I just wanted to send you a quick message from Maria and I.

You can watch it here.

Let me know if you or anybody you know needs anything.

Talk soon.

Shoot for great, not “perfect”.

80% gets you close enough.  This will keep you from “Analysis Paralysis”.

The cool part is you can get to “80%” in just 20% of the time.  It’s that final “20%” that takes all the time and may not even be necessary.

For example, I trained an assistant to call prospective referral partners on my behalf to set up coffee appointments for me.  (I get it, doesn’t sound sexy but has made me millions of $$).

After his first 2 weeks of training, he was able to schedule about 80% as many appointments as I could do if I made the calls myself. 

That’s close enough!!!
It took another 6 months or so, (relying on my memory here) for him to get about the same results as me.

But truth be known, the extra time I spent training him, from week 2 to 6 months, may have not been worth the effort of going from 80% to 100%.

I see so many LOs worry about “getting it perfect”.

Which inevitably leads to the analysis paralysis which results in no action being actually taken, which results in zero results vs 80% results.

Just know that your “80%” far exceeds most people who are striving for 100% but never actually take action.

It’s really sad to see the wonderful things passed by that life can give them if they would simply take “imperfect” action.

I believe in YOU!

Let’s face it, the loan officers that focus on lead generation instead of “chasing bank statements” are the ones that make all the money.

A member of our Mortgage Marketing Animals (and a super cool and smart guy) asked a great question the other day, and I thought I would share his question and my response.  I think you may find this helpful.

His great question:

“In the past I used an online service to help drive consumer direct business, and it ended up being more of a headache than what it was worth….

The idea of being able to provide my realtor partners more leads, and drum up extra business could be worth it. But I was wondering if some fellow animals had any experiences or tactics they want to share.

I like to come at my business from every angle, if it gives me a few deals and keeps a few realtors happy, why not?”

My response:

“Here’s the thing, I work with already successful agents.  They don’t need me to give them leads because they already have listings that do that.  People looking to buy houses generally call agents first, not LO’s.”

“The top 3 complaints of Realtors about LOs are:
1. Don’t close on time
2. The LO doesn’t inform me what’s going on with the loan
3. The LO doesn’t follow up on the leads I give them.”

“The top agents don’t complain that the LO isn’t giving them leads.  Only the struggle bunny agents complain about that.”

“Solve those top 3 complaints, and you will have a very robust business with an army of agents giving you the leads that they already have.”

“#SwimDownstreamNotUpstream”

So do we give Realtors leads?  Of course we do.

When we market to our past database, we refer them back to the agent that referred them to us in the first place.

When our past database refers us to a friend, family member, or a co-working that is looking to buy or sell a home, of course we refer them back to the agent that introduced that person in the first place.

But understand, it’s been my experience (in helping to build a multi Billion $$ lending “empire”) that simply sticking with the main 3 things has been the thing that has really moved the needle for me and the LOs and branch managers on our team.

Most everything else is a distraction and perhaps a feeble attempt to sell us something that we may not even need.

Do those 3 things first THEN we can look to add to those things.

Just sharing my thoughts in hopes of relieving you of what may be unnecessary stress ☺

A buddy of mine, Frank, kind of threw a glass of cold water in my face some time back, to help bring me to my senses, and it really helped me out, so I thought I would share with you.

“You don’t have to remove all of your flaws and insecurities in order to succeed. You just have to accept them and move forward anyway.”

See, when I became a loan officer, I had major doubts of whether it was going to work out. I knew very little about “loans”. Just enough to pass the test.

I also had never done any real sales work, I’m a major introvert (there’s a surprise), easily distracted, and somewhat “technology challenged”. Sound like a recipe for success? Hardly!!

But here’s what I did have (and have always had)…

Take Action Now. Or more accurately, “Take Imperfect Action Now!”

Find what successful people are doing and do what they tell me to do…

Even if I’m afraid, even if I’m unsure, even if

See, most people live in a world of “IF-THEN”…

IF I knew what to say, THEN I would call that Realtor.

IF I had the lowest rate, THEN I would get more loans.

IF I had more loans, THEN I could get some help.

So, if there’s somewhere in your life where you’re doubting yourself, I hope today’s story helps you remember…

That’s totally normal. Even to be expected. And you may never feel 100% ready or certain.

Whatever the “next step” is for you right now, you’re probably far more ready for it than you realize.

So Feel The Fear and Do It Anyway.

Also, when you need any help with structuring what to do next, or even what to first, or what the next step is, or “what to say to who”, feel free to reach out and I’ll totally hook you up.