Latest / Mortgage Marketing Radio / How to Get Your Mindset Right for 2024

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How to Get Your Mindset Right for 2024 · Mortgage Marketing Radio

0:00
Hey, what's up, everybody? Jeff Zimper. Your host for the mortgage marketing radio podcast.
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I really, really appreciate you tuning in. Hope you're doing well. By the time you're
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listening to this, we're probably already entering 2024. And this is a perfect ideal
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timely episode for you to get your head straight, right? For you to get your focus on more
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about that in a moment. But as you know, if you've been listening for some time, this is
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the place where we help mortgage professionals move from solicitor and vendor to becoming
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partner in peer when approaching real estate agents and attempting to get engagement in
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conversations. Imagine not having to chase realtors, right? Go to open houses, do call calling
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if you don't want to, right? Go to broker previews, host networking, happy hours. What
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if you could actually attract agents instead of chasing agents? What if agents could engage
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with you and reach out and want to know more about you and connect with you and have a conversation
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based on their choosing. And therefore, you were able to qualify the people that you were
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actually spending time with. Would that be a better use of your time? Would you probably
1:04
have less energy? Would you probably have less burnout? I'm guessing yes, just like you
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heard many of the success stories from our members over at my age in classes. And of course,
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I got another one to bring to you from the streets here. This is going back into the
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well from a few weeks ago. Justi Mahoney. She says, just a quick win. She put on her first
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class in a couple of months. She was in a funk and stopped doing one of the key activities
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that build momentum and engagement and conversations with real estate agents. And so she decided
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to get back on the wagon, right? And present a class. She had the ability to do it with her
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local realtor association. She had 35 attendants. These are real estate agents, right? And what
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she presented, what's our class called embracing the shift, which is basically, you know, how
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to survive and thrive the current market shift, what to say, how to show up online, what
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to post and all those things. And it went incredibly well for her. And she got conversations,
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meetings, she's getting referrals from it. And the bottom line is, look, this is appropriate
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to what we're talking about here today with my special guest. And that is, you know, understanding
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what your core value proposition is, what aligns with you and your values and you, your
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job when it comes to referral partners and realtors, in this case, is aligning with those
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same people who share some of the same values as you. Now, if you're a person who likes
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to, you know, be knowledgeable, if you like to help people grow, if you like to share relevant
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content, if you like to share information, teach classes virtually in person, well, then
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you can, this is perfect and alignment, right? Because you enjoy the process, you know,
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the people who are attracted to those same things are attracted to one of work with you.
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And therefore, things become that much more easy to do. And you work one to many instead
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of one to one and a leveraged fashion. And therefore, accelerate your results. So we've
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got a ton more success stories and results. You can go check out at mortgagemarketing.pro.
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We are looking for a few more people to join. This is not for everybody. But if it's for
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you, there's really only one way to find out that's go to mortgagemarketing.pro schedule
3:05
a call with me and we'll have a conversation and see if we are fit for each other. So go
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check that out. Now, my special guest for this episode, I'm really thrilled and honored
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to bring Shayla Gifford back to the conversation today. Shayla Gifford is the VP of sales development
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and a branch manager with guild mortgage. And she is just a well of energy and giving
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and support and encouragement and fire. That's right. Let's just say it. She's fire, right?
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And hey, I don't know about you, but I'm a person who's attracted to somebody who brings
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energy to the conversation and in a meaningful, impactful way, kind of, you know, heart-centered
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leadership. Let's call it that. And this conversation is fantastic based on, you know, all
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the noise around like the activities you should be doing to get engagement conversations
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like what should you be doing in the market with your referral partners and otherwise.
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And that conversation is relevant and has the right place. But I like the fact that we
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start this conversation today from the neck up or with your mindset and your values
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alignment because mindset drives skill set, which drives activities. And you've got to
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get your mindset right. You've got to get your energy right and be really clear on who
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you are uniquely. And what is what are the unique skills attributes and value that you bring
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to relationships? Because that will help you get clear on number one who you are and who
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you attract. But also you'll be able to recognize who you mesh with and who you align with.
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Therefore minimizing the frequency at which you have to work with other people who don't
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necessarily align. And that's where you find a lot of burnout and people getting tired
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with, you know, in this industry and so forth. So I think this conversation you're going
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to really, really enjoy with Shayla. You need to connect with her more on Instagram, her
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Instagram handles at Shay Giff, S-H-A-Y-G-I-F-F or go to her website, which is Shayla Gifford,
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G-I-F-F-O-R-D, Shayla Gifford.com. She's got tons of amazing content to share with you and
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is one of those leaders in the industry who if she's talking, I'm listing. So without
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further ado, let's get into this week's show. Shayla, welcome back to the show. Thank
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you, Jeff. Happy to be here. Always a pleasure. It's always something I learn when talking
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to you and also get inspired, by the way. So get ready to be inspired people for people
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who may not be familiar with who Shayla Gifford is and what she does. What do you want to
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share with our listeners? Well, I'm 42 years old. I'm in Reno, Nevada. I'm a mom of two
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daughters, 12 and 9 years old. I've been married to Galen, coming up on 15 years now. Have
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a poodle and mini poodle, bean dog. We love to ski and surf and walk and hike. I love to
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read books, podcasts. I'm definitely an introvert that also has figured out a way to perform
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in sales and leadership. But I like my quiet time. So I started this industry. I'm going
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on my 20th year, Jeff started in 2004, 23 years old, and I've been a loan officer for
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the entire period of time. I always say I'm on the Gifford team, 14.5 version. I've had
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a team of all different sorts and types. I've also been a sole originator with no team,
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no processor, no mentorship, no coach, no leadership. So I know that before, the transformation
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of coaching and a building a team. And I feel like that's why I'm so passionate about
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coaching others. I run a district to kill mortgage that spans over six or seven states.
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I have 40 loan officers that work for me. I do a daily training with those loan officers.
