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You are listening to Batting 1000 with Dale Vermilion, where heavy hitters from

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mortgage, real estate and business share their secrets for lasting success with

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your host industry icon, Dale Vermilion.

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All right. Welcome to Batting a thousand.

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This is the podcast where we talk to the heavy hitters in the mortgage and

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real estate business, and I have got an absolute, uh, delight for you guys today.

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I am with a dear old friend, uh, someone I've known for 11 years.

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I've got Kara Whitman, who with here today, and Kara is, uh,

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the first loan officer we've had on Banning a thousand and sh.

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The reason is she is, As I like to call her the legend.

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She is the legend in the mortgage business.

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Kara has been 11 years in the business.

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She has been in the Scotchman sky, top 1%, uh, of producers

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since 2016, every single year.

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Uh, this is a lady who's done almost 700 loans in a year.

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Uh, this is someone who started the consumer direct business and uh, took

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leads, took Len Tree leads and those kind of things, and she has built

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that into a monster business with.

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Thousands and thousands of customers in her database, realtor referrals.

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She's just done it all. Kara, it is so fun to have you on Batting a thousand.

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Welcome. Thank you so much for having me, Dale.

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I really appreciate it and I am honored to be here.

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Well, it's an honor to have you here. Um, you know, it, it's, it's fun for me because I met you when you

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started brand new in the business way back, uh, 11 years ago.

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Uh, have known you ever since and just seen how your career has just blossomed.

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And I remember, I remember talking to your manager and saying, I.

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That one right there. I am telling you, look out.

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She is going to rule the world. And man, you have, you have just crushed the mortgage market for a long, long time.

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Uh, I can't wait to share some of the principles and some of the things you

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do, but here's what I wanna do first, you have a personal mission statement

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on your website that I absolutely loved. I wanna share it with the audience because I don't see this from loan officers.

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You took the step to do this, and here, here's what it says verbatim.

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"My ultimate goal is to truly help people achieve both financial and personal

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goals they never dreamed possible.

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I do this for my strong work ethic, which I've never seen one that's stronger

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dedication and bubbly personality", and you're gonna find out she has just

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all three of those things in spades. Um, "I believe in providing exceptional customer service while making the

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process as simple and easy as possible.

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I also believe it's extremely important to establish a trusting relationship

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with all my clients, we will put together the right mortgage strategy

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tailored to each individual situation. The greatest feeling in the world is helping others achieve financial freedom,

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and luckily, I'm able to accomplish every single day of my career".

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That is an other's first mindset, if I've ever heard of one.

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Kara, I love that. Let's just talk about that.

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Tell, just take that deeper for us. Help us understand what in the world have you been doing to be a, you know,

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Number 40 in the country loan officer, uh, one of, one of the most powerful

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women in the nation when it comes to that, and just somebody who's been amazing.

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Thank you so much, Dale. Yeah, I others first is extremely important to me.

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You know, I think, uh, my clients are my world, my life, and I care and I love

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what I do and I'm lucky to be able to have landed in the mortgage industry.

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That was a little bit of a surprise to begin with, and meet

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new people every single day, help new people every single day.

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It's, it's so special to me and I care about my clients, you know,

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it's really my goal to streamline the mortgage maze and simplify it.

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Let's make it as fun as possible. I want every single client to feel like they are my only client and

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they are my number one priority.

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So, through collaboration, through trust, through being responsive, being

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respectful to breaking things down, and really taking the time to get to know

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someone, you know, and, and take it a little bit deeper to a personal level and

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figure out exactly what their situation is.

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You know, I, I think going above and beyond and that extra mile

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just to peel back the layers of an onion, so to speak, is so important.

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And people remember that, right?

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And on every single call, I want people to remember me.

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So I wanna be different, and I wanna be happy and excited and make this,

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you know, endless supply of mortgage money, which I like to say that I have.

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I wanna make it a tangible object and it's hard, right?

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So if you can feel that, Through the phone, through the tone,

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through our conversation, and feel empowered and inspired and hopeful.

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You know, there's a, it's a, finances are stressful, right?

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And we're embarrassed now more so than ever with everything going on.

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So being able to provide that safe space where someone can truly open

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up and, you know, provide guidance.

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To, uh, someone's life, you know, their whole family, and just

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make things a little bit easier. It, it's literally been a dream come true.

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I, I, there was, that's a golden mic moment right there

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in what you just surmised. I love that, and I, I wanna unpack a bunch of those elements, but

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let's start with this, because this is what I like the most. All right.

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2023 and 2022, obviously different years than 2020 and 2021, when all you

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do is pick up the phone and everybody wanted those rates and everybody wanted

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a mortgage and it was pretty easy. You gotta work hard at it in 2022 and 2023.

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And you know, the one thing that I've seen more than anything is I've traveled

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all over the country, um, in the last couple of years and spoke to, you know,

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tens of thousands of loan officers across the nation is, I see this permeating

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attitude of just kind of pessimism and people being down and, and people, you

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know, losing hope and you said a moment ago, you know, having hope and making sure

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that we are inspired is really important.

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And then I get you on the show and here we go.

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I knew this would happen, Kara lights up the room.

