How Loan Officers Can, Simply Put, Get Stuff Done
I recently sat down with my great friend, Steve Kyles, for a candid conversation about closing more loans in less time. We talked about how to get stuff done.
The first step to getting things done is knowing we’re worthy of greatness, worthy of the income. In the past, and sometimes still today, I sabotage my efforts because I think I’ve hit my ceiling. I think, “Oh my gosh, who am I to make this kind of money?”
What kind of money am I talking about? By mid-May 2021, I had already made 3.5 million for the year, putting me on track to make $10 million in 2021. Who am I to make that kind of money, right?
The First Thing Is to Get Rid of the Impostor Syndrome
What do we mean by impostor syndrome? There are seeds planted in our heart, often from childhood, that tell us we’re not good enough. Steve had to overcome perfectionism. He felt like he had to be perfect to please his dad. But perfect is impossible.
Out of all the loan officers I know, probably 10 (or more like zero) thought about being a loan officer when they were in high school. None of us said, “Hey, I’m going to grow up and be a loan officer.” That wasn’t our aspiration, but somehow we stumbled into this wonderful thing. We make more money than most of our friends. It’s a gift. So, because it’s a gift, I have the obligation to make the most of it. And I can’t make the most of it unless I understand that I’m worthy of it.
I’m just a scared little boy pulling levers behind the curtain, but I’m still worthy of making this money. We can just be ourselves and do the right activity with the right team, and we’re worthy of the money. The activities I do dictate how much money I make, not who I am. In a humble way, I can say I’m worthy of greatness. Our activities remove that impostor syndrome, because I’m doing what I need to do to make this money, and I’m worth it.
Recognize Your Potential
Steve says it all goes back to potential. We’re created with potential inside of us, and money isn’t the chief metric. It’s just one of the metrics, one of the indicators on the scorecard. The money represents that what we’re doing is effective, because we’re able to be profitable. We’re touching the lives of families. We’ve got team members whose lives are forever changed.
Steve and I have challenged each other to lose some weight and get in better, healthier shape. We don’t need to compare ourselves to the muscle guys at the gym. We can just look at our own selves and say, “Did I give my best today? When I feel like quitting, do I keep going? Am I showing up big each day? Am I investing in myself so that I can lead others at a better level here?”
Steve has challenged me to recognize my gifting, my calling. He and I have been called to the mortgage business, to make a difference in the mortgage space. If we’re making enough differences in enough people’s lives, we’re going to be handsomely rewarded.
What are we gifted at? Communication, getting a message out. And what’s our outlet? Social media, our podcast, connecting with others on the phone. We don’t hold onto what comes our way. We don’t let it get bottled up inside of us. We’re like a distribution center, where we make a difference in the lives of a whole bunch of people.
What Do You Do If You’re Feeling Stuck?
I talk to a lot of people who are feeling stuck, especially during this new normal of life in/after a pandemic. Maybe that’s you. Maybe you’re in a rut in your loan officer career. Maybe you’re feeling stuck, like you’re not making the most of your gifts. How can we get unstuck and get stuff done?
If I’m talking to somebody I haven’t spoken to before, I ask them, “What activity did you do to bring in your last 10 loans?” Probably eight out of ten times it’s going to be realtor relationships. Eight of your last loans were brought in by realtor referrals. Probably one out of ten is something from social media. Then something else.
So, if realtor referrals brought in eight of ten loans, I’ll ask them, “How many minutes/hours did you spend last week doing that specific activity?” Most of the time the answer is zero hours, zero minutes.
If you want to get stuff done, figure out what works, then do more of that and less of everything else. If realtor referrals work, get more realtor referral partners. Water those flowers.
What are the weeds? Chasing conditions, getting bank statements. I even have someone making me tea every morning. Making tea brought in $0 for me last year, so somebody else does it for me. Let’s water the flowers and pull the weeds.
Focus On the Most Important Things
Every work day at 4:30pm, I ask myself two questions:
- What did I accomplish today?
- What do I want to accomplish tomorrow?
Are you busy all day but not accomplishing much? What happened when I started paying attention to that? I was facing myself every day at 4:30 asking that question, and I was embarrassed for myself. You could bring in another person for this for accountability’s sake, if you want.
How many times do we get pulled into the urgent vs. the important? I can’t be the one putting out fires, stepping in to try to fix things. Other people can fix things. I choose to trust the process. It might not work out like I want it to every single time, and I need to be okay with that.
I need to keep focused on the most important thing—getting more realtor partners and making sure we’re bringing in more business. Let go of the control. Let my team handle it. Instead of worrying about not losing that one loan, I need to be thinking about how to get the next 10.
Recharge Those Batteries
Another important thing when it comes to getting stuff done is recharging our batteries. That’s absolutely imperative. I found the secret is actually taking time off. Back in the day, I was working 60-70 hours a week—all day Saturday, most of the day Sunday. I was exhausted, and I was working a ton of hours but not performing at a high level.
So I made a list of everything I was doing after 5:00pm. Everything on that list was my job description for my first hire. We believe the lie that we’re the only one that can do these things. It’s not true. There are tens of thousands of us loan officers out there. I’m not the only one who can do it. What if they can’t do it as well as me? That’s fine.
Henry Ford didn’t want to hire help once upon a time, because he was the best welder in the world. Okay, fine, someone told him. Hire the second greatest welder.
John Maxwell says to find someone who can do it 80% as well as you. Often, they’ll do it better. Or they’ll get there with practice. Even if they’re only 80% as good, they’re doing it 100% of the time. The math works out. You can start by delegating the stuff you’re not doing. You’re not getting to it anyway, so why not hire someone to get it done 80% well, rather than done 0%?
So, how do we get stuff done? Get rid of impostor syndrome. Recognize your potential. Do the biggest loan-getting activity to get unstuck. Focus on what’s most important, and let others do the rest. And recharge those batteries.
We’d love to do a free strategy session with you. We’ll figure out which activities you need to stop doing, which ones you need to focus on, what loan officer scripts you should use, and we’ll give you some of the ads we’re using to hire the right people. Give us a FREE call TODAY.
