Early on in my mortgage origination career, I met a gentleman, who today is a very good friend of mine, who coincidentally started his mortgage career around the same time I did.  We became fast friends and because of the lack of training and support at that time within the Mortgage industry, we ended up working together to help mentor each other to grow and learn more about the mortgage business. In fact, I would recommend having a colleague you can lean on for support no matter how long you have been in the business, especially in this challenging market.  From that support, it’s amazing how many marketing ideas, sales techniques, and loan solutions come from hours of discussions and synergizing. 

This colleague of mine, also love to invested in the stock market. Now, with me coming out of a family business after 16 years and into a new profession, I was clueless on how the financial sector worked.  He would come in and say you have to take a look at investing in this certain company.  I would return his statement with a question.   “What makes that company so great and why I would invest my time and money into them”?  After he had analyzed the company and did his research, he then proceeded to let me know about the products and service they provide, the systems they have in place, the growth strategies they have developed, the public perception, the ownership, and etc…..  Then it hit me like the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona! (Now, I have not experienced that in my life, but it’s on the bucket list) I asked myself “why am I not running my personal mortgage business like a major corporation that offers a stock.  My thought was that people can invest in me and the services I bring to the community. I started to analyze every detail of my business. For example:

• What products and services do I offer that would make me unique in the market place. (Unique Selling Proposition)
• What systems do I have in place to create new sales opportunities while maintaining my current clients as well as my current list of relationships?
• What plan do I have in place to create strategies and activities to meet my goals and objectives?  (another shameless plug for my “Check Up From the Neck Up”)
• What Value do I bring to my referral partners and business to business relationships?
• How could I get my clients to buy into my stock and then tell their relationships about what a great return on investment they had through the products and services I had provided during their transaction? 

As soon as I was able to answer these important questions, I adopted the Stock Market philosophy  and my business started to flourish!   My goal was to be the E.F. Hutton of the mortgage business. “When E.F. Hutton talks, people listen” (The 40+ year old club may get a chuckle out that one)

So then the question I ask you; Is your stock rising?  

Again, remember to keep a Positive Market Mindset!

Working Through Your Strengths

I have made a few discoveries along the way over the last 10 years in working with realtors and loan originators in helping develop and grow their businesses.

1.) Having a database that is non-functional.

Meaning that their list of relationships and past clients are sitting on a shelf collecting dust (Trust me, there was a time in my career where my list of relationships collect RUST, not Dust!)

2.) Not knowing what makes up their personal strengths.

I have presented my seminar “Check up From the Neck Up”, a growth and development seminar, for many loan originators and realtors. In one section of the presentation, we walk through what is called a S.W.O.T Analysis.  Strengths, Weakness (I like to call challenges) Opportunities, and Threats.  Two major things stood out when doing this exercise. One, I would ask the group about their strengths, the room went silent and all I could hear was the sound of crickets!  Two, as we discussed the weaknesses, the answers came back at me like misquotes on a late summer night. (Yes we will get to the warmth of summer!)

The realty is that we know more about our weakness than our strengths.  As industry professionals we need our mindset to change when it comes to this topic.  The best thing that happened to me in my business is utilizing the book “Now Discover Your Strengths”. There are many other strength finder books on the market, but this one was right for me.  Here are the strengths that I discovered about myself.

Communication
Includer
Ideation
Positivity
Developer

In the book they have descriptions of each of the strengths.  I have digested the information over time and I found it to be very accurate.  I put my strengths to work when it came to business planning, sales, training, and any other area of work and life.  I always keep my strengths top of mind and it has changed and grown my business immensely!   I always say.” A business plan and,your work, is not what you do, but who you are! 

So the question I ask you; are you working through your strengths? 

Don’t forget to have a Positive Market Mindset!