Last week I spent most of the week in Toronto connecting with some of our broker and lender partners. I also had the opportunity to speak at the CMP Mortgage Summit. I had an absolutely fabulous week and thought I would share some of the highlights, specifically around my presentation at the Summit.
Last year at the Summit I spoke about “Brokering Like a Rock Star“. I shared the story of a young struggling rock band called Wicked Lester who struggled to make it and needed to find a way to reinvent themselves and stand out from the crowd. Wicked Lester became KISS and I don’t think I need to tell you how that worked out for them.
This year I wanted to start as I usually do by giving some context around what it takes to be successful in the mortgage, and frankly any business. I used the analogy of my journey to race in an Iron Distance triathlon. If you did not follow me on that journey and you do not know triathlon, a full iron distance triathlon comprises of a 3.8KM swim, a 180KM bike, followed by running a marathon. Yes, it is a substantial challenge and not one I took lightly. One of the things that I absolutely love about endurance sport is the fact that you do not need to be a naturally talented athlete (God knows I am not). The other thing I love is the parallels between endurance sport an the Mortgage Brokering business. This business is a marathon not a sprint so do not kid yourself into thinking there are any short cuts to success. It is a grind and it will take hard work and perseverance.
I recognized early on when I decided to register for the Challenge Penticton triathlon that there were a few key ingredients that I would require in order to be successful.
Commitment
If I were to undertake such a lofty goal I had damn well better be committed to it. So let’s talk a little about what that means. Do you think I was committed to this race when I registered? No, in fact one of the reasons I convinced myself to register was that you could request a full refund up to sixty days prior to the race. So registering wasn’t the commitment. At that point I had one foot in and one foot out. How many are that kind of “Committed” to our business? If you are going to be a mortgage broker then you better be both feet in committed. This business is far too difficult for you to be “kinda” committed. When this business knocks you down and kicks you in the teeth (which you know it will), you need to have a level of commitment that ensures you get yourself back up again.
Coaching
As soon as I jumped in the pool the first time I quickly realized that if I were to have any hope at all of finishing this race I was going to need some serious help. I needed to find someone that had done this before and could tell me exactly what I needed to do, when and how to do it. The same holds true for the mortgage business. A mentor is a must. Find someone who has done what you want to do and emulate what they do. Hiring my triathlon coach was the best thing I could have possibly done. I documented my thought process at the time if you are interested you can read it here.
Discipline
This one is by far the most important component. Committing to something, and having someone tell you what you need to do is one thing, but actually doing what needs to be done is an entirely different animal. I can assure you there were many times when my alarm clock went off at 5am that I really did not feel like working out. I had to be disciplined to make sure I not only completed the scheduled workouts but completed them with the requisite intensity. To be successful in the mortgage business it requires just as much discipline. Not only do you have to show up every day but you need to play with some intensity. You need to make every effort count. The sad thing is that this is where it falls apart for most people. I talked about the fact that I get questioned on why I share my “trade secrets” at these events. The reason is twofold. First and foremost I believe that we, as a broker community, need to do whatever we can to help each other get better at what we do. Heck we have less than a 30% market share. Why wouldn’t we want to help each other. The second reason I can safely share is the sad fact that 90% of those listening will do absolutely nothing with the information. You see my biggest fear isn’t that people will steal my, or the other presenters ideas, my biggest fear is that they won’t!!
I wrapped up the presentation sharing some of the sales processes I have used over my career and left everyone with a challenge. A challenge to implement at least one of the ideas that they heard through out the day into their business in the next 30 days. I am impressed and inspired by the number of emails that I have received accepting my challenge.
I will be giving an enhanced version of this presentation at this years AMBA conference in Kananaskis in July. If you were at the presentation I would love to hear your feedback in the comments below. I look forward to seeing many of you at the conference in July.
