Cole Barlow Interview
Spotlight Podcast
Summary In this interview, Cole—an LO and branch leader in Mount Dora, Florida—shares how he produced his best year ever in 2025 with 132 closings and $32.5M, despite a challenging market. His success stems from a disciplined, multi‑layered marketing strategy, obsessive time management, community involvement, and intentional team building. Cole emphasizes the importance of a media mix approach: combining micro (1:1 meetings, community events) and macro (CRM email campaigns, online advertising) marketing to ensure broad visibility while maintaining personalized relationships. He uses his...
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2025 Wrap!
Spotlight Podcast
Executive Summary This interview was a year-end recap of best practices shared by top performers and coaches in the mortgage industry. The discussion centered on strategies for scaling production, leveraging technology, building strong client relationships, and maintaining intentionality in business operations. Key themes included simplicity, delegation, database engagement, CRM utilization, consistency, and niche specialization. The conversation emphasized that success is rooted in fundamentals—intentional actions, consistent rhythms, and clarity of purpose—rather than relying on complex...
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Allie Lord Interview
Spotlight Podcast
Summary Allie Lord, Regional Sales Director at Movement Mortgage, shared her proven approach to business planning and personal growth. Her journey highlights the power of coaching, habit stacking, and structured planning to achieve consistent success. Allie emphasizes starting early (October), leveraging tools like the Warrior Challenge and Sales Test, and creating a clear execution plan. She advocates for balancing professional and personal goals through the Wheel of Life and maintaining accountability systems. Her formula combines preparation, planning, and disciplined execution to drive...
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Think Bigger, Act Faster—Kickstarting 2026
Spotlight Podcast
Summary: “Think Bigger, Act Faster—Kickstarting 2026” As 2025 winds down, Coach Kevin and Bill Hart challenge mortgage professionals to lean in while others ease off. Drawing inspiration from The Science of Scaling by Dr. Benjamin Hardy, they advocate for a mindset shift: dream bigger while shortening the timeframe for achievement. Through real-life examples and coaching insights, they emphasize the importance of treating mortgage work as a scalable business, not just a job. The conversation encourages listeners to simplify systems, remove constraints, and take bold action toward...
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Quinn Cooke Interview
Spotlight Podcast
Summary Quinn shares his inspiring journey from working at a sandwich shop in Tallahassee to becoming a top-producing mortgage loan officer at Movement Mortgage. He reflects on the early challenges of entering the mortgage industry with no prior experience, the importance of mentorship, and the turning point when he committed to taking massive action. Quinn emphasizes the value of customer service, operational efficiency, and adapting to market shifts. He discusses leveraging CRM tools like More, maintaining visibility through social media, and hosting customer appreciation events to build...
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Libby Holt Interview
Spotlight Podcast
Summary Libby shared her journey of scaling her mortgage business while staying grounded in her core values: Do your job, Find a solution, Be intentional. Her story is highly relatable because, despite growing from $37M to $80M in annual production, she emphasizes relationships and authenticity over purely transactional business. Key themes included: Core Values as a North Star: Libby’s team distilled their values by flipping frustrations into guiding principles—never cutting corners, always solving problems, and being intentional in communication. Balancing Relationships with Scale:...
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Grant Schroeder Interview
Spotlight Podcast
Summary Grant’s journey in the mortgage industry highlights the power of discipline, focus, and sustainable growth. In just under five years, he transitioned from a Loan Officer Assistant to a top-producing originator funding close to $40M annually. His success stems not from flashy tactics but from a methodical system built on consistency, measurable lead indicators, and deep relationships. Grant emphasizes the importance of tracking the right activities—calls, meetings, follow-ups—rather than obsessing over lagging outcomes like closed loans. He has carved out a niche serving...