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You're happy as a clam. You don't care about what rates are doing.

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You're just like, no, no, no. We're gonna make a bunch of money.

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I wanna start with that. How do you keep this dynamic, outgoing, positive personality in a marketplace

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where a lot of loan officers are thinking the world's coming to an end.

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Talk about that. Great question. Well, you know, a wise one once told me, don't try to control the uncontrollables.

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You know who that was? I dunno, who was that?

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Yeah, we're chatting with you right now.

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The one and only. Um, you know, I am so grateful for everything that I have and if

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you, uh, you know, there got to a point last year where I would tell

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my clients, turn off the news. Like it is so daunting and so scary, and they are invoking so much fear.

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And fear is just a four letter word.

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That's it. And, uh, you know, we, I love it.

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If you get stuck in this negative trap, it's, it's just bad, bad, bad, bad, bad.

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And it's so easy to find, you know, through all of the distractions.

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So if you can train yourself to focus on the positive, you know, people are

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always going to need mortgages, right?

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We're always gonna need to, um, there's always a need for buying a new home,

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whether it's for more space or downsizing or location or, I mean, there's a,

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there's so many different reasons or refinancing, you know, there, there's

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so much positive in the world that we just have to focus on the positive.

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You have to start your day off on the right foot.

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I believe mindset is so important and find what works for you.

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You know, everyone is very different. I would like to say I really try to see the good in everything, right, even if

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it's not a, a good situation, but just being happy and positive and fulfilled

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and focusing on the right things has made a really, really big difference.

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You know, you, you can't get bogged down on all of the noise.

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Great advice. In fact, um, I would recommend what you just said about shutting off the

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news if you're a loan officer, you need to listen to that advice too.

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You need to get out all the negativity. There's so much positivity out there.

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Focus on the things that matter. It's gonna make a big difference.

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No question about it. So, so let's, let's kind of unpack the things that you do.

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I, I know that people listen and tell you will want to know how do you sustain,

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I mean, even, even last year in 2022, how many units did you close in 2022?

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2022. I did 658 I believe, or, 658, 642 The prior year.

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Okay, so we're talking about 50 plus loans a month.

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Tell, tell, tell me what are you doing to generate those opportunities?

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Because, you know, as you unpack the sales process, as you know,

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it begins with, you know, first you gotta get the opportunities in

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the door that you gotta talk to. Then you've gotta make sure you convert those and maximize those opportunities.

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And then it's the follow up process. And I wanna talk about those three things with you.

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And I want to get in a little bit by the end about.

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Kind of your routine and what you use as a routine, but let's start with the first

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one, which is, in today's marketplace.

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How would, how would loan officers go about trying to, you know, develop

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a database and create enough lead opportunities to succeed in a big way?

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Talk about that. Good question. So I, um, don't do this all on my own.

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You know, I have an amazing team.

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I love my team. I need to tell them more often that I love them.

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Um, I, I do do a lot on my own and I'm definitely, uh, you know, on the phone

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all day, every day and in the most forward facing to the client as possible.

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But I think there's this, uh, almost like unspoken expectation that I am, you know,

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very demanding without being demeaning.

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And, uh, you know, I have very, very high standards.

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It's never enough. The sky is the limit and we have to keep going and we want every single one.

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So, uh, you know, breaking down, um, Every single deal and every single

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client and taking the time, you know, uh, to have that quality conversation

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and make that quality difference and impact is really, really important to me.

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Right? Uh, so you, you have to start by making that first impression

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and building that bond with each and every single client, right?

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Getting them into the door, drawing them to you, um, and being different, you

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know, and getting them to remember you. I think that's huge, right?

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Because now in this industry, it's more competitive than it's

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ever been, right? So you have to be different, um, and, you know, you've gotta get them in the door.

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So I would like to say I'm really, really good at that and that has

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been, uh, a game changer for me.

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And then after you initiate that sale, you, you can't just, you

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know, Uh, say you're done, right? You have to follow up and you have to follow through.

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And I always try to put myself in my client's shoes, right?

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If I am helping someone make the largest financial decision that they're

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arguably gonna be making in their entire life, uh, I need a go-to person.

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I need a reliable person. I need an educated, knowledgeable individual who is gonna advocate for me.

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And you know, I want it to feel like it is a team, right?

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It's not like you do exactly what I say.

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We're gonna work on this together and we're going to make it to the finish line

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as quickly and easily as we possibly can. No excuse.

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And that is 100% my mentality.

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So I do have different touchpoints and milestones.

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Where, um, I will personally follow up.

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Um, you know, I, I rely heavily on my team members.

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I can't do all of this on my own for the kind of numbers

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that I'm gonna be happy with. So, um, having the right people on your team and being able

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to count on them is huge.

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Um, because I, I do think those touchpoints and that follow through and

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that follow up and that reassurance is, is a critical piece of the entire process.

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Awesome. You just said something that I Absolutely.

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One of my favorite quotes You said be demanding without being demeaning.

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Uh, it's interesting. I just did a leadership session with a bunch of leaders and I actually used

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that quote, uh, and I was using Kevin O'Connell, who is the, uh, the new head

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coach this year of the Minnesota Vikings. You know, I've been Vikings fan my whole life.

