Happy New Year You Beautiful Broker You!
Short Version
- You’re awesome
- Do the math (Nobody else is)
- Think about, write about, talk about; what truly matters to you.
What do you believe in?
Do you believe in yourself?
If not, why not, and how to fix this?
What stories are you telling yourself?
Are they helpful?
Do you need new ones?
Bottom Line
Stop believing in other peoples bullshit stories, or in your own bullshit stories.
Start believing in yourself!
Long Version
We don’t sell mortgages.
We ‘sell’ results, by advising and understanding mortgages.
This is a fact.
Here is another; We’re not starting from ‘zero’ on Jan 1.
Keep in mind that when our output is measured in ‘files complete’ the work essentially never ends.
Not at 5pm
Not on Friday
Not at the end of the School year
Not ‘in time for the holidays’
And not at year end.
There is no ‘end’
Results are always in demand, 24/7 – 365!
The work we choose to do is essential, and it’s essentially endless.
Just one more call, one more client, one more app, one more submission, one more commitment, one more file complete.
Leading to what?
There.
Is.
No.
End.
And to this end… Key Point; You’re not ‘busted to zero’ on Jan 1.
This is a ridiculous idea, designed to swipe one of your most precious resources – picture Iron Man’s heart here – we are talking about the heart of your very being; your self-confidence.
Ask yourself’ is all that we’ve accomplished in 2022 erased?
All the grinding.
The work.
The lessons learned.
The targets hit.
The goals crushed.
No.
No way you’re at zero.
Don’t listen to anyone who says you are.
They don’t know you.
You’ve climbed mountains!
Some of you climbed taller mountains, some steeper, some opted for sheer rock faces, with never before navigated lines (less of a crowd this way) and in many cases you needed special gear and for sure special people to get you to the peak, or even close to it.
Some of you climbed actual mountains, actual sheer rock faces – Kudos to you. You are… extra!
And that was not a solo event, not really.
There’s always a special partner, in business and in life, or if you’re really luck a special team of people committed to helping you hit new peaks year after year..
Are you really going to tell any of those amazing humans they’re back at zero tomorrow?
No.
Of course not.
We are, each of us, going to build on the foundations of what we accomplished last year, the year before that, and the all the years before those.
We’re going to add another floor to the high-rise building that’s our business, that is our life, and the air will get clearer, the view better, new goals will appear on the horizon.
And the little things will bother us that much less… no really they will.
Sure, it’s a competitive marketplace, sort of… but not really.
Not when you know the real numbers for your market.
And one number to never lose sight of is #1.
You.
You are #1.
You are a 1 of 1.
Also the other #’s
How many mortgage transactions are there per year in your market?
Let’s do the math…
Nobody does the math!
I get it, math sucks.
Except it doesn’t, it is in fact your superpower, your critical driver of advantage.
People will bitch and moan about ‘being at zero’ or carry on about nonsense such as ‘the interest rates’ or ‘new government regulations’ but I am here to unburden you of such negative notions and point to a reality – none of this noise matters.
You matter.
Your people matter.
Your clients matter.
Your attitude matters.
Maybe not in that order, but you get where I am going here.
And hey, how many people decided they liked you enough to work with you last year?
How many?
Say the number out loud, write it down.
Here’s the good news, this year, that same number of people will like you, unless over the holidays you became a grumpy pessimistic jerk.
Don’t do that.
No, you won’t do that. You’re better than that
And so at least the same number of new people will work with you in 2023.
Because that 2022 number, it’s your baseline, and we don’t go backwards in this business – or at least not for long.
All you need to do in order to win 2023 is what?
Be as likeable as you were in 2022, or better yet become just a bit more likeable.
Present yourself a bit better, appear a bit smarter (which is different than having to be smarter), do these small things, and you’ll have an even better year.
Because for all the talk of what could happen, were you not paying attention to what did happen?
A pandemic happened!
And then a massive rate spike happened!
And ya, you got rocked. Your ARM clients really got rocked, and just now, right now, your VRM clients are about to get rocked.
Seriously!?!
A.
Pandemic.
Rates moving faster and further than in 40 years of history.
Damn.
That’s real.
But, despite the challenges, people will eat, game, renovate, go to the dentist, buy new clothes, watch tik-tok… life goes on.
Kids still want to move out… most of them.
And damn the parents want those kids to move out.
Can we say early inheritance?
And ya, in some cases one partner wants out. Out of a business, out of a relationship, either way it takes money to make it happen. And rates are what rates are, it does not slow this stuff down.
