Archives: Weekly Blogs

Not too long ago, my longtime friend Dean Jackson shared something with me that really stuck.

(If you don’t know Dean—he’s a brilliant trainer in the real estate agent space and has one of the sharpest minds I’ve ever come across when it comes to productivity and marketing.)

He said:
“It’s not that people don’t have time. It’s that they’re losing the battle between being proactive and reactive.”

Man… that hit home.

You see, a lot of folks I talk to say the same thing:
“I just don’t have time for everything.”

But here’s the truth—you DO have time.

The trick is learning how to spot the Reactive Activators that are hijacking your day.

Here are the four big ones Dean shared with me years ago.

1. Email
How do most people start their day? Checking email.
But your inbox is a to-do list that other people wrote for you—and it’s hooked up to the internet, which means the rabbit hole is real.

2. Your phone
We carry them 24/7. Which means we’re always one buzz away from getting pulled into fire drills and distractions. That puts you in reactive mode fast.

3. Other people
People walking by your desk. Quick chats. “Got a sec?”
All well-meaning… but they can easily take you off track from what really matters.

4. Your own thoughts
This one’s sneaky. You remember to call someone… which leads to another task… then another… and before you know it, your whole plan for the day has drifted off course.

But here’s the good news:

Once you see these triggers for what they are, you can start building a little buffer around them. You can protect your time and take control of your day.

And when that happens?

You stop feeling overwhelmed. You start getting the right things done.
And yeah… turns out you do have time for everything.

Thanks, Dean, for this golden nugget.

And to you reading this—I hope it helps you the way it helped me.

You’ve got this.

I remember a conversation I had with a loan officer, Stan, from Lincoln, Nebraska, 6 weeks ago. He was frustrated. He felt like he was doing everything right—making the calls, following up, staying consistent—but the results weren’t showing up fast enough.

He told me, “Carl, maybe I’m just not cut out for this.”

“You are closer than you think”, I encouraged him.

After we spoke for a bit, instead of quitting, he did one thing. He committed to reaching out to five more people that week—just five. Nothing fancy, no complicated strategies. Just simple conversations.

One of those five calls? It turned into a meeting with a past client who had been on the fence about buying again. That conversation led to a referral. That referral led to a closed loan. And that closed loan, introduced him to the listing agent, who has referred him 3 more prospects, one of which is in underwriting with Stan now.

This forward momentum encouraged him to keep pushing forward.

Earlier this week when we talked, his entire mindset had shifted. He saw that success wasn’t about making huge, dramatic moves. It was about showing up every day, doing the simple things, and trusting that the work would pay off.

I want to challenge you to do the same today. Here are three simple actions that can move the needle for you:
 

1. Call one past client – Just check-in. No sales pitch, no agenda. A simple, “Hey, how’s everything going?” can lead to a great conversation and possibly a referral.
    
2. Reach out to one agent you haven’t spoken to in a while – Real estate agents need strong lender partners now more than ever. A quick “How’s the market treating you?” can open doors.
    
3. Follow up on a lead that went cold – Sometimes, people just need a nudge. A simple, “Hey, I was thinking about you. Are you still considering buying or refinancing?” could be all it takes.

The loan officers closing the most deals right now aren’t necessarily the smartest or the most experienced. They’re the ones taking action while others hesitate.

So let’s make today count. Take the next step, and if you ever need help, strategy, or just a little motivation, I’m here.

Keep pushing forward, even if you are tired.  You are closer than you think.

In a world of noise and numbers, people aren’t craving more data —
They’re craving connection.

That’s why social media has taken off like a wildfire… Connection.

And connection doesn’t come from quoting interest rates.

It comes from story.

“Start telling more stories. Nothing beats the power of a story.”

You can talk about FHA vs. Conventional all day…
But when you share how a young couple with average credit beat the odds, got into their first home, and sent you a picture of their newborn two months later…

That’s when trust is built.
That’s when people say, “You’re the one I want to work with.”

If you’ve ever felt like your message is falling flat —
This one shift can change everything.

I teach the exact framework for story selling inside our membership — including how to use story in texts, social media, agent convos, and borrower calls.

It’s really the unfair advantage.

Click here to get access for just $97 for the 1^st month.

That gets you an entire month inside the membership.

If you’re not blown away, cancel anytime and keep everything you’ve already downloaded and learned — no questions asked.

Start your $97 trial now

It’s time to stop selling.
Start connecting.

I’m currently at 36,081 feet and streaking across the sky at 537mph and I thought I would drop you a quick note.

This came up in a recent support call, and I thought it might be helpful to pass along to you—especially if you’re pushing to grow past 4, 5, maybe even 10 loans a month.

Here’s the question:
“How do top-producing loan officers attend all their closings and still grow their business? Isn’t attending the closing a top money-making activity?”

Fair question.

Here’s the honest answer:
They don’t go to every closing. And neither should you.

Now I get it—closings feel like a big deal. They’re exciting. You’ve worked hard. You want to be there.

But here’s what the pros know:
Closings are the reward, not the opportunity.

The real money is made before the closing—when you’re prospecting, having referral conversations, and building your pipeline.

If you’re attending every single closing, you’re probably not doing enough of those things.
That’s a hard truth, but a helpful one.

Top producers—folks doing 15, 20, even 30+ loans a month—don’t have time to attend every closing. Sometimes they have two or three in one day, maybe even at the same time.

Instead, they have a system:

• A team member attends the closing and represents them with class.
• Or they send a short, heartfelt video to the client. Maybe a quick thank-you call.
• For VIP clients or special circumstances? Sure, they might show up in person. But that’s the exception, not the habit.

And here’s something else the pros never wait on:

They don’t wait until closing to ask the listing agent for referrals.

That ship sailed 4 weeks ago.

The smart LOs—our LOs—make contact on day one.

The same day the contract comes in, they call the listing agent, introduce themselves, and start building that relationship.
They use a simple script to turn that first touch into a future deal.

Because once the closing happens? You’re old news.
The agent’s already knee-deep in the next deal. And the next LO that called them first.

So if you’re wondering how to scale without sacrificing service—this is it:

Spend your time where it pays off the most…

…And have a system that makes the client feel like you were at the closing, even if you weren’t.

That’s how you go from good… to great.

Schedule a one-on-one free coaching call, click here or visit LoanOfficerStrategyCall.com.

Just wanted to share something that fired me up…

One of our longtime private coaching members, Tammy Saul, texted me this the other day:

Just in case you missed that:

“Closed 67 loans in May for just over $23 million…

$500k in revenue, $200k in expenses.

Already have 55 loans in process for June.”

And keep in mind, that’s not a team of 5 loan officers, or even 3.

That’s her own personal production, just her and her assistants.

Now, I’ve known Tammy a long time. I’ll tell you what this wasn’t —

It wasn’t luck.

It wasn’t the market.

It wasn’t some magical lead source.

It was structure.

It was systems.

It was having the disciple to do the things that work, day in and day out.

What I love most is that she doesn’t look for shortcuts—she builds.

She leads.

And she’s showing the rest of us what’s possible when we stop overthinking and just take focused action every day.

Nothing fancy, no magic beans, just a burning desire and focusing on what actually works.

The truth is… most loan officers are only missing one or two pieces.

Tammy just happens to do those pieces every single day.