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Yes. And he came in and just changed that organization, turned it around overnight.

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And, and that was one of the, the key things that I was talking about

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that he utilizes as a principle is that demanding without demeaning.

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And, and I think it's really interesting that you say that, Kara, because I

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think today a lot of people think, well, I don't want accountability.

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I, I want autonomy. I, I don't want to be demanded to do things because I just wanna do the

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way I want and if you're gonna have an excellent business, and you're gonna

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have an excellent relationship with your customers, You've gotta be demanding and

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you've got to be on top of your game. And I love the fact that you're building that mindset with your team that we

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are gonna be of absolute excellence across the board when we do everything.

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So talk a little bit about the structure of your team and how you use them to

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be able to hit the kind of bottom. Cuz one of the things you said that I really want to unpack that was probably

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shocking to a lot of the people listening to this, is when we talk about the

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volume of loans that you've done and yet, Never once did you say you rush.

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You said the opposite, I take my time with my customers, I get

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to know my customers, I dig in.

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All of the things that we teach have taught at Mortgage Champions

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the day I met you 11 years ago. And, and, and I love that you, you stand for relationship and you stand for doing

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it right the first time instead of. Doing it three or four more times cuz you did it wrong the first time.

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Talk a little bit about your team structure, how you work with your team

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to be able to give that, you know, world class experience to the customer and

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still balance your life within that. Yeah, great question.

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So I am here for the long game. I am not a transactional originator.

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I am. 100% a relationship, uh, you know, originator.

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And that is what makes my job so fulfilling.

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Like that's why I'm so passionate about it, right, is that I get to

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meet awesome people every single day and truly impact their life.

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So, I, I think you have to take your time and you have to slow down.

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Granted, I mean, yes, it, it does take up more time, but I thoroughly enjoy it.

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You know, I can honestly say I come to work every single day and I'm excited

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to come to work every single day, and I think that makes a really big difference.

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Difference, you know, people can, can feel the passion, um, through our conversation.

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So, uh, our, our team structure, um, you know, I, I have someone

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who helps me a little bit with marketing that is, Fairly newer.

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I'm trying to get into, um, this, uh, social media game.

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I, people call me a boomer all the time.

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I'm not really a boomer, but I'm a little bit more old school, so

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I'm trying to get into this, this marketing stuff a little bit better.

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I have, um, an assistant who does a ton of behind the scenes work.

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He does a ton of nurturing past clients.

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Uh, I will. Almost always take an application over the phone and, you know,

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pull credit and pitch options.

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I think me having a conversation and really feeling out a situation and

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understanding a situation and knowing what questions to ask and what not

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to ask and what potential issues may or may not arise like that is my

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specialty, um, I would like to say, so I really like to

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do that completely by myself. I'm very stubborn in that way.

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And then, um, you know, we, we seal the deal and then we bring in, um,

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one of my processors who are the document document specialist, right?

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Um, I'm always gonna prep the document so there's no surprises and set

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clear and and concise expectations.

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But I do have someone who is going to follow up with, uh,

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the process side of things. And, um, you know, I, I've been here so long, I know all of the

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underwriters and we have a very, very open line of communication.

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You know, we underwrite files to approve files, not to deny files.

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So if there is like a little bit of a more tricky situation, so to speak.

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Let's work together, let's put our heads together.

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Like we all have the same end goal. Let's make this happen.

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And, uh, you know, so there's an open line of communication, there's collaboration

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there and then, um, you know, my, my own, uh, loan closer, my loan closer

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is going to come in if there is a rush purchase or if we need to close this

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particular loan over the weekend, or if we need to do a hybrid closing,

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there's something special going on, I mean, you, you would think that closing is the easy part and I mean, yes, most

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of the time it is the easy part, but there are a lot of different situations.

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You know, if a borrower is, last week I had a borrower getting ready to, to

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fly out of the country and I was like, listen, we have to close this loan today.

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And it was a holiday and we got it done.

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So just having those team members that were really, are willing to go

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above and beyond and they're like, Kara, whatever you need me to do,

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and, you know, I'm, I'm very cautious not to abuse those privileges.

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Right. I mean, I, um, we, we don't want to call in a favor on every single file,

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no, but if, if, You know, there is a circumstance and something that we,

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we do need to do, um, like, you know, having that team effort with the same

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end goal in mind, like whatever it takes to close every single loan and

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as quickly and easily as possible, again, like no excuses that, that is my

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mentality and being on the same page and, knowing each other's styles, and you know, I'm also not afraid to jump in a file,

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which I think is very unique as well. Like if something is going a little bit sideways and I need to get us

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back on the, the, the railroad track, so to speak, like, I will jump in.

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I mean, my team knows if something is going a little sideways, hey, call Kara,

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and if we don't tell her about this and something bad happens,

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she is not gonna be happy. So, uh, I think that's really special though, you know?

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Um, I'm here to help. We're a team.

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We're in this together, like let's make it happen.

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Um, so it's really special. You know, let, let, let me, let me just comment on a few things that

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you said there that I thought were really important for people to hear.

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And the first thing is, you said you take every application by telephone.

