“Here’s to the crazy ones”

Consider this. How could so many people spew misinformation and hate about the reverse mortgage? Does it feel like you earn a bad reputation by good deeds?

It’s helpful to remember people often hate that which they fear. The reverse mortgage, despite its age and according to NRMLA, more than 1.12 million families have used the loan to live more secure lives, is still the convenient target of the misinformed.

Years ago, one woman who disagreed with a position I’d taken about a city policy went as far as to look up my profile. Seeing my association with reverse mortgages she accused me of preying on or ripping off seniors…all I guess to make a point.

At that time the words of the stoic philosopher Epictetus would have assuaged my anger. “Another person will not do you harm unless you wish it; you will be harmed at just that time at which you take yourself to be harmed.” In the end, the advice of Marcus Aurelius came to mind. “The best way to avenge yourself is to not be like that”.

The truth is as a species we’re pretty good at obstructing our own progress. Consider these examples.

Coffee was first popular in the Middle East, especially among imams who needed to stay awake to call for prayers. For centuries Europeans turned their nose up as the dark and fragrant stimulant. Now coffee can be found on nearly every corner of the industrialized world.

The early adopters of the first automobiles in the U.S. were seen as fools tinkering with a buggy run without being hitched to a horse.

Digital music. Record labels howled in protest at the arrival of the new-fangled digital music that Americans were increasingly downloading or putting on new devices. Only when the music industry embraced the medium did they begin to gain traction and profits in the market.

People resist any new product or idea that challenges their outlook or understanding of the world. Therefore fearful and hateful responses are not odd at all. In fact, they are to be expected! People have a lot invested in the status quo of how mortgages work. When you upset that apple cart it is best to anticipate some resistance.

So the next time you turn on a light, drive a car, use an umbrella, or get on your computer, remember each of these faced public ridicule and derision. While we’re not exactly the horseless carriage of mortgages, the concept is far less than mainstream, and that’s okay.

As Apple’s famous 1997 commercial says, “Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently.”

Cheers to the crazy ones. And cheers to you fellow pioneers in mortgage lending!