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We call it the daily hustle where we do some, you know, micro training. And then we all
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call together. This isn't something I've always done to run my team. But I feel like in
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today's environment, we need to be an action economy. We need to stop thinking and take
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action. And it's a heck of a lot easier to do that when you do it as a team in an organized
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fashion where there's accountability. There's high energy. And there's a lot of collaboration
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on what to say and what is the appointment? What are we going to bring to the appointment?
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So a high sales training environment is what I like to run. And then I also do coaching
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for my people where we're focusing on what is your wealth plan? What are you building?
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You know, let's look at the money every month and make sure that it's tactical is not
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emotional. Let's look at our plan on how we're going to generate leads and convert leads
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and track our numbers and know what we're doing. And then we of course have all the dashboards
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and portfolio and everything built in Salesforce so that we can use tools and technology to leverage
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and scale. So that's what I do. That's what I'm up to. I've coached professionally. At some
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point in time, I'll probably build another coaching company. But at this time, I am building
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my own army and team movement, whatever you want to call it, doing some event twice year
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live events, Jeff. But otherwise working with my team on a daily basis, a coaching them
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to be productive and crush it.
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Wow. Thank you, by the way, for sharing that. What a, sounds very fulfilling. Would that be
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a word that's appropriate? It is. I feel on fire right now. And I think there was a moment
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where I definitely burnt out, you know, probably at the time when I was making the most money I've
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ever made in my life during COVID. And, you know, I just overgassed it for so many years,
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didn't have a lot of boundaries in place, didn't do a lot of therapy as to what dysfunctions were
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striving my life. But was collecting a lot of trophies and making a ton of money and got
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no place of kind of self protection. I wasn't putting myself out there. I wasn't going to networking.
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I wasn't growing my team. I didn't have any clear goals or vision. And with this downturn
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over the last two years, I really believe we've been in these transition years. I've had
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to really like come to the table and say, what is it that I really love doing? What am I committed
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to doing? Because I'm never going to be that person or leader that's going to be grumpy or
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sarcastic or burnt. It's like either you're all in and on fire or get out. That's my mentality.
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So, yeah, I've reconnected to that purpose. I think the industry right now needs leadership
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more than ever. And people are craving it and leaders are being exposed. When times get tough,
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you get to see what's really there. And I can honestly say I've given everything I've got to my
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people. We're doubling down. We're finding new ways to be creative. And that makes me feel good.
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I feel needed right now, Jeff. I feel like my skills and talents are needed in the market. And I
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would say for loan officers that are also finding that, they're finding that professionals are needed
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right now. You know, enthusiasm is needed. Consistency is needed. And so if you're somebody that can
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lean into that, wow, this is just a time to dominate. So, yeah, I'm back. I'm in a fulfilling,
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fired up place. Yeah, I can definitely sense that. I've almost, I have to say, unequivocally,
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with every time that I've seen you, person in public, whatever, whether it's on the stage or just,
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you know, saying hi in the audience, you definitely show up with that energy and that enthusiasm,
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which is, which is awesome. However, circle back to what you opened up within one of the things
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that you self described yourself as, which, which is an introvert. I'm wondering, do you find
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that there are other introverts in this industry also? Oh, I think most of us are introverts.
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I mean, we like spreadsheets and solving problems and tax returns and using the analytical part of
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our brain as well. So, yeah, I'm an introvert that's learned how to be extroverted, that's learned
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how to be courageous, that's actually learned how to deal with people. I become obsessed with
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understanding human behavior and what drives people and how do we, you know, really work on this
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self transformation to be the healthiest, best versions of ourselves. I just thrive and crave
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that for myself. So, I love to crave that for others, but me being an introvert means, Jeff,
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that I just need quiet and space to recharge. So, like this weekend, you know, I was in the
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sauna for an hour and the sauna for an hour on Sunday. It's like my quiet mom box where I get away
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from the kids and my husband. I love to go on walks and be a nature by myself. I'm, you know,
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I'm getting fresh air, my creative brain turns on, I'm getting movement and oftentimes I'm listening
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to a book or podcast. So, I like people and I like being around people, but I thrive when I get
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that time and space to myself. Yeah, I totally get it wired in a similar way. I'm curious, though,
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on the aspect of introvert and the fact that, you know, the type of a person or, or, you know,
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characterization of an original writer who said spreadsheets, all that type of thing,
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what else I'm going to hang out here for a minute if it's okay because I just have a sensor
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knowing that a lot of people are in the same boat of like, I may quote introvert and I get the fact
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that we, when we're in groups of people, we in terms of our energy levels, that draws down and
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we need to go be alone to fill that back up. But what about what about the aspect of you learning
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to transition from being an introvert and having to create a personal public facing brand as well?
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Like, was that a challenge for you to cross that? Well, listen, I, I've wanted success from day one.
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I've wanted to stand out. I've wanted to do something different. I've wanted to differentiate. I've
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wanted to be the most successful woman in a man's club. Okay, so for an ever coaching event I've
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been to or whatever, often I was the only female in stage or the only one that was in that circle.
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And so I've really wanted success more than I've cared about my own personal energy or my own comfort.
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Like, I just took on the mantra and it's one of my core values in ours in our group is just
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whatever it takes. So if what it takes is to get good at networking, I got to get good at
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networking. What are the skills? What are the tactics to do that? To get good as a sales leader,
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I've got to learn how to tune my energy to get into that state to lead others in a battle.
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My husband calls me a wartime leader that I actually get better when it's tougher. Like, I just,
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oh, I just, I just figure out how to get to that next gear. Um, so what I have to learn how to do
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is actually moderate myself because I am so trained to be an achiever and to do whatever it takes
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that I won't care for myself. And I will sacrifice my well-being or even my family or,
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you know, other things that are lower priority at the moment, um, to do. But in terms of like
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being introverted and then having to make cold calls or being introverted and having to speak
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in front of a room or being introverted and having to network, that's all learnable skills.