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One of my pet peeves of today's market is the link pushing mindset that I see

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with so many loan officers today where they don't even talk to their borrowers.

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It's, let me send you a link. Let, let me, let you fill it out on yourself, and then I'll call

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you up and I'll offer you a deal. Now, wait a minute, there's a problem with that, and first off,

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you don't even understand their situation, so you can't solve what

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you don't understand, number one. Number two, you have no relationship with that borrower whatsoever.

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All you are is selling a loan. You're, you're like, you're like the F&I guy at a, at an auto dealership where

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they're, they're bringing into the office and he's gonna try to just, or she's

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gonna try to just take you through the numbers and you're like, you know, you're

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pushing back as a consumer, like, I don't really like this too much, because there's

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never been that personal connection. You do the opposite.

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As busy as you are, you put your priorities on your relationships with

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your borrowers because you understand that number one, That customer's wanting.

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Kara Whitman, when she works with the Kara Whitman team,

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she's not wanting somebody else. She's wanting to work with you or he's wanting to work with you in that process.

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Secondarily, you are the best at identifying what those

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opportunities are, building that relationship, cementing that deal.

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I, I love how you talked about that and the importance of that and the key,

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that being a key part of what you do. And then just the way you've defined both the structure of

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your team and your sales process.

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You guys have it down to an absolute design, it sounds like, where

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everybody knows or understands their roles and responsibilities.

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Everybody works towards the good of getting that customer done.

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And I love when you said, don't make everything a five alarm fire, you know,

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don't call in your favors all the time. That's a common mistake that I see where, you know, loan officers are

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screaming five alarm fire every single deal, and finally operations gets

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deaf to it because they're like, it's always a five alarm fire with you.

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You really pick your shots carefully. I think that's really important and critical.

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Anything you want to add to any of that? Um, prioritizing I think is huge.

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That is critical. You know, I, um, I definitely have a very, very strong work ethic.

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I think I am almost borderline workaholic in some aspects, and so I don't

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think there's a question about that. Yes. Well, being able to prioritize is huge, and that's crucial.

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I mean, I'm never gonna get every single thing done in one day that I need to.

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Yeah. So I would like to say I'm very good at time management and

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prioritization and that has made me, um, I believe very, very special.

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And, you know, there are some days I'm a better mom. There are some days I'm a better originator.

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I don't think it's ever gonna be a perfect balance, but you have to do

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your best, and, uh, so that, um, I think I've really been able to master

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and it didn't happen overnight. You know, it, it has taken a, a very, very long time, but one thing

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that I, I have done that I used to struggle with is I was really bad

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about setting boundaries and I would bring work home with me and you know,

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I, I was exhausted, I was burned out.

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I was not happy, and it really was starting to affect my personal

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relationships and it was bothering me and, uh, so we, I knew I had to

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make a change and it was not easy. It did not happen overnight.

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But I think something that has been a crucial, or, or pivotable, pivotal

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change has been really being able to set those boundaries where, um, I

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i, I really draw that line, you know, to be present in my personal

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relationships in my kids' life, you know, and to be present and focus on that.

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Um, but then when I'm working, I'm working. So just to be present and, and really try to hold those boundaries

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as best as possible, has made a world of a difference and a more

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energized in both faucets of my life.

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And that has paid huge, huge, huge dividends.

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That right there was gold. You just blessed everybody watching this podcast with that statement,

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because you know what, I think a lot of people struggle with this.

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I think most people struggle with this is can you be a hugely successful person in

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business and still balance your life and you prove that you can, it can be done.

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And, and you know, you said something earlier, you said a key word there.

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Presence. Presence with your children, presence with your spouse, presence when you're

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at work, like being there and working, not, not being there and chatting

23:20

about what happened over the weekend or wasting time on things don't matter.

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But setting priorities and everything that you do, creating that balance within

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life is absolutely critical because that's why you have so much joy and still

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have, have developed such an incredible career, have been very successful,

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I'm sure financially as well as in everything else you've done, because

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you'll only get one shot at this life, and those kids only grow up one time.

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You don't get that back once you miss it. So I love the fact that you talked about it.

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Talk a little bit about if you would give us. A little bit more specifics on how you prioritize and what does

23:55

that look like you said you're, I'm an expert at time management.

23:58

I'd love you to share a little bit of what you do to create that

24:01

really, really solid schedule.

24:04

Good question. So I'm very, very good at time management, but I don't have like a rigid.

24:10

Um, schedule that I like, time block, so to speak, right?

24:15

I mean, I have things being thrown at me all day every day, so.

24:19

Yep. Um, I, I, there's not a secret, you know, um, I, I wake up every single morning

24:24

and my mornings are my time with my kids, and usually there's not too much

24:29

going on first thing in the morning, so, That is, it's just my time with my kids.

24:33

You know, I made a promise to myself. I am going to be a present mom in my kids' life, but I'm also going to be a

24:39

rockstar, career oriented, um, person.

24:43

And it, it, it really has inspired me and motivated me to prove that

24:46

you can be a very, very powerful.

24:50

Um, loan officer, especially as a female, which I think is sometimes

24:54

a little bit harder and be, uh, you know, a, a successful mom as well.

