When I talk with loan officers, there are times they don’t know what they want for their future business growth. Is it about increasing the number of apps or pre-quals – or both? Is it about building a team infrastructure or about being more efficient with existing team members? Is it about being an elite producer in a branch or about becoming a branch manager some day? Is it about increasing public visibility in the community or about increasing targeted ideal leads for new business? Is it about using online ads, a media blitz or a video campaign?
In other words, there are a lot of strategies and tactics that can give you what you want in business, but you have to start with the end in mind. Even the best pilots need to course-correct to reach their final destination; the same is true for every loan officer who wants ‘more’. ‘More’ is not specific enough to generate real results. That’s like shouting ‘hey – you!’ in a crowded marketplace and expecting your ideal customer to turn around and hug you – it just isn’t a solid strategy. (By the way, I could start talking about how important it is for you to know your ideal customer profile here but I will restrain myself and stay focused – for now.)
So what do you do when you don’t know exactly what you want? This is a typical problem for newer loan officers especially but it’s also relevant for more experienced LOs. Why? Because more ‘seasoned’ officers don’t have as much time in their career to screw around in getting the results they want. (Oh come on… you know that’s true. I’m right there with you!)
If you haven’t yet reached ‘success’, it’s highly likely you haven’t yet defined it. But living in this amazing country means we have unlimited options – and there lies the problem. You absolutely need to define your own version of success to have it. If the outcome doesn’t pull you immediately, it’s either not the right element that makes you feel successful OR, like when you push off the bottom of a swimming pool to get out of it, you need to push away from what you don’t want.
So what DON’T you want for your business? If you don’t want:
- Inefficiency
- Wasted time
- Unhappy customers
- To work all the time
- Unproductive team members
- Missed opportunities…
You get the idea. Whatever you DON’T want points you to what you DO want!
If you don’t want inefficiency, that automatically means you want efficiency. So how do you get efficiency in your business? Do you hire more team members? Do you get new technology? Do you upgrade your processes? Do you take fewer breaks? Do you reduce your phone time in side conversations? It depends on what you see as inefficient and then on how you think you can best achieve what you determine is efficiency.
The bottom line is that you can clarify what success means to you – and the best way for you to get it – by determining what you don’t want first. Try it and let me know what comes up for you. My top three DON’Ts are: unhappy customers, unhappy team members, unhappy wife (and not necessarily in that order!).
Fill me in on your top three DON’Ts on Linkedin so we can brainstorm on what you really want going forward for your business. I’m looking forward to learning about what’s important to you for your business.
Carl White, Chief Officer of Coolness
Article Originally Posted on LinkedIn
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