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And you first have to believe that if someone else can do it and it's tactical that they're
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learnable skills that you can gain those skills. So everything that I've learned as a sales
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person, Jeff, was kind of unnatural to me, other than the fact that I'm competitive and I'm strategic.
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And so I just find who's doing something really well and I study what it is and what are the
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components and I pay attention to my own reaction to things and to people and go, huh, what about
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them, made me feel this way? How do I embody that with my own style?
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Yeah, so you have a good self-awareness, morometer, recognizing of also what are the changes you
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need to implement, right, to get to that end goal, learning new skills, video, obviously you've
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stepped up your social profile. Totally. Yeah, whatever it takes. And I think, yeah, it's just,
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you know, you can't do all things at the same time. But I think if we're all quiet, Jeff,
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we all know what that next thing we need to do is, right? I've been saying this that what
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realtors need from us right now is they need our sales skills back. For the previous 10 years,
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they needed our operational excellence. They needed reliability on answering the phone,
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doing a good quality pre-approval and closing the loan on time with communication.
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They've needed operational excellence. Now, guys, this is way back to being a sales job. They
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need our sales skills. They need our enthusiasm, our optimism, our strategic brain, our presentation
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skills, our ability to connect and overcome fear, find out what the real objection is. That's
15:54
what a valuable partner looks like today. And I think the reason a lot of people will get out of
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this business over the next six months, Jeff, and have gotten out of the business is not because they
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don't love doing loans. Like millions of people in our industry love doing loans and solving
16:10
problems and putting together the puzzle and handing somebody their keys. That's fun.
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But sales is what this is. It's helping overcome fears and solve problems and connect with people
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at a real meaningful level and not just be a commodity. So that's where we got to lean into those
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skill sets. Interesting. It makes me think of the team building aspect. I know you've obviously
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built teams and you coach people who built teams and never been them have been on the podcast
16:42
over the years. But you know, that whole doctor practitioner, you know, kind of business model.
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Do you think still today that like if somebody recognizes as they hear you talk, they're like, well,
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I'm really the person who wants to I want to figure out the puzzle. I don't want to be the
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rainmaker. Do you think there's still possibility for somebody to do that?
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Well, yeah, they're part of a team 100% absolutely. But if you are a loan officer and you get paid
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commission only, then your number one job is to make it rain. You are a salesperson. You've got
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to generate leads. You've got to look for opportunity. Now, how are you going to do that through
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your unique abilities and through your strengths? So if you are a very confident technician,
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which by the way, you're my favorite. Like I became good at this industry because I became a
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competent technician first. I didn't want anyone to look at me at 23 or 25 and go, oh,
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there's that blonde chick who's going to just flip her hair around and run around and make promises
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that she doesn't know if she can keep. It really mattered to me that if I said somebody was good
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to go, if I said I can close by Friday that I could pull it off. And that requires really learning
17:55
a lot of skills and being competent. So my confidence as an originator came from my competence
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as a technician. That's what I spent the first six years getting really good at is being competent.
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Now, the problem if you can't articulate your strengths to somebody in a way that they go,
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yes, I need you. You're my guy. You're my girl. You're my loan officer. I'm going to refer you.
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I'm locking my loan with you. Well, then you're just stuck. You're a highly talented person that's
18:30
a total secret. So competence is a really important thing. That loan technician, that ninja,
18:38
that solving problems. Great. Well, your skill set to learn is articulation. It's being willing
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to ring your own bell. It's being willing to say, here's your problem, Jeff. And here's how my
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skills and strengths are going to help you win. And if you can't do that, if you can't sell yourself
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is what people call it. If you can't articulate the value of your competence, you're dead.
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You're dead. People, so many people want to assume that people will figure it out.
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No, that's what there's not enough leads in the market for people to figure it out. You don't have
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enough opportunities at bats right now to work with realtors over time for them to go, oh,
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Jeff, I see what your strengths are. This is what your unique ability is. This is how you can help
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me make money. I see it now. Like, if we're expecting people to figure it out on their own,
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we're giving away all of our power and our ability to connect with the right people and live in
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our strength. Most of the time salespeople are running around trying to get people to like them,
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going, ooh, does she like me? Does he like me? It's like, no, no, no, you have to realize this is
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what you bring to the table and you've got to articulate that and find out if other person needs it
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or not. If they don't, you're not a match. Next, if they do, then you are a match, let's go to work
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together. That's what prospecting is is knowing what it is you bring to the table and finding people
20:04
who need that thing. So we've got two things. If I'm correct, let's play this out for a second,
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riding simultaneously here. We've got the awareness piece, which is you can't be a secret agent,
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right? You'd be an advocate for yourself. You need to get on the promotional bandwagon.
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You've got that, but then you've also got the competence piece or why would I choose you?
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The old adage, which you know very well, which is great, great service, I close on time,
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all that stuff, which is tuned out. Yet that's still great service, air quotes. That's very vague
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and not specific, right? I'm assuming you would agree that you need to go deeper than that in terms
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of the articulation to use your word. Any examples you want to perhaps, and I know I'm just thrown
20:49
this stuff on. Yeah. Well, let me say this that like great service will keep you in the game,
20:56
but it's not opening the door right now very often. Okay, you might get lucky and meet a real
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or a CPA or a builder tomorrow that's just have three deals blow up and is so frustrated and
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is like, why can't I find a competent loan officer who answers their phone, closes on time,
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does a great pre-approval, and like you walk into that opportunity, okay? But because there's such low
21:19
volume in the marketplace and operations teams have tons of capacity, even the crappiest loan
21:27
officers that don't know how to take a good loan application or 1003, they can turn in a
21:32
piece of shit loan and operations can redo it 14 times and still get it to close on time.
