Opinion

Why Loan Officers Should Consider Hiring Assistants

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Woman with red book

Have you ever said this to anyone: "I'm so busy I have to work until 8 pm every day?"

In my 28 years in the mortgage business, I can't begin to tell you the number of times I've made excuses to my family, friends and even myself as to why I had to work late. Go in the office on Saturday or Sunday. Stop by the office on my way to dinner.  Take phone calls at 10 pm.

Here’s the toll that it took on me: 

  • I was getting fat from eating junk food and not exercising.
  • I got migraine headaches on a regular basis
  • I ignored my friends and family
  • I took files with me to my children's ball games
  • I took phone calls during "family time."

Oh, and I went to bed as soon as I got home, only to get up at 5 am and start all over again. One day I decided that I had to STOP this obsessive/compulsive behavior and figure out a way to "have a life" again. 
That's when I decided to hire my first assistant—and I've never looked back! 

My hope is that what I described above is not what you are doing now. Unfortunately, I've heard from many loan officers that they are tired of working late and how sad there are because they are not able to spend time with family and friends. 

If you are too busy to even think about hiring an assistant, I'd like to help you out a little bit by providing you with a questionnaire that you can use to interview candidates for your assistant position. 

One more tip, you don’t have to hire him or her full time; start out with 10 hours a week then keep transferring tasks over to them over the course of three to six months. Start small and think big. 

Please email Karen@loanofficertraining.com if you’d like a copy of Hiring an Assistant Interview Questions.

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