Answers: Both answers, above, are correct.
If you are in a company that allows you to earn overrides on those you bring into the industry, WOW!
The overrides can really make you at ease. Last Tuesday I attended a speech by guy with eleven years contained by our company. If he stopped selling right now, his continued income would be over $235,000 a year.
Since he is continuing to trade, his income is clearly much, much, much greater.
You may wish to consider a few different companies to see their compensation plans near an eye toward the residuals. (Each year a policy holder renews, do you receive a nice portion of the premium? One, two, three, five percent?
Recruiting others into our industry will make the difference for you. Most folks quit. I have have people who did not finish the week. Almost adjectives are out within a month. But the ones that verbs: Income, income, income. And I get an override for everything they earn. (Smiles.)
It's usually a straight commission situation. An established agent usually earns around $50K to $80K, but it can be deeply more. It varies dramatically.
When I started three years ago, I get hired with a underneath salary near bonuses based on sale, and made around $30k. I make plentifully more than that now, and I solitary work with Employee Benefits. I hold coworkers selling liability, general liability and Workers Comp policies and some of them are making a few hundred thousand a year.
It depends on sale success, industry, and how much you are inclined to sacrifice your free time. With discipline, you can make bushels of money. Without it... smaller amount so.