I am thankful for my job! Appropriate, since today is my first day back to work from maternity leave.
I am fortunate to have fallen into a career that can be very financially rewarding and allow us to have a stay-at-home parent for our children. And I say "fallen" because this line of work happened by accident. Just over ten years ago, I was in college working on a degree in Psychology, with a minor in Criminal Justice. My plan was to eventually work for the FBI as a criminal profiler and write books about serial killers. I met some guys at church that were investing in real estate and they wanted me to help with collecting rent checks, paperwork, running ads, etc. One of them encouraged me to get my loan officer's license, so that I could help him get financing and then when his tenants were ready to buy, I could help them too. It sounded like a good way to make extra money at the time, so I did it and I really enjoyed it. Later that year when I met Bonham, I realized that being married and having a family didn't really jive with working with serial killers. Slowly, I attended school less and started working more. I went to work for a large mortgage company. Maybe you have heard of it... Countrywide Home Loans? They were a great company to work for (in the beginning). I worked there for almost 4 years. I am still sad about how it all panned out with that company. I said that I would do mortgages for 5-10 years until I could finish my Masters and PhD in Psychology. Well, I am still doing it. Haha! But it's okay, there is a reason that I fell into mortgages. I have helped a lot of people and provided for our family. :)
I started with a new company, Regions Bank, today as a mortgage loan officer. I was working at another company up until last week. This other company was a mortgage company only, not a bank. I've missed working at a bank; I've missed the leads walking in the door, honestly. I am a very hard worker, but I have never liked feeling like a salesperson. I prefer to think of what I do as a service for my customers. Providing the best experience is very important to me. When I am stressed about finding the next lead and closing a deal, I feel as though I am not providing that experience and I start to feel pushy. This is going to be a better situation for me.
The mortgage/real estate industry can be extremely stressful. But what job isn't stressful? I think I add a lot of it on myself because I worry about making everyone involved in the transaction happy. Getting a mortgage is a stressful process for the applicant and I try my best to minimize their stress level, which in turn, increases mine. But that's okay, because happy customers leads to referrals and then more business!
With my new job, my branch is about 45 minutes from my house, but it's a good area with lots of traffic. My office is right across the street from my favorite title company, so that is good for me and my customers! I am excited about this new company and the loan products that they have to offer, because I feel like I can help more people than I have before. I also have some great realtor partners and this will help them and their customers too!
I have orientation today in Plano and then I have a week-long training session next week in Birmingham, Alabama. Bonham is going with me, so that George can come too. George and I can't be apart that long since I am nursing. I will have to pump during the day, but that's okay because I can nurse him at night and in the morning. Even though I will be working during the day, it will almost be like a mini-vacation for me and Bonham in the evenings. Jayna and Barrett are staying with my mom and dad. I wish they could go with us, but they can't miss that much school. :( I know that the kids will enjoy the time with Nana and Papa!
The good thing about doing mortgages is that companies are always hiring sales people (yuck, that title again). I am very thankful for that and I am thankful that I am able to help so many people with the job that I do.
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