It’s possible—difficult yet possible—to be a tough guy without being a jerk. Tim Russert showed us that.

Russert was old school. Honest. Hard-working. Fair. A intensely likable guy who wasn’t driven by the need to be liked. His guests, the most powerful people in the country, never seemed to begrudge his relentless questioning. (Even the ones who left “Meet the Press” less powerful than they were before.)

If you’re asking ‘What do those qualities have to do with being a good insurance agent?’ then you’ve got your work cut out for you. But let me be clear—I’m not advocating that you grill your clients with tough questions.

My point is this: Russert built a brand on integrity—and it took him very far. “Brand” may seem a crass word. Integrity was clearly something that came to Russert naturally. But every one of us is given opportunities—a lot of them—to make choices that dilute integrity.

But he never did. And that’s what we can all admire about Tim Russert.