Times Up
As my job requires, I talk to a lot of people that want to get a home loan. Some of them are qualified but many are not (and who usually think that they are btw)! There are several ways I could approach the conversation when the light bulb goes off in my head that they do not qualify for a home loan:
1- I could be abrupt and tell them immediately that they don’t qualify and hang up.
2- I could give them tips as to how they can improve their situation and then check back with them in several months to see if they qualify.
3- I could hang up on them once the light bulb goes off in my head and not give them any explanation at all.
Sometimes I want to do options 1 and 3… I only get paid if I close loans and usually working with folks that are not loan ready doesn’t help pay my water bill.
But I almost invariably end up doing option 2… but in a very long drawn out way. Because I inherently want to help them improve their situation I see looking at their finances through the lense of qualifying for a home mortgage as a great way to start that conversation.
A Real Christian Businessman realizes there has to be a balance between “getting paid” versus “helping others.” In the past I would spend upwards of an hour or more with folks that had no chance of ever getting a home loan. Coaching, teaching, giving suggestions, all in the name of helping them get a better understanding of their finances and what it takes to get a home mortgage. But now I realize that I was spending too much time helping and no time earning any money! What I do now is strike a balance between helping them improve their financial situation and also moving on to the next person that might want to qualify for a home loan.
Making this realization has allowed me to help more people than before.
How about you? What is it in your job that you need to stop spending so much time on because it is clearly unproductive and not helping you or your company move forward?
Think about it this week as you go through your normal routine.
“Don’t waste your time on useless work, mere busywork, the barren pursuits of darkness. Expose these things for the sham they are.” Eph 5:11 (MSG)