The Way with Dino Katsiametis

Send us Fan Mail
Amir Syed says it plain: “If my own wife is swiping, everybody’s swiping.”
Amir is the co-founder and CEO of GO! Coaching. He grew his Instagram from 45,000 to 80,000 followers in 35 days. In this talk, Dino and Amir go deep on one big idea. How to build a reel that people watch to the end.
Amir shares the parts of a reel. The hook. The re-hook. The early call to action. And the ending. He tells why you should give people crayons, not calculus. And he says why your visibility has to match your ability.
You will also hear The Round, with his ethos, his morning, what he would do over, his favorite books, and his Million Dollar Drop plan.
Comment ANATOMY on any clip and we will send you the playbook.
Books mentioned: Never Split the Difference — Chris Voss https://amzn.to/4kefQVz
Amir was