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Because there's capacity, okay? So those weaknesses will be exposed once we have more volume and
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there's just not, there's not capacity to deal with all that stuff, but right now those weaknesses
21:53
are not being exposed. So you've got loan officers who are good at articulating, maybe don't know
21:57
anything about loans, and they're getting the business because they've got an operation team that
22:02
can handle it. So, but what's going to open the doors is you being able to say, this is why do
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what I do? Everybody has heard that it's about the why it's not about the how. Can people feel your
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energy? Can people feel your commitment? Like when I say to you, Jeff, Jeff, listen, your great
22:21
loan officer in Las Vegas, I'm in Reno, Nevada. I'm looking to expand my team. Your goals are to
22:28
double your business over the next two years. We have alignment and values. You want to provide
22:33
value. You're always learning and growing. You show up with humility and curiosity. You love
22:38
people fiercely. We are totally aligned in that. But my strength as a leader where I can help you
22:44
is that I will set high expectations for you. I will create a culture where we do the work
22:49
together. And I'm really good with the strategic brain so I can listen to what your strengths are,
22:55
to what your challenges are. And I can give you talk tracks, scripting, calendar management,
23:01
whatever you need to help you get through those next barriers to get you to be successful.
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Do you see a world where you and I pairing together could help you achieve your goals?
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That's good. Makes me want to sign up and originate again.
23:14
Start originating, Jeff. I'm practicing this live with you. Thank you for giving me that
23:21
opportunity. I'm trying to say basically what I used as a framework is exactly what I would use
23:29
to land an employee. It would be the exact same to land a business partner.
23:34
Is that number one, I need to know you. I've really got to know the person that I'm talking to.
23:39
So when we show up to meetings, we've got to be leaned in. Being an introvert or extrovert
23:45
doesn't matter, but like, are you bringing something to the table? Are you opening your full heart?
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Are you being curious? Are you asking questions? Are you bringing energy to the table?
23:55
So every time that you and I have had the opportunity to connect, which is not enough,
23:59
but I'm really honestly curious about who is Jeff? What are you all about? What are your goals?
24:05
What do you care about? Do we align with each other? Because if we don't, I'm not going to waste my
24:10
time or spend any seconds with you because there's too many, there's seven billion people on this
24:17
planet, right? So I have to first know you, what you care about, what you like, and what your goals
24:22
are. In number two, I have to know what my strengths are, what my assets are, what my resources are,
24:30
to see if there's alignment. So when you and I first met and you said, hey,
24:34
I, this is what I do with my podcast. This is the product I sell. This is how I try to help
24:39
loan officers. I really was like, okay, I understand that. Here's my resources. Here's where we
24:45
could maybe really do something together. And if there wasn't a match there, then we move on,
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right? So know your strengths. Know why you're doing this. Let people feel your passion.
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And your conviction, like I would not say that to you, Jeff, is a recruit. If I didn't 1,000
25:06
percent believe it, because I don't want to feel like a fraud or a fake. I don't want to promise
25:11
you something or, you know, pretend like I can be somebody that I'm not. So figure out, that's
25:19
the self awareness piece. The skills and the tools that I would use for that is I would use a
25:25
gallop strength finder. So you go to gallop.com. You can spend 20 bucks and take an assessment and
25:32
get your top five strengths. I would actually go back through your entire working history and all
25:38
the way back into, you know, maybe grade school, high school. And think about how did you apply
25:44
those strengths to find successes in your life? What have you had to overcome in your life?
25:50
What are successes that you've had and be able to articulate your story to somebody else? Because
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the more you can tell about your life and what you care about in your goals and your dreams and a
26:01
story that people are like, I'm in on that guy. Like I just like him. Why do we like people, Jeff,
26:08
because we have alignment in our values and our values really show up from like when we get squeezed,
26:14
when we get pushed against a wall, when we're going for something, what is it that we choose to do?
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How do we align, right? So, you know, we do, we do a lot on core values. Obviously, I've got a
26:27
really firm, clear five core values that we have in our company that are, that are my personal values.
26:34
Everybody that starts with us every six months, we do a core values workshop. It's three and a half
26:39
hours where we help people take a hundred values and really find their five and then connect to
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where did those values come from for you? What people in your life have represented or misrepresented
26:52
those values? How do you articulate them? And also, what happens when your values get threatened?
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What happens when when you have a rub with a company or a person or something? Which values are
27:06
what is the infraction on those values so that you know, oh, that's out of alignment.
27:11
Because the quicker that you know, if something's in alignment for you, the quicker you could say
27:17
hell yes or hell no. Right. And you could be decisive and you could be clear. And that's
27:22
what I think most people are struggling right now is they don't have that clarity and they're not
27:26
decisive about what I want and who I'm going to align with to get there.
27:31
Hmm. Wow. That's brilliant. There's a lot of good stuff in there. If you're listening,
27:35
you need to go rewind and take notes on that and go to the gallop hole, the strength finders too.
27:40
Thanks for the reminder on that. I've been meaning to do that for some time.
27:44
Okay. Can I hold you accountable to it? Yes. What's my commitment date?
27:48
So get it done by the end of this week. And here's what would be interesting, Jeff,
27:53
is for you to take that. Right. And then the question I would ask you as a leader is to say,
27:57
okay, what are your 2024 goals, Jeff? What do you want to do? And it could be I want to be a
28:03
better father. And then I would go, okay, well, what is better mean? What does it look like if you
28:09
were on fire? Like if you were crushing it in your physical being, you're like, I need to get
28:13
healthier. This is how people sell goals. Like I want to make more money. I want to get healthier.
28:18
I want to get better. I want to be a better wife. What the hell does that mean? Right. Was that what?
28:23
Yeah. Success is your definition for what that means. So I would help you clarify that.
28:29
And then you would go, okay, I want to add 22 clients a month over 2024. And this is my value ad,
28:37
or this is the product that I'm selling or whatever. And then I would say, okay, well,
28:41
what are your strengths? And how are you going to utilize and leverage those strengths
28:47
in your talk track and your messaging and your behavior and your activity so that you can get
28:54
the goals that you want? That's good clarity right there. I like that. I can already feel it.
