By Bud Jorgenson, Vice-President, Prairie Region
TMG The Mortgage Group

I was speaking with a mortgage broker recently who was struggling as their volume was down from previous years. 

They explained they weren't doing anything differently and just found themselves in a funk, and were asking for my perspective on what they should do. 

 Of course, we discussed all the reasons why things had changed for them. 

We talked about the changes in the market, the increased competition, the rate discounters, the underwriting rule changes etc.

My response was and is today that these changes have zero effect on your business and the only thing that matters is your response to these changes. 

I heard the concept of "thoughts are things" about 25 years ago and after testing it and seeing it in action with so many successful people throughout my professional life, I believe it to be the determining factor in our success or failure, in both our professional and personal life.  I also love that this is the one thing that I have complete control over.  How we can apply this in our everyday life as mortgage brokers is so simple. 

When walking into a first meeting with a client, take a moment to visualize how you would like the meeting to go, see it unfolding in a positive way and resulting in you completing a mortgage for them. 

When a cold call comes in asking for your best rate, it's so easy to consider this a waste of time. Instead, see it as an opportunity, and challenge yourself to turn that client from a discount shopper to a value client. 

When dealing with underwriters or speaking to realtors about partnering, or in every action, spend a few minutes setting the stage by visualizing the outcome in a positive way.  We all know people in our lives who seem to have that humble confidence that attracts people and opportunities that has helped them be successful. Let's be those people. 

I can't ever speak or write about success without throwing in a golf analogy.  I will finish with a quote from golfing great Jack Nicholas who is arguably the greatest golfer in history with 18 major wins.  When asked what he believed to be the most important factor in his success he said the following...

“I never hit a shot, not even in practice, without having a very sharp, in-focus picture of it in my head,” Nicklaus said. “First, I see the ball, where I want it to finish, nice and white, and sitting up high on the bright green grass. Then, the scene quickly changes, and I see the ball going there: its path, trajectory, and shape, even its behaviour on landing. Then there is a sort of fade-out, and the next scene shows me making the kind of swing that will turn the previous images into reality.”