24:59

And it has been very, very hard. I don't wanna shed any light, you know, um, say it's easy.

25:04

Um, it's hard, but it is 1000% possible and being able to prove

25:09

that to others and be a role model is something that has it, it's really

25:12

been one of my missions and, uh, so in my morning times are with my kids.

25:17

Uh, normally there's no emergencies going on and, you

25:21

know, I prioritize prospecting.

25:23

You know, I have certain calls every single day that I have to make to bring

25:28

business in the door, because at the end of the day, that is what is most important

25:32

is to bring business in the door.

25:34

So that is, um, you know, very, very early on, once I log into work.

25:39

Um, and then we're, we're tackling issues that come in and

25:44

I'm very good at shifting from like doing one thing to

25:47

something completely different. You know, that transition phase when we need to make a pipeline issue, call to a

25:55

prospecting call to a follow up call, to a realtor call, like I can just go back

26:01

to back to back, to back, to back, to talk about, you know, apples and then oranges,

26:04

and then chocolate, and then bananas. So, um, you know, I'm, I'm very good at like, I've, I've had so many of these

26:10

conversations that like, just hit it with me, like I don't need to prep for it,

26:15

which obviously doesn't happen over time.

26:17

Right. But, um, uh, and, and I'm just like knocking things off of the to-do list

26:22

and by the time I log into work, I already have a lot of things that I

26:26

have to do, which, um, Is to me, uh, it makes me get through it faster, right?

26:33

If I come into work with only a few things to do, I, I'm gonna take my time.

26:37

But if I come into work already with fire alarms, like we gotta put those out now.

26:42

So, uh, um, yes.

26:47

So you, you, again, you said so many things that I loved in there.

26:50

You talked about a concept I've, I've talked about forever, sell

26:53

early, so often prioritizing your prospect calls in the morning.

26:57

11 years you've been doing this, you've got a huge database, you've got a huge

27:00

following of realtors, and yet you still take time every single day to prioritize,

27:05

to make new calls to get out there, build new relationships with new referral

27:10

sources, because you just never know.

27:12

You have markets like this where all of a sudden the rates change, the the

27:17

carpet gets pulled out from underneath you, and if you're sitting there

27:20

with no prospects, you're in trouble.

27:22

In the marketplace and you have really market proofed yourself from that and

27:26

you're living with a priority mindset. What I heard you say there was everything you're doing is based on priority.

27:31

Kids come first, family comes first. You're starting your day.

27:34

Right. You're, you're not watching the news. You're not getting any negativity in you're, you're

27:38

coming in excited, ready to go. And I love when you said, I love having a lot of things on my calendar.

27:44

That is so true. I, you know, it's funny cuz when you said that, it kind of hit me, Oh,

27:48

that's what I've done for 40 years. This my 40th year in the business and I'm one of those people like

27:54

put more in my calendar because then I'm moving fast all day long.

27:58

If there's gaps, I might get a little bit lazy. Yeah, it's so true.

28:02

It's true. So I think it's a good lesson for people to understand is you've gotta

28:06

force yourself into productivity.

28:09

You, you, you've gotta force yourself into behaviors and priorities that

28:13

make you work through those things. So I, I think that's just so fun.

28:16

So if I were to ask you this question, all right. What do you think of, of all of the things that you do, what is kind of

28:24

the, the one thing that you think is the thing that is most important in your

28:30

success in working with customers that has been the driver to everything else?

28:35

Maybe it's a strategy. Maybe it's a philosophy, but what is, what if, if I were to say, what's your

28:39

secret sauce, Kara, what would that be?

28:42

You know, I really think it has to be establishing that trust foundation,

28:48

that foundational trust aspect.

28:50

You know, people are trusting you with one of the largest financial decisions

28:56

and being able to get an individual to

29:00

feel like you truly have their best interests at heart, and you are going

29:05

to go above and beyond and you're gonna be there and you're gonna get it done.

29:09

Um, to me has been monumental and I don't even really think it's a secret sauce,

29:14

but, you know, just taking the time to understand and listening to understand,

29:18

not, you know, listening to respond.

29:21

Is, is so crucial and so important.

29:24

You know, you buy from people that you like. So I always try to find that solid connection, um, and,

29:32

and just make a difference and prove to people that I care.

29:36

You know, anyone can tell you they're the best, but being able

29:39

to prove you're the best through actions is extremely important.

29:46

I, I, I think when you say it's not secret sauce, I think it actually is.

29:51

And, and I'll tell you why I think it actually is, because I, I meet

29:55

way too many loan officers who forget about the importance of that

29:58

personal relationship and connection and that this is the biggest

30:02

financial decision people ever make. The fact that you have maintained that thought process through all of these

30:08

years, actually, Kara, is so unique and so mind-blowing to me because what I

30:13

think a lot of times happens to people in sales is we sell for a long enough

30:17

time that we kind of lose sight of what we're really, of, what we really are

30:20

doing and our purpose and that every day, especially in the mortgage business.

30:24

And, and you know, you and I have talked about this many times over the years.