28:58
Like we how much time do we even spend like doing that self analysis? Very little. But it's funny
29:06
because we're kind of up here in the cloud, so to speak, right? And I've got some tactical things
29:10
written down, which we'll get to. But however, I think what's so great about what you just unpacked
29:15
for us is all the tactical stuff in the world will lose its power. It's impact without the value
29:22
stuff and being clear who you are and who you're for. Would you agree? Yes. Oh, I couldn't I couldn't
29:28
agree more. I just did. So I'm putting myself out there. I just did a live, a Shay lie. What do we
29:34
call it? Shayla live or play with Shay event in November? And I committed to doing that twice a
29:41
year. And what I did is the whole first half is a day and a half. And I'm really good at strategically
29:47
architecting a process to take people through a process to get to a point of actual execution.
29:53
And the first half day is these kind of exercises because you're right. We don't sit and really think
29:59
about what does it mean for me to be on fire? What do I really care about? What goals am I going after?
30:06
What is my long term plan? Like I've got to have a long term vision that really gets me pumped
30:12
that I can like viscerally feel so that I will do the work today and make those freaking calls today
30:19
and go on that networking thing and go to the appointment that I don't want to do because I'm an
30:24
introvert or I hate this or you know that we got to do. So I'm glad we're getting a chance to spend
30:29
time on this because this is a kind of like usually it's the small shift that makes all the
30:35
difference in the world. It's it's the human being that shows up to the meeting. You guys know
30:40
we're not human doings. We're human beings. So how is your being? What is your energy? What is your
30:46
clarity? What is it that you're going after? That's what's attractive. That is what people buy and go
30:53
I'm a hell yes, let's do business. Yeah, I love that. And I think all right, so let's transition
30:59
briefly then into you. I'm going to assume your degree, but you tell me it's like when I'm thinking
31:04
of the context of this relationship or conversation, we just kind of unpacked and I'm visualizing
31:09
a loan officer listening to that and I'm trying to think of the amount of times or the
31:14
reluctance or like when most the the quote unquote average and I know we're not talking to average
31:19
right now, but you know more originators need to have those types of conversations with agents.
31:25
Most would you agree? Most of them are just half-assing it, winging it, just going okay,
31:28
there's a you fogged a mirror cool like no here's here's what I think I think everybody's doing
31:34
their best really I think that they just don't know how to do it differently I same thing I feel
31:41
with realtors people go don't you think most realtors are lazy I go no I think if you
31:46
joined a commission only job in the real estate world whether you're a loan officer or realtor
31:52
you are a highly motivated driven person the problem is in the clarity about how to do it
32:01
and who you're looking to partner with so once you get that clarity down and then you have the
32:06
actual tactics now it comes down to do you have guts can you find the courage in the conversation
32:15
to put yourself out there a little bit to ask the question but if you don't have the clarity if
32:20
you're drifting and you feel lost and you feel stuck I don't think that means you're lazy or
32:26
half-assing it I think you just don't even have a process for how to go from that murky lost place
32:32
to on fire and that is what I believe everyone can learn I've learned it and I can I can articulate
32:39
and and set a plan like oh this these are the steps if you're willing to do the work if you want
32:44
it bad enough that you get clarity and then you start using scripts on top of that so the best
32:50
script that everybody can use at this moment is you need to sit down your first of all we are
32:56
prospecting to find the who's that we want to go into business with that we want to take action
33:02
with and you're not looking for everybody you're looking for those people that you really really
33:07
enjoy working with that you have the similar goals or core values that the way you behave the way
33:13
you treat others your character and how you show up okay so the best thing you could do is first
33:19
decide who you're looking for so I want you to think of your favorite realtor partner business
33:25
partner builder whatever that you've done business with often people get think of like one or your
33:31
favorite client if you're a real estate agent who's your favorite why what are all the attributes
33:36
that they have how do they behave how do they show up what kind of person are they in the world
33:40
and oftentimes people tell me they're really driven they're client first they're more about doing
33:46
the right thing than they're about the money they are consistent they are fun and nice to work with
33:53
they can keep it light but they're you know really focused on the details whatever you give me a
33:58
list what I just found out for you are what your values are because the things that we admire in
34:05
other people and the people that we really look up to that we really really appreciate are the
34:10
qualities that we really like in ourselves or hope to even sharpen on or improve upon
34:17
well now you've got a list of the ideal partner that you're looking for and so I'm looking for
34:23
people are really committed that are career oriented that are really loving that are forgiving
34:30
and loving and understand that they're respectful and looking for people who are courageous will
34:35
get out of their comfort zone that are looking for growth and improvement all the time so now that
34:41
I know that when I sit down with you Jeff and I'm asking stories and I'm going where are you from
34:46
where were you born how'd you get into real estate what do you do for fun who are you married to what
34:50
do you love about your partner tell me about your kids tell me about you know your career history
34:56
all the stories that you're telling me are highlighting who you are and what you care about
35:02
and I'm looking for those nuggets where I say oh gosh he cares about growth he's always studying
35:08
he's always learning he's always at conferences he's always like like geeking out and stuff like I
35:13
love that about him why because I'm like that right um he's a guy of service he really wants to
35:19
give and help other people succeed we have alignment in that now your goals might be to close
35:25
two transactions this year and mine is to close a hundred million and so our goals don't align but
35:30
because our values align I would totally dive in and work with you Jeff doing two deals this year
35:37
now am I going to give you the same amount of energy and time no because it's not warranted
35:42
for two closings versus the next person who's like I want to double my business and I want to do
35:46
XYZ so I don't judge my partnerships um or or evaluate my you know partnerships based on what
35:54
their goals are their goals are their goals I evaluated based on are we aligned in how we behave
36:01
and what we're doing and what I will tell you is you often very rarely find people who are totally
36:07
like they're growth oriented they're committed they're courageous they're loving they're they're
36:11
all the things like you find a very small handful of those people right as we get older we go yeah
