So who’s in charge here?
July 14th 2010
If you are anything like me, it takes awhile to learn something. I’m not the quickest guy around but I like to think that when I learn something, it sticks. When it came to learning about what it takes to succeed (which, by the way, is nowhere near over) I had to learn the hard way.
I have struggled with the idea of writing this down. I certainly do not want to come off as some guy that has all the answers but maybe what I relate here could help you in your career and maybe I can learn something from you. If you are already a top producer then this may be something that you don’t need to read. But if not, then something here might make sense.
I have been in some type of sales position most of my adult career. I have sold everything from welding supplies to, obviously, mortgages. For a long time I thought that the successful people were lucky and got their success from others. In the back of my mind, I was always hoping that the top producer in my company would somehow take a liking to me and help me by just handing some (or all) of their business to me and I would be all set after that. Imagine my continued disappointment when that did not happen. Maybe a new product would come along that would jump start my career and I would make millions. Again, disappointment. I learned to admire the people who seemed to make it big but I just thought that somehow they were just luckier then me. I started reading all kinds of books from the people that seemed to know how to make it big and there were some great ideas in those books but it still did not make my career take off.
So what happened? Again I am not trying to say that I am the most successful lender around but in the last few years I picked up on something my Dad told me years before. (Remember it takes me awhile to learn things.) He told me that no one will make it for you except you. None of the people that I admire and have been a success in business ever gave me a book of business that I was able to rest on. None of them ever gave me any money. They were willing to share some good ideas but unless I was willing to do the work myself, I was not going to make it. Most of these people, by the way, ever had an easy way of it either, They made it despite difficult markets and their own mistakes. You have to be confident in your abilities even if you are new to the sales. You have to be humble enough to learn from those who know how to make it in your business. You have to be open to new ideas and be innovative. Some of the most successful business people have had to completely re-invent themselves when the market changed. You have to be willing to try something, knowing it might fail. You have to be willing to offer yourself to your clients without, necessarily, expecting anything in return. You have to be willing to give back through volunteering and offering your experience to others that are willing to learn from you.
So who’s in charge here? As corny as this sounds, you are. Or if you are like me, God is, but then you are. It took me awhile to learn that but now it seems to have stuck.
By the way, rates are ridiculous right now. Maybe you can’t have the tax credit anymore but an FHA loan is as low as 4.25% and that savings will ad up to $8,000 real quick.