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Edwin Britt Interview
Spotlight Podcast
Summary Edwin emphasized shifting from chasing outward success to building significance—creating lasting impact through authenticity, intentionality, and a legacy-driven approach. Inspired by Zig Ziglar, he encouraged professionals to focus on meaningful contributions over numbers, aligning actions with core values. He urged leaders to regularly step out of daily operations to view their business as a CEO, introducing a four-hat framework: CEO/CFO, Chief Relationship Officer, Chief Marketing & Branding Officer, and Loan Officer. This perspective brings clarity, accountability, and...
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Chuck Ruddy and the HERO Program
Spotlight Podcast
Summary Today we discussed the enormous but untapped opportunity for loan officers (LOs) to partner with financial advisors. Traditionally, realtors and client databases have been the primary lead sources for LOs, while financial advisors have been overlooked. Yet, with tens of millions of Americans underprepared for retirement and trillions in unused home equity, the potential for collaboration is significant. Chuck Ruddy, a former financial advisor and marketing director, shared how he developed the HERO Program (Home Equity Retirement Options). The program is designed to integrate home...
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Nicole Rueth Interview
Spotlight Podcast
Summary – Interview with Nicole Rueth Nicole Rueth’s journey in lending, investing, and wealth-building demonstrates the transformative power of niche focus, consistent action, and value-driven leadership. Initially operating broadly, Nicole’s career accelerated when she narrowed her focus to a specific niche—creative, strategic, and scalable lending for investors—and positioned herself as an authority through education, data interpretation, and community engagement. Her early pivot from recruiting to becoming a “rainmaker” led her to create Agent Ignite, a recurring educational...
info_outlineSummary: Interview with Jared Polanski on Leveraging the New LOS System (More) for Mortgage Success
In this training session, Jared Polanski shares his insights and practical strategies for leveraging the new Loan Origination System (LOS), More, and Salesforce to dramatically improve productivity, referral partner engagement, and client retention. Drawing from his experience as an early adopter and trainer, Jared emphasizes the importance of staying ahead of the curve by organizing data, segmenting contacts, and proactively reaching out at the right time.
He outlines how the integrated system improves mobile functionality, enables powerful client and referral tracking, and provides mortgage professionals with a competitive advantage in a rapidly evolving tech landscape. Jared walks through his personal system for categorizing referral partners, maintaining top-of-mind communication, and identifying hot refinance opportunities — all with an emphasis on maximizing revenue in minimal time.
5 Practical Application Steps for Loan Officers and Mortgage Professionals
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Organize Your Referral Partners into Actionable Segments
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Use the “Groups” and “Prospect Rank” fields in Salesforce to classify referral partners by loyalty and opportunity (e.g., Tops, A’s, B’s, C’s, D’s, F’s).
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This lets you instantly identify who deserves your attention when time is limited — maximizing ROI on outreach.
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Leverage Custom Reports to Focus Daily Activity
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Save and favorite key reports like:
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All Referral Partners
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Referral Prospect List
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No Partner Activity Over 2 Weeks
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These reports help you avoid losing touch with top partners and ensure you're consistently nurturing the relationships that generate business.
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Build and Use a Refi “Hot List” for Past Clients
- Track every past client’s interest rate and create a “target rate” field based on their savings goals.
- Mark those ready to act as “Hot,” so when rates dip (even briefly), you can make timely calls and lock in deals.
4. Take Notes in the System to Automate Communication Transparency
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Input detailed notes in Salesforce so agents receive automatic updates via the referral partner portal.
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- This reduces unnecessary check-in calls and builds agent trust through transparency — and creates FOMO for those not yet using the app.
5. Start Now and Get Ahead of the Curve
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Don’t wait until the new system becomes mandatory. Begin organizing your database, building your reports, and getting familiar with More today.
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The earlier you begin, the more you’ll tailor the system to your workflow — avoiding overwhelm when the transition becomes company-wide.
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Final Takeaway:
Success in the modern mortgage space isn’t about working harder — it’s about working smarter with your data. Jared's system turns Salesforce and More into an automated, money-generating machine. Whether you’re managing 50 contacts or 700+, strategic organization and proactive engagement are the new non-negotiables for staying competitive in today’s high-tech mortgage landscape.