36:17
my best friends fit on one hand right yeah the rest are people that I can really love and appreciate
36:24
but they probably have one or two of those qualities like they're maybe super committed
36:29
but they're not super loving all the time their emotional intelligence is maybe a little whatever
36:34
so I'm gonna focus on the fact that they're really committed and I'm gonna appreciate them for how
36:39
committed they are and I'm gonna keep you know giving them compliments around that and gratitude
36:43
around that because I want to focus on the positive and where we do have alignment and keep driving
36:49
hopefully more alignment so you've got to know who you're looking to be around who's your ideal
36:54
person that you just kill it when you partner with these kind of people then when you meet people
37:00
you tell them straight up here's what I'm looking for this year I'm looking for 15 great partnerships
37:07
people that are all in like I am to giving great service and loving people and solving problems and
37:14
you know being courageous and what you've just shared with me Jeff over the last 30 minutes about
37:19
your story and what you did in high school and the way you got into this business you've just
37:24
shown me how courageous you are and I just feel a lot of alignment like I really like you a lot I
37:29
would love to do business together can I be your loan officer nice and you smile and shut up
37:39
and oh here's the two things that people don't do they aren't clear on what they're there for
37:46
that's the articulation piece and they're not clear in asking can I be your loan officer
37:53
that's the close it's not a hard close okay now the other part to this is problem solving so I
38:00
found out I like you we have aligned values and I want to work with you but now I need to know
38:03
what are your business goals where are you looking to go and what are the challenges that you
38:10
having getting there right now like I said everybody's got a sales struggle so you might say to me
38:15
I want to close 20 deals this year and I go awesome what did you close this year and you're like 10
38:21
okay so you're going for a double love it I love the big goals where did your business come from
38:26
out of these 10 that you closed and you're going well I do a little sign calls I do open houses I
38:32
sometimes call expires I've got some database so I did that I'm like okay cool where are you going
38:38
to focus for this next year blah blah blah blah okay where's the biggest opportunity for growth
38:44
where where do you need to like double down right and oh by the way tell me about your lending
38:49
partnerships in the past what have you liked what have you not liked what have they done well
38:54
where what's something that pisses you off I'm really trying to figure out like where is the
38:59
opportunity that I can step into this with my strengths and help you how can I help you make more
39:05
money how can I save you time how can I lower your stress how can I make you money right now guys
39:11
is how can I use my scale skills my strengths to help you convert like where are you getting the
39:17
leads where are you losing them are you losing them to other realtors are you working cold leads are
39:22
you losing because you're not ballsy enough to ask for information at an open house like where is
39:29
your struggle and where are my strengths going to come in and help you with that struggle so thank
39:37
you again this is like an amazing clinic everybody should be sending you some kind of a gift or
39:44
something please like sir there's someone's good in this conversation and I love it because
39:53
more often than I know you know this most people go kind of like tactical right out of the gate
39:57
and there's a place in a time for that which you just transitioned into but it starts with like
40:01
fix your headspace first right get aligned with who you're really trying to attract you like
40:05
you said we don't want everybody but I wrote down conversion did you say that you're optimizing
40:12
for conversion basically like this is the skill set you're offering to bring to the table is conversion
40:16
absolutely so people choose us because they like us because we're aligned in passion energy
40:23
values whatever they stick with us because we perform right and really people don't care about
40:31
you or me Jeff until they realize that we can help them get the result that they want okay now
40:37
if the result is they just want a new friend okay I'm not really here to make a new friend right
40:42
like I'm in business I have a lot of friends I'm here to find business partners I'm only looking for
40:47
15 because when I take on a partner I am all in I'm committed I'm looking for 15 great people that
40:54
I can answer the phone late at night do prequels 42 times if that's what it takes sell the hell out of
41:01
you do you know follow up with the lead 42 times before I give up those are the kinds of things
41:07
that I'm looking for which is why I'm looking for only a select few people out of everything that
41:12
you just shared and what you're looking to accomplish and what your problems are I really would like
41:17
you to be one of those 15 in 2024 can I be your loan officer you guys can't see it but she's
41:24
got a big smile going right now just waiting for them to reply yeah so so that what I did there's
41:32
I created scarcity plus I also give you a focus you know I know that in coaching it's like yeah you
41:40
need 40 people on a list where did that arbitrary number come from from Rick Ruby I don't know
41:46
it's a bullshit arbitrary number okay you might need 250 you know I've worked with people in small
41:52
markets that there's 400 agents in that market and very few people do more than one or two or three
41:58
transactions they're bigger transactions but that's the way it is so could you really just work 15
42:03
or 40 probably not okay you kind of need to be known by all of them I I've coached people at work
42:09
on a market with 6,000 agents and you know they're like I got 250 people on an email list that doesn't
42:16
work just being like a hey girl you run around to events in your popular and you go hey hey girl
42:22
hey bro this bump like that is not getting it done what is getting it done is having real
42:27
conversations and rolling people into your vision your process and your business and then getting
42:34
a commitment yeah so I've got to ask you when you are out there and again I don't think loan
42:40
officers are you know lazy or whatever you just said like half-assing it yeah I think they don't
42:47
know that that's the point the point is I make calls to book appointments I take appointments
42:54
to find alignment and get commitment and then I follow through on those commitments and then I do
43:00
it all over again I make calls to book appointments I have a great appointment that gains commitment
43:05
and then I follow through on commitments but if you're just having meetings where people are like
43:10
that was nice I really liked her and then you're wondering why the phone doesn't ring and you don't
43:15
get the leads you didn't that's the art of getting the commitment yeah I was that's popped
43:21
into my head about about a minute ago was this feels like it's a lost art disagree you know well
43:27
we haven't had to do sales training yeah the muscle we have not had to do sales training for
43:32
five years or more so it's like not going to the gym for five years you're not going to be in the
43:37
