"Her Strength" | Ping An Life Beijing Branch Senior Business Director Xin Zhihua: Deeply Cultivating Time, Persevering to Reach Far

The direction of life is often hidden in a firm choice, and the value of that choice will eventually shine through deep cultivation over time.

In the wave of the insurance industry, Xin Zhihua, Senior Business Director of Ping An Life Beijing Branch, interprets this choice as a sixteen-year journey of dedicated effort, with her unique female sensitivity and resilience. She perceives risks with sharp intuition and builds protective barriers with professionalism—this not only defines her career but also sketches her solid footprints along the way.

In 2009, Xin Zhihua was an insurance appraiser who had seen too many families helpless and regretful after risks passed through. The more she saw, the more she was convinced: rather than compensating and comforting after the fact, it’s better to act before risks occur.

That year, Xin Zhihua resolutely shifted from behind the scenes of insurance to the front line of protecting clients, joining Ping An China and officially beginning her career as an insurance agent.

Professional Foundation: Genuine Understanding Earns Trust

When she first entered the industry, prejudice shadowed her. Family concerns, external doubts, but Xin Zhihua didn’t argue. She simply appeared at her workplace promptly at 7:30 every morning, and persisted for sixteen years.

She believes that professionalism is the best language. Her formal background in financial management and her experience as an insurance appraiser give her a deeper understanding of the weight of “risk” than many others. In her first month, she signed a policy with a college teacher couple after eight interviews—her first validation that “professional service” is a viable path.

Since then, she has self-funded three to four training sessions each year, earning certifications such as RFP Certified Financial Planner in the US, CHRP Retirement Planner, and more. She also pioneered the “Family Policy Review” process, acting like a meticulous family doctor, helping clients identify coverage blind spots.

“You only truly earn trust when you truly understand,” she says.

Visionary Planning: Build a Foundation First, Then Reach Far

Over sixteen years, Xin Zhihua has handled countless claims, but a case from a few years ago still remains vivid in her memory.

Ms. Zhang (pseudonym), nearly 40, was in the rising phase of her career. She initially approached Xin Zhihua simply to set up an annuity for her retirement. However, during their conversations, Xin Zhihua discovered that although Ms. Zhang was considering her future, she still lacked basic health coverage. Instead of rushing to finalize the annuity plan, Xin Zhihua conducted a comprehensive family protection analysis and recommended a critical illness coverage of 1 million yuan. Based on this, she restructured her plan, designing a comprehensive retirement scheme that balanced current risks and future quality of life.

Ms. Zhang was surprised by this unexpected plan. She fully appreciated Xin Zhihua’s retirement annuity plan but remained skeptical about the critical illness coverage, ultimately choosing only 700,000 yuan with a 20-year premium payment period.

Unexpectedly, just two years into payments, Ms. Zhang was diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

On the Monday when she submitted her claim, she and her husband felt uncertain, even tentative. Yet, within less than a week, the 700,000 yuan claim was quietly paid out. What surprised her even more was that, thanks to Xin Zhihua’s advice and the addition of waiver insurance in her plan, the remaining 18 years of premiums—about 600,000 yuan—were fully waived. This efficient claim process deeply moved the Zhang family.

This timely claim completely changed their view of insurance. Soon after, Ms. Zhang’s husband proactively contacted Xin Zhihua and decisively added a 1 million critical illness policy for himself.

Looking back at this case, Xin Zhihua feels deeply: many people’s first reaction when planning insurance is “how to get money,” but rarely do they consider—what if risks come before retirement? Who will protect our current life?

Ms. Zhang’s luck was not only in receiving the claim promptly but also in having a professional insurance agent help her prioritize: first build a solid foundation, then plan for the future. This experience confirms a simple truth—true comprehensive asset allocation involves not only planning for retirement but also preparing to protect today’s health in times of need.

The Temperature of the Era: When Insurance Meets Retirement

As the industry evolves, the connotation of insurance has long gone beyond claims. It is transforming from a post-event compensation contract into a lifelong companion and protector.

During the 2022 pandemic, Xin Zhihua’s client Ms. Wang (pseudonym) experienced this firsthand. Her business was impacted by the pandemic, and she also needed to care for two elderly parents nearing ninety. Caught between career and family, she was nearly exhausted.

Xin Zhihua keenly sensed her state and recommended Ping An’s home-based elderly care services. Every afternoon, the client would chat with real staff via online platforms. These seemingly simple conversations became an important emotional outlet for her, allowing her to breathe amid daily caregiving. Behind this “emotional companionship” is Ping An’s integrated financial, medical, and elderly care strategy—a one-stop solution that makes life care, health management, and emergency protection form a closed loop, giving children peace of mind and reducing anxiety about their aging parents.

At that moment, Xin Zhihua was even more convinced that the value of this profession has quietly grown in the tide of the times. Insurance is no longer just a contract; it is a gentle stream that smooths life’s wrinkles, providing comfort for exhaustion and allowing hope to grow anew.

The Power of Colleagues: From One to Many

Today, Xin Zhihua is no longer walking alone.

Her team’s 85% members hold full-time bachelor’s degrees or higher, including three lifelong MDRT top members, nearly 20 MDRT members, and over 30 IDA International Dragon Award winners. From 2022 to 2025, the team has ranked first in performance for four consecutive years.

In team management, Xin Zhihua has developed her own operational system. She has built a seven-function department support structure, covering skill training, talent development, digital management, and empowerment, enabling the team to operate efficiently like a finely tuned, vibrant organism. In 2023, she further innovated with the “1+N” platform, linking high-end resources such as experts from Tsinghua University’s Cross-Strait Research Institute and chief physicians from Japan-China Friendship Hospital, helping team members build multi-dimensional knowledge in finance, healthcare, and law.

Regarding her personal management philosophy, Xin Zhihua, who won the 28th Summit’s “Three Good Five-Star Team Leader” championship, simply states four words: Lead by example. To her, this is the lowest management cost and the highest wisdom.

The Future Answer: Becoming Irreplaceable

The industry is changing. From “scale-driven” to “value-driven,” “insurance + medical + retirement” is becoming mainstream. Under the wave of digitalization, information transparency makes basic knowledge more accessible to clients. The biggest challenge for agents is: how to avoid being replaced by tools?

Xin Zhihua’s answer is: become irreplaceable.

“What is truly scarce is the ability to interpret with warmth and to plan with depth,” she says. Agents must evolve from “product sellers” to “professional advisors + emotional companions.”

Her goal for the next three years is to advance to M9, cultivate more M4-level managers, and build more “high-quality, high-capacity, high-retention” “three-high” teams. For newcomers eager to enter the industry, her sincere advice is: choose what you love, stay firm in your beliefs; establish yourself with professionalism; find role models, follow the right people; keep your original intention, and pass on warmth.

“You’re not just selling insurance,” she says, “you’re supporting your clients’ lives.”

From walking alone to leading a team, from professional protection to spreading warmth, from her initial firm belief to becoming an industry benchmark—over sixteen years, Xin Zhihua has used professionalism as her boat, crossing for others and herself. On Women’s Day, a day dedicated to women, she shines like a beam of light, blooming herself and illuminating the path for more “her power” to move forward.

As she often tells her team: We are not just selling a product; we are accompanying a person through the uncertain storms of life—becoming their reliable support.