Author Morgan Housel who wrote The Psychology of Money describes history as “one damned thing after another. It sure seems that way lately if you watch the news or check your portfolio. Reverse mortgage originators can certainly relate.

To put it bluntly, sometimes things are not easy. That’s the essence of life. Twists and turns, traumatic events, the sense of financial threat, or stress. In today’s market resilience is not just an asset but a necessity. 

Where the rubber meets the road

For many it’s a loan gained, and another lost. A loan that flies through underwriting and another that’s full of vexing conditions. It’s 4 prospects who truly qualify for a HECM, and 3 that don’t due to higher rates and lower principal limit factors (PLFs). Over time these experiences and our repeated responses become our new default. These formed behaviors eventually become habit. 

Over time these experiences and our repeated responses become our new default.  These formed behaviors eventually become habit.  

Training our brain to be resilient

More interesting is recent research from the European Journal of Social Psychology found that it takes on average 66 days of continuous activity to engrain a new habit. Your new behavior becomes automatic. Why does it take sixty-six days? In one word- Neuroplasticity. Your brain can be trained to respond and adapt to experiences over time. As psychologist Donald Hebb puts it, “Neurons that fire together wire together”.

So what new habits or behaviors would you want to tackle in the next 66 days? 

Here a few areas in which you may wish to leverage to develop increased resilience.

• How you respond to a client canceling their application or a loan no longer qualifying. 
• How you reply to a homeowner who seems uninterested despite having inquired about a reverse mortgage.
• How you manage your time when sales are slow.
• How you see the circumstances that challenge you. Is the universe against you or is the just the normal course of doing business?
• How you approach potential professional partnerships after several rebuffs.
• Your inner narrative: What story do you tell yourself about your business or your prospects for success?
• How you view challenges. Do you see them as a setback for an opportunity for growth?
• How you view unforeseen circumstances. Do you find yourself trying to control events outside of your control? Why? What would be a better approach?
• What’s your image of the future? What do you think developed that vision?

Resilience gives us the ability to bounce back, learn our experiences, and come back better prepared the next time life throws us a curveball. A skillset that certainly benefits any mortgage professional.