best of shape no I mean I've got to re-remember stuff like like listen deals happen in person
43:45
face to face so often it's like someone will ask for something on an Instagram DM and you just
43:50
give it to them and move on I was like no no like there's a reason people reach out to us book an
43:56
appointment even if it's a Zoom call like make appointments get a commitment you know have a follow-up
44:05
we're doing a sales contest right now Jeff it's pretty fun um started last week and we're going
44:11
in Nashville and March is a group my goal is to have 25 loan officers that that play in the contest
44:16
complete the challenge and to go to Nashville and um anyway one of the things is send in your
44:23
face to faces every week and what is the next follow-up steps and so this week was the first week
44:31
so someone were like I saw these four agents at a Christmas party and I'm like you're four baby
44:38
yeah I'm not giving you credit for that like I need you to to expand what did you talk about
44:44
what are you getting a commitment for you know it could be a hey I want to participate in this
44:49
Christmas party one year from today this was so moving to me I just telling you right now that's
44:55
a goal of mine is to be that valuable that I'm a partner for you in a year from now does the
45:00
commitment does a zoom count oh yeah yeah absolutely and guess what a Zoom's probably even better
45:10
because if you jump on you there's like a purpose to have a meeting here like we're on a Zoom
45:14
for a purpose whereas when we see people at a social gathering a lot of times we're like well I
45:19
don't want to be too forward or I don't want to whatever like it just could be hey I want to talk
45:24
to by the end of the week I've got this idea for you that's getting a commitment can I call you
45:29
can I text you can I send you a daily market update can I get you to come to an event can we talk
45:36
about your stale leads can we look at the last five free approvals we've done and figure out
45:41
to get these people off the fence can we meet for coffee those those are all commitments there's about
45:48
you know a hundred things that we could ask for hey when are you doing an open house next can I come
45:53
sit with you when you do your next listing can I do listing flyers for you if you just asked
45:59
enough people and get commitment and follow through a commitment you'll keep moving the ball down
46:04
the field yeah I'll love that I'm keeping an eye on the clock here knowing that there's so much more
46:09
we could talk about but I'm going to switch to I'm going to be drawn by I'm going to trust my
46:15
gut because I think this is in line with who everything we've been saying so far and I grab this
46:19
I think from that webinar told you about of yours I was watching earlier which is um and then
46:24
you might have already answered this but maybe just put a cherry on top of everything you just
46:27
took us through which was amazing but I grabbed this sound bite from that webinar and I think
46:33
was you who said or opened up the conversation with what are loan officers really competing against
46:40
and I'd love you to maybe unpack that is briefly or whatever you want
46:44
So what are we competing against we're competing against people's fear we're competing against
46:51
perception because people's perception is their reality so is the perception that the rates are
46:59
too high is the perception that the prices are too high is the perception that it's
47:04
not a good time to buy in the real estate is the perception that you're too busy for my time
47:09
Is the perception that you're not really going to care about my leads and convert them
47:14
and work them like crazy?
47:16
Is the perception that, you know, me affiliating with you might damage my brand or hurt somebody
47:23
else's feelings?
47:25
That is it.
47:26
Like trying to figure out what is the perception, what is in the way to their goal?
47:33
Because again, they don't care about us, they care about the result that they want when
47:37
they figure out that we are somebody that can help them get to the result.
47:41
Then they'll start caring about the fact that we have kids and that we like to wake surf
47:45
and that we, you know, want to write a book someday or whatever the heck our dreams or
47:51
goals are.
47:52
So I think so many people right now are just putting out like me, like me, like me when
47:56
it's like, no, be the conduit to help people get their goals accomplished and you will be
48:02
an attraction machine.
48:05
That's clients, that's business partners, that's recruits, that's whatever.
48:08
All right.
48:09
Great.
48:10
I get to still put another double cherry on this Sunday because you said be the conduit
48:13
that helps people solve their problems, you know, get what they want.
48:18
If I'm correct, I noticed you recently attended the the Chaplac Maverick event, right?
48:22
I did it.
48:23
Yes.
48:24
Yeah.
48:25
So what, what, very smart to do that, by the way, and what that, what that made a note
48:29
for me in my head was that you're actively seeking information, usually, right?
48:35
You know, couched in the, you know, for realtors, it's a realtor training event for those
48:39
who don't know who John Chaplac is, as he says, well known, you know, high level mortgage
48:42
or I'm sorry, real estate trainer, but you and a couple of people from your team were
48:46
there.
48:47
I'm going to assume you were there to learn strategies and tools to help realtor solve
48:50
problems.
48:51
100%.
48:52
I heard him as my coach.
48:54
I'm paying him $100.
48:55
I'm paying him $100 a minute.
48:58
Love it.
48:59
Love it.
49:00
Yeah.
49:01
So I get 20 minutes of coaching every week and, um, and, you know, I'm attracted to John
49:07
because he's very intense and I'm an intense person and I feel like, um, partnering around
49:13
other people that, that think and behave and act on that pace is me sending a message
49:17
to myself and the universe of like, I want to play big.
49:20
And this is what I'm up to and this is what I'm about.
49:24
But I was, I went to John's first event simply because I really want to understand the
49:29
psyche of real estate agents and these mega team leaders and what are their challenges
49:34
and what are they dealing with?
49:36
And like, where do they need me as a, as a, with my strengths and as a, as a mortgage
49:41
person in a partnership, like, what do they need?
49:43
And I still haven't totally figured it out.
49:45
Like, there's a team here in Reno, um, that I really respect these guys.
49:51
I've had a long term relationship with them, but haven't been doing mortgage business
49:54
for them over the last four or five years.
49:56
And they now have 22 agents on their team.
50:00
They're running all of these lead funnels on into their business.
50:03
They're working on recruiting.
50:04
They have virtual staff, nine of them that got an ISA department, they've got, you know,
50:09
weekly sales trainings that they need to grow their team to now 50 agents and I'm going,
50:14
okay, so what would a really valuable lending partnership look like?
50:20
When was last time you had a vendor that actually really provided you value as a leader?
50:25
Because you're not just a solo agent that is going to an open house this Saturday and
50:29
needs me available Saturday for pre-approvals.
50:33
Your problems, what you're thinking about, what your goals are going to require a whole
50:36
different set of solutions and maybe what I can bring to the table help you and maybe
50:42
it can't.