People will move out, up, and on. People will refinance, buy a second home, an investment property, their kids will go to school in another province and they’ll buy that kid a condo to live in for the 4-7 yrs. Residence has returned.
In any event – here’s the one thing that matters… the one thing that your success in 2023 depends upon more than any other thing.
This dictates it.
This one thing… it’s everything!
What is it?
It’s the economy between your own two ears.
So…
What do you believe?
Markets become the stories we tell about them, and so to will your business and your life.
So what’s story are you telling yourself?
If it’s a shit story – I implore you to actually do the math!
What math you ask?
- How many properties in your province? (BC is ~1.9M)
- How many have mortgages? (~60% or 1.14M)
Forget purchase/sale transactions – ‘assume’ they go to zero in 2023 which is, as all assumptions are, bad ideas…but let’s do it… zero!
Forget equity take outs, and also refinances – assume again they’re all gone as well.
Dumb again… but there’s a point to stripping these numbers down, hang in here.
Let’s further assume that all mortgages run a full 5yrs, and all there’s only renewal business.
See how crazy assuming is, but what does this leave us with?
1.9M properties x 60% (with mortgages) / 5 (years) = 228,000 potential transactions per year.
But not really, because 128,000 homeowners are foolishly going to sign the first renewal letter they see.
Why people why?
We can’t help those who don’t want to be helped!
Those are the ‘fish in the barrel’ for the lenders, and you don’t’ get access to the barrel.
Lenders are in the barrel business, we are not.
We work for each client, catching them one at a time.
But if not a barrel, you better have a bucket.
That would be your database!
Anyways, 100,000 clients are swimming free, making calls, looking for advice. Waiting for your call!
They are out there just waiting for a trusted advisor, an expert – like you! To turn up.
Are you going to get after them?
100,000 potential transactions, purely based on renewals alone, in the province of BC – just BC.
Average balance $450,000.00
Average commission – knock it down big time and call it $3,500.
Now ask yourself, if a politician can get 51% of the vote, can’t you get 51 people to like you?
Not 51%
Not 51,000.
Just 51.
That’s zero point zero zero zero five percent.
0.0005%
If you believe you can, well hey, you just earned $150,000.
But why stop at the lofty goal of zero point zero zero zero five percent?
You’re gonna be even more likeable than ever in 2023 right?
So lets aim high, crazy high, let’s go for zero point zero zero two percent.
Again, not 2%.
0.002%
And even if you only get half to that goal, that’s 100 files funded, something a normal human can do on their own, easily. And that’s you, a normal human!
Also, re this whole ‘becoming more likeable’ thing…
What’s the #1 way to become more likeable?
Stop whining.
Stop whining about that which you have NO control over.
You’re wasting your time and mine.
Especially stop whining about that which you DO have control over.
Get your act together and address it.
Work it out!
Post your wins if you need to, but rather than worrying about social media likes, maybe the focus should be mortgage clients who like you in real life!
But wait Dustan, you don’t understand… ‘nobody calls me’
OK, figure out why, and while you’re figuring it out – make 80 outbound calls per day.
Not 18.
80.
Eight-Zero.
Because what else are you doing all day?
Focus on that amazing economy between your own two ears… opportunity abounds!
Make It Happen!
And also, set some boundaries now – don’t wait until you’re working 80hrs a week and find that you no longer know any other version of life. Don’t be me.
Sure, I took 2 weeks off and went to Maui in June…
…of 2011.
But that’s not even a good joke really, it’s more like a say admission of a flawed personality.
OK, enough about me.
Look again at that mortgage math, the business is out there, it will always be out there, unless you bring it in here!
Let me remind you, just one more time, that you’re not starting from zero on Jan 1 – not even close.
Jan 1 is just another day, another day in the infinite game.
In fact many of you already have a decent January on the books – Feb/March as well, because you’ve been working your database, working your phone, working you eblasts.
And I repeat this message; don’t wait for week-52 to take time off – take ALL your evenings off, 3 or 4 of them anyways, and take your weekends off, again 3 or 4 of them (each month) anyways.
The work is there.
It will always be there.
Do the damn math.
All that matters is what you believe in, so stop believing in bullshit and please, for me, for your family, for your friends, for you team and for your own damn sake…
Believe in yourself!
Believe in your awesomeness.
I do.
2022 out!
P.S. Also happening soon (Jan 12-14) – in an interactive Zoom Event Format – Register HERE