financial Group.
Robert L. Tedoldi, CLU, ChFC, CFP
Ithink you measure a person’s worth by the impact they’ve
had on their world and the people in it.
Tom Wolff spent his whole life as a minister preaching the
“Miracle of Life Insurance.” When I joined him in 1972, at the
beginning of our 36 years of mutual love and respect, he had
just begun to spread the word of his “Capital Need Analysis”
evaluation system for life insurance and financial planning.
Tom traveled the country “preaching” the value of his cap-
ital-retention system. His speeches and workshops changed
generations of life insurance agents’ approach to life sales and
made those who were willing to work hard successful beyond
their wildest dreams. In doing so, he helped create a legacy of
billions of dollars of assets for families, businesses and retir-
ees throughout the world.
Words to remember
Who can forget being in the audience when he extolled us to
“act enthusiastic and you’ll be enthusiastic” or his admoni-
tion of “once you know and you know you know, confidence
replaces fear?” “Confidence and enthusiasm are contagious,”
he’d say, as he encouraged us to serve others, not ourselves,
and in the process, reap rewards, material and spiritual, that
would last us a lifetime.
This last summer, as his body betrayed his beautiful spir-
it, he initiated a small luncheon group that met on Fridays
to discuss all manner of subjects. His enthusiasm for life and
its myriad possibilities shone brightly during those informal
sessions. Though some timbre and power were gone from his
voice, his ministry was in full evidence as he sought to the last
to positively impact those around him.
He lived what he preached, and those of us touched by him
are forever better for it. Amen.
Robert L. Tedoldi, CLU, ChFC, CFP, is a past president of NALU
(now NAIFA). He was advisor and manager for Allmerica Financial
(formerly State Mutual) for 36 years and a GAMA master agen-
cy manager. Tedoldi and Wolff were associates and partners and
NAIFA presidents from the same agency.
(More information on Tom Wolff is on the “Back Page” of this