30:28

There is no bigger financial decision and we are making a massive impact on people

30:32

every single time we get on the phone. And I know for me, and I know for you, and I know for a lot of top producers

30:38

that I've known over the years, we keep reminding ourselves of that every day.

30:42

That's what gets me outta bed in the morning, is today I can change

30:44

another life or 10 more lives, or a thousand more lives, or whatever it

30:47

is, and you have that same mindset. Think for everybody watching this podcast, what you just said is so

30:53

monumentally important that we've gotta get back to that trust level because

30:58

what technology specifically has done to the mortgage industry as it's forced

31:03

a lot of people into everything's text messaging, emailing, and uh, online

31:08

applications, and you know, we've lost sight of that personal conversation

31:12

where we're listening to people. There was a recent quote, I've been using a lot from Steven Covey who

31:17

says, you know, the problem with today's communication is we listen

31:20

to reply instead of listening to understand, and, and, and we really

31:25

should be listening to understand, and you are exceptional at that.

31:28

Um, you know, I've had the great privilege over the years.

31:30

You know, we worked together so many years before, um, that I've heard

31:34

you on the phone, I've, I've seen how you interact with your customers.

31:37

I know the, the level of relationship you build with them and how much time

31:41

you take with them to really understand their situation and for anybody listening

31:44

today, if you are wondering why your sales are going south, the question I

31:48

would ask yourself is this question,

31:51

what are my relationships like? You know, I used an example last week here, you're gonna love this one.

31:56

I was talking to a, a guy who was a manager of a bunch of loan officers

32:01

and he said, well, how do you know if your loan officer really has the

32:05

right connection and relationship? I said, well, here's the question,

32:08

call up the customer and ask him, would you let that loan

32:10

officer babysit your kids? Yeah, that's a good one.

32:14

If the answer's yes, they did an incredible job.

32:17

If the answer's like, not in a million years, we got a problem.

32:21

Uh, so it really is building out that right mindset of

32:25

trust to, to really build it. Any final thoughts on, let's talk about 2023 for a minute.

32:31

Okay. I, I believe. Absolutely.

32:33

2023 is gonna be an incredible year. Uh, every the line, the stars are aligning.

32:38

Again. We're starting to see everything moving in the right direction.

32:40

Inventory, is starting to improve, inflation numbers are better,

32:44

rates are starting to drop a little bit, activity's gonna be greater,

32:47

uh, we're seeing, you know, less buyers in the market, which is actually good.

32:50

So more people can actually buy homes. Uh, it's a better time for consumers right now.

32:54

I think we're gonna see rates continue to, to drop down the rest

32:57

of the year, and I think we're gonna have another nice refinance market

33:01

at the end of this year in 2024. I just think there's huge opportunity.

33:05

Tell me from your perspective, what, what are you thinking going

33:08

into 2023 are the key things that you're going to do to generate tons

33:12

of business and just continue to be a top producer in the nation?

33:16

Great question. We're gonna keep bulldozing mortgages.

33:22

Love that. I, uh, I have not been a huge goal setter.

33:27

Um, I think it's never enough and the sky is the limit and, you know, maybe

33:31

that's a little bit more of a unique mindset or, or thought process to have.

33:35

But I, I really truly feel that if you set the right habits, And

33:40

you have a, an established routine and you are self-disciplined,

33:46

uh, that is way more important.

33:48

You know, one of the things that I love about this industry is

33:51

being able to literally just keep breaking records and not even

33:54

intentionally trying to by setting goals that I need to break a record.

33:58

You know, every single day I'm gonna show up to work.

34:00

I have my routines established, I have my discipline, I have my habits that.

34:06

I'm very, very stubborn about like a certain, uh, you know,

34:10

couple of habits that I do. Uh, like building, trusting relationships.

34:14

I mean, that is the core of this business that has paid huge dividends for me,

34:18

you know, naturally and organically going to being a completely, um, you

34:22

know, repeat client referral business.

34:25

I have partnerships all across the country.

34:27

I mean, I just had a, um, a one, a realtor call me the other day, she's

34:31

like, Kara, you're coming to this closing out in Texas, right, and we

34:34

send so many closings together, and I've never been to the closing with

34:37

her and I'm like, I gotta, I, you know, I, um, I, I need to come to a closing.

34:41

So I, uh, I'm, I'm gonna keep going.

34:44

I think we are past the worst of the market, even though it

34:47

honestly wasn't even that bad. It was like 2019, you know?

34:50

Yeah. Um, we tend to forget that because we just came off of record breaking.

34:54

Uh, you know, levels and, and markets and so on and so forth.

34:58

So, I'm gonna keep going, I'm super excited.

35:01

I, um, you know, I'm gonna do my best every single day.

35:04

Show up every single day. There is a lot of optimism out there.

35:08

I think, uh, you know, we are gonna have more opportunity than we've ever had.

35:13

I think we just have to execute. Like these days you have to execute, and you cannot get away with

35:19

taking shortcuts or being lazy. And, uh, you know, luckily I, I think I'm pretty good at that when other loan

35:25

officers do, you know, get stuck into like a little bit of, um, you know, maybe

35:29

a little bit of a different mentality coming off of record breaking years.

35:33

But you have to execute, you have to be on your a game competition is stiff.