50:43
And so that's where I'm in exploration.
50:46
Again, I have to first figure out these are kind of people I want to be around.
50:49
Do they bring the energy?
50:50
Do I learn from them and they learn from me and blah, blah, blah.
50:54
And if they are, then I'm trying to go through that process of going, okay, well, how do you
50:58
really get leverage off of me to help you achieve your goals of going from 20 to 50 agents
51:04
of hitting these production goals, so on and so forth.
51:06
So, yes, I've learned a lot being in those rooms plus, you know, you hang out with people
51:13
that are really successful and driven and all of a sudden you go, wow, like my vision
51:18
is not big enough, how do I think like that?
51:22
And furthermore, my whole success has been based on R&D, which is not research and development,
51:28
it's rip off and duplicate.
51:30
It's seeing somebody that has what I want and saying, okay, I just want to do what they
51:34
do so I can get what they've got.
51:36
I can't keep doing what I've always been doing and expecting different results.
51:41
So finding a leader that's grown from zero to 1200 transactions in 24 months and studying
51:46
how did you do it?
51:48
What did you do?
51:49
Okay, teach me, can I pay you, can you coach me?
51:53
That's been a key to my success.
51:55
Yeah, and I think that's really smart and that just goes back to, I think everything we've
51:58
been saying is that for the right person, if that's you listening to this, you know,
52:02
maybe that's one of the things you do is, you know, help age and solve problems with
52:06
those different areas they've got in their business, which oftentimes is the same issues
52:10
we have as an originator, whether it's, you know, how do I do the social thing, the video
52:13
thing, or how do I, you know, structure my plan for the year or whatever.
52:17
Whatever that kind of skill set either is you have or you can learn, right, and bring
52:20
that to the conversation, would that be fair?
52:23
Totally.
52:24
Absolutely.
52:25
I mean, look in the next 12 months, there's Tom Ferry events, there's Brian Bathini events,
52:29
there's Cheb Black, there's EXP con, there's Keller Williams Family Union, there's Remax,
52:35
whatever they call that, like there's so many different opportunities to go into those
52:39
rooms and just being there, you're differentiating yourself.
52:45
So I 100% back that behavior.
52:49
Love it.
52:50
Well, listen, I've got a whole like page of like tactical notes here, we didn't even
52:54
get to.
52:55
So would you be willing to come back maybe in 2024?
52:58
Yeah, I'd love to come back.
53:00
And you know, maybe funnest to send me an email with some of them, Jeff, because I could
53:04
recruit, I could record some mini segments, if you like.
53:07
I'd love to know what you wanted to know, because that'll help me just with my general
53:11
content and serving my community.
53:14
And then maybe you could send them out as follow up nuggets or tease the podcast with them.
53:18
I'd be happy to do that.
53:19
There you go.
53:20
Well, this has been fantastic and amazing.
53:22
Thank you so much.
53:23
I'm glad it went the direction that we did, because I know you've got your pulse on the
53:27
industry and I like to think in some way, you know, perhaps I do as well.
53:30
And I think this vibe that bubbled up was really, really what people needed to hear.
53:34
Well, and I need to tell you and for your audience, I'm sure most people have been following
53:38
you, realize how powerful and brilliant you are and the product that you're giving
53:42
loan officers with the class materials and being able to invite agents and give them
53:47
something of value is huge and probably are subscribed in members.
53:51
And I hope they are.
53:52
But I believe that your presentation skills have to improve in 2024.
53:58
So having, you know, Jeff's work of, here's what to do and here's how to do it.
54:02
And here's what to say.
54:04
We all need to get in front of more groups.
54:06
We need to work on speaking and presenting.
54:08
We're in sales.
54:09
And so you provide that solution.
54:11
You've given that to my team and many people have never taught classes of taught class
54:15
and they've got a lot of confidence from doing it.
54:18
They've gotten results from doing it.
54:19
So thank you for what you're doing in the world to support all of us too.
54:23
Thank you.
54:24
I appreciate that.
54:25
For me, you know, I just come from that same place of, you know, wanting to serve and
54:28
help people, you know, break through some of those barriers.
54:30
So for those who want to follow you, it is Instagram, right?
54:35
Shea Giff, is that correct?
54:37
Yeah, I live on Instagram.
54:38
So come find me on Instagram at Shea Giff.
54:41
And I just, I just launched a Shea LaGiffre.com website.
54:45
That's only a one-pager.
54:47
But for people who want to look to work with me or join my team and have a discovery call,
54:52
I even do one off coaching for anybody that raises their hand and, you know,
54:56
that feels stuck in any of those processes we talked about.
54:58
So you could go book time on that website and or reach out to me on Instagram DMs.
55:05
Well, I have to say, you know, when people ask me, you know, about, oh, I'm thinking about
55:08
a change and from where they're currently at, you know, the first two things I ask them
55:13
is about culture and leadership, right?
55:17
And I, again, you and I didn't talk.
55:19
This isn't a setup.
55:20
But, you know, I've obviously had some level of engagement and relationship with the team
55:23
at Guild now for, I don't know, at least half a dozen years and they call leaders like
55:28
that.
55:29
Guild is on the short list, right?
55:31
The culture and leadership there, if you get a sense of today, just from today's conversation
55:36
of what that looks and feels like, like, it's there, like that's it.
55:39
So if there's something, yeah, if you guys want to check out that out for more, then obviously
55:43
contact Shayla.
55:44
All right.
55:45
Hey, I appreciate it so much.
55:47
So awesome to see you every single time.
55:49
I'm grateful.
55:50
I'm grateful through.
55:51
We did it.
55:52
Thank you, Jeff.
55:53
This has been a lot of fun.
55:54
All right.
55:55
Well, listeners, you know what to do.
55:56
If you like this episode, please leave us a review.
55:57
Otherwise, we'll see you on the next one.
55:58
And bye for now.
56:00
Hey, guys, what's up?
56:01
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56:02
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