Enhancing Service During a Pandemic

Can you tell us a little bit about the way the pandemic affected you and your businesses? 

I think the pandemic was an intense obstacle for most businesses and business owners. For my companies, I quickly changed my mindset from being shocked and grappling with this whole new world to thinking about how I could adjust to better serve my clients, employees, and community.

The pandemic created unprecedented needs for our clients and with all the restrictions and safety concerns, we had to be very agile in creating client-focused solutions. All told, I think Postema Insurance & Investments grew well above 50% in 2020.

What were the main challenges you were faced with and how did you manage to overcome them? 

The first challenge was in rethinking how I could keep my employees and clients safe. The safety of those around me has always been important, but there was a new threat to consider with the pandemic.

With that handled, I had to decide how to keep my business operating smoothly so I could meet customer needs despite potential employee absences. We had to stay extremely organised and do a lot of cross-training while maintaining company ethics and service standards as our clients’ need for sound financial advice continued to grow.

What are some of the key lessons the past year and a half have taught you? 

It’s made me think a lot differently about my weaknesses. I realised how important it is to hire people who can do what I can’t, rather than just trying to do it all myself.

I’ve also learned how important it is to work on total and complete life management, not just time management. I’ve found that if I continue to follow a path of self-improvement, my entire team and all of my organisations will improve as well. If we want to change the world and make it a better place, we must first make ourselves better.

Tell us about your new company, Postema Capital Lending.

Ultimately, I have always wanted to add a lending component to my financial services organisation. The pandemic not only gave me the time to implement Postema Capital Lending but also pointed out just how necessary this service was. I strongly believe that financial planning isn’t just about accumulating wealth. It’s also about preserving your wealth and property with insurance, rigorous tax planning and strategic borrowing that’s easy to access from lenders all over the country. With the capital lending component, my company comes full circle. Our clients enjoy a full financial planning team meeting all of their financial needs, and it’s all in one place, making it easier for clients to manage.

What are your goals for the future of Postema Capital Lending? 

We are experiencing rapid but controlled expansion, so we’re focusing on opening satellite offices for captive sales associates and others. The Postema Capital Lending team is amazing. With Julie, Jodey, Kevin, Dustin and Abby running our home team in tandem with our accounting company, we’re seeing exponential growth in our list of lenders. We’ll soon have over 900 lenders available to help borrowers all over America get the right lending option. Ideally, we’d like to become the first place both borrowers and Loan Originators turn to.

Considering how much you’ve got on your plate, what are the strategies you implement to find time for everything?  

It really starts with the team that’s supporting me. We have to work together with a shared vision, ethics and goals. Once that’s taken care of, the rest is just a psychological battle. I’ve mentioned this in other interviews, but being a driven, hard worker can be both a blessing and a curse. But once you realise that your potential is limitless, it stops being a question of how you will manage everything; you just know that you will.

What does a typical day look like for you? 

I’m typically up and working out by 5 am. I get to work by 7 am so I can get ahead of everyone else. Keeping each company structured and running requires a full day of appointments, meetings, podcast recording and television interviews.

Ideally, I’m home by six and enjoying dinner and family time. From 8:30 pm to 11:00 pm I enjoy what I call my Prime Time. This is when I’m usually journaling in my victory journal and gratitude journal and working on book, program or website content. Before bed, I review my goals and plan my day so my subconscious mind can sort everything out and organise it by morning.

What are your top tips on motivation, productivity and successfully juggling a lot of things at once? 

I make sure that throughout the day, I’m constantly “filling my cup.” In other words, I’m getting spiritually, emotionally, and psychologically renewed all day by making sure I’m always immersed in some form of self-improvement. I never want to be the same person tomorrow that I was today. I want to constantly grow and evolve so I can better my life and the lives of those around me.