35:37

Um, I think nurturing all of the relationships with all of my

35:42

partnerships across the entire country.

35:44

You know, those are real relationships.

35:46

Those are not like, Hey, like let's just do a transaction together.

35:50

You know? I love the personal touch because I think it makes that much more fulfilling and

35:55

those things do take time, but they're so it's so prosperous.

35:59

So I think that is extremely, um, important to me, and I'm really excited

36:04

to see what the future has in store. You know, I, I, I love what I do.

36:07

I'm so passionate about it. And, uh, let's keep going.

36:10

You know, if the market improves a little bit, like that's just

36:13

the, the icing on the cake. That's awesome.

36:15

I love it. I just love your excitement and your joy.

36:19

It, it just spills out of you. It's just so cool.

36:22

And you just have my four favorite words, Kara, that I think, oh no.

36:25

Define success in this business.

36:27

No, you did. You said all four of them. Habits.

36:30

Having the right habits, routine, building a powerful routine, discipline,.

36:35

Being disciplined in that process and execution.

36:38

Execution is always so key. Um, now I want to touch on one more thing and then we'll, we'll wrap this up.

36:45

Uh, you mentioned nurturing your customers and we, we talked about this before the

36:49

podcast, that, you know, you mentioned that one of the important things is

36:53

staying in contact with your customers. After the sale happens and then after the loan closes again.

36:59

Another common mistake that I see with loan officers where they rely on the

37:04

technology to do that, they don't do it themselves and have that personal touch.

37:08

So share a little bit of what you do to stay in touch with people and

37:12

maintain those relationships and nurture them for many years to come.

37:17

Great question. Um, it has always been really, really important to me to make a

37:22

really good first impression and to be that first point of contact.

37:28

Um, that's very, very powerful.

37:30

And then I am going to take a little bit more time to set proper expectations, uh,

37:36

you know, as we go through the process. And then every single.

37:40

Funding or closed loan I wanna be the very last person that you talk to as well.

37:45

So I want to, I'm very stubborn at like, I'm the first and the last, right?

37:49

And I want to create those solid impressions that you are gonna remember

37:54

me and when anyone thinks about a house or a mortgage or you know, whatever it may

38:00

be, I want my me to pop into their head.

38:04

So, um, every single closed loan, I make it a point to call and ask for feedback.

38:10

You know, um, I'm not naive. I mean, I think I'm very good at what I do, but I'm never perfect.

38:14

Right? And I wanna keep learning and one thing about the mortgage industry

38:17

is that it's always changing and we have to be open to change.

38:20

We have to adapt to change. And so the best way to do that is to ask for feedback from your clients.

38:27

I wanna know the good, the bad, the ugly. So, uh, I, I, I spend a little bit more time, a lot more time up front.

38:33

I will always be the last phone call I always ask for feedback.

38:36

Um, I think that is, that's crucial, right?

38:38

Just those, uh, those touchpoints and Yep.

38:41

Uh, those lasting impacts or impressions and, you know, there's,

38:46

there's certain milestones. Stones that I have, that I reach out to clients every, uh, you know,

38:51

a couple times a year, every single one and I'm very stubborn about that.

38:55

I am, uh, I'm not a texter.

38:58

I mean, I'll text right, but at the end of the day, like if, you know,

39:02

things are, um, cultivated more through a phone call conversation, so I

39:08

pick up the phone and I call, um, yes, I'll text, yes, I'll email, but

39:13

I think it's so much more meaningful to have a conversation over the

39:17

phone so that, um, you know, to me is, is very, very important.

39:23

Amen. Man, I love that. And you know, you hear so many people today, well, that's not what people want.

39:27

That is not true. People want to talk to their loan officer.

39:31

They want an advisor who cares about 'em. They want somebody who's staying in contact with 'em, checking in on them.

39:36

It's a massive decision. They need that benefit of that person.

39:40

Well, this has been delightful. I'm gonna, I'm, I'm gonna ask you the last question I ask every one of my guests.

39:45

Um, and, and it's this, you know, I, I, I am a firm believer that we only

39:50

become successful in this business when we work in mentorships and we have other

39:53

people that can hold us accountable. And, and, and we, we.

39:56

Take the knowledge and wisdom of other people to help us succeed.

40:00

I think a lot of times people think they just can be successful on their own

40:03

and you can't, and, and I've heard some great stories from many of my guests

40:07

from about mentorships they've had who have been some people in your life that

40:11

have mentored you and, and what has that meant to you and how important do

40:14

you think having mentors is to success?

40:18

It's, it's everything. You know, I, I came into the mortgage industry as a baby and I really

40:24

looked up to my manager a lot to provide guidance and to tell me what

40:29

I should be doing, what I shouldn't be doing, what is, what are the right

40:33

habits, what are the wrong habits? And I will always remember that, uh, you know, my manager used to compare me to

40:40

the top loan officer and the top originator.

40:43

He was a seasoned veteran loan officer.

40:46

All of our metrics, every single metric, every, you know, meeting that we had,

40:51

which was very frequently, you know, we would compare and go down the checklist.

40:55

And at the time I was like, this is not fair, like, why are we doing this?

40:59

And looking back, what I realized is that he saw the potential and I am so grateful.

41:06

Uh, you know, I think I, I wouldn't be where I am today if, if that hadn't had

41:10

happened because I didn't know any better.

41:12

Right. And yeah, I trusted him and I followed the guidance and have

41:16

found so much untapped potential that I didn't even realize existed.

41:21

So, to me, uh, I, I mean, that has been monumental, I, now in my

41:28

career, I, I've mentored hundreds of loan officers and I love it.

41:32

It's so fulfilling and I think equally as a mentor, as well as a mentee, like

41:38

it's a win-win, you know, just, yep. A few weeks ago, I, uh, we were doing call reviews and we were listening to

41:44

phone calls and, um, someone mentioned, Kara, do you realize that you don't just

41:49

say home, you say beautiful home every single day and or every single time

41:55

and I literally had no idea I even did that cuz it's so subconscious,

41:59

you know, you just do it. Um, and it's a nice reminder to get you back to the basics, back to the

42:05

fundamentals, you know, to make this intangible object tangible and help

42:10

paint this picture right and make it fun and happy, and exciting and beautiful.

42:15

Uh, and, and it, I I love that, um, that open, you know, cuz we, we just,

42:21

sometimes when we've been doing this for so long, it's um, you don't even realize

42:26

that you're doing certain things that make all the difference in the world.

42:29

So it's a nice reminder as a mentor, um, you know, I love being able to

42:34

inspire others and being a role model.

42:37

I mean, yeah, it is a tough industry and it is not for everyone, don't get

42:41

me wrong, um, but if you truly enjoy it, like I love it and I want others to know

42:48

that it doesn't have to be daunting.

42:50

It doesn't have to be stressful. It doesn't have to be grueling.

42:53

Like let's make it fun and exciting and happy and, you know, develop

42:59

a strategy and a style that works.

43:02

Um, and if you can enjoy it, I mean, I, I am so grateful for everything the mortgage

43:08

industry has done for me and, um, it, it really has been a dream come true.

43:13

That's so awesome. That's so awesome. I'm assuming you were talking about Josh Hankins, by the way.

43:17

I was talking about good old Josh Hankins.

43:20

Good old Josh one, one guy that I just loved to death, a friend

43:24

of both of ours and just a great, great leader and great man.

43:28

Uh, that's really fun. It's fun to hear the stories that, uh, and the impact that mentors have

43:34

on people because it, it gives us, hopefully, motivation that we all want

43:39

to go mentor other people and help them to be successful in their lives too.

43:42

So I appreciate you sharing that. Any final thoughts for you?

43:45

Wrap this thing up, Kara. Thank you so much for having me, Dale.

43:49

It's been an absolute pleasure and you know, I have so much gratitude for you

43:55

as well, because I also don't think that I would be where I am today without you.

43:59

You know, you have trained me on selling benefit and not selling

44:02

rate, and building that trusting relationship and making this,

44:07

uh, making this a career for me, you know, early in my career I was like,

44:11

there is no way I can grind and hustle for the rest of my life and do this, and

44:15

now I'm like, what else would I ever do?

44:18

And so it, uh, it ha you know, it, it's, it's a beautiful thing and

44:22

you've really taught me the right habits, the right discipline, the

44:26

right thing to do, you know, to care

44:28

and even though technology's amazing, it can never ever replace the personal

44:33

touch, and I love the personal touch. I love meeting new people and you know, you have given me so much

44:40

mortgage wisdom and knowledge, and expertise and strategies.

44:46

Uh, I mean, I, I, I thank you so much.

44:48

Like all of the trainings that you have done for me throughout my

44:52

entire career and just being able to implement that and execute on that,

44:57

um, has, has been, you know, pivotal.

45:00

I mean, it's, it's everything. So thank you so much. Well, that's so kind of you say, thank you for saying that.

45:06

It's been a, it's been a privilege, man, from the day I met you, I knew

45:09

you were gonna be a killer and you are.

45:12

And, uh, not only that, but you're just a really, really incredible

45:16

human being and honored to know you.

45:18

Glad to call your friend and so glad to have you on the podcast Is

45:22

this has been an absolute delight.

45:25

I've had a ball hanging out with you.

45:27

We'll do this again. You need to start your own podcast, by the way.

45:30

You would be a great podcaster I think, I think you need to consider that as one

45:34

of your marketing approaches for 2023.

45:36

That'd be a fun thing to see, and if you do, you better call me and invite

45:40

me on cause I wanna be on your show. Oh, hello. Deal.

45:44

Well, Kara, thank you for being here. God bless you.

45:46

Hey, thanks everybody for joining in today. Great, great session today with Kara Whitman.

45:51

I'm sure you got so much out of it. I know that I did,

45:54

and if nothing else, I know you're walking outta here and you are inspired, um,

45:59

by just the joy and the motivation and just the enthusiasm, uh, that Carrie br.

46:04

Cara brings and all of these great tips that you shared.

46:07

Uh, we will see you on the next Batting a thousand where again, we

46:11

bring in the heavy hitters in the real estate and mortgage industry.

46:14

God bless and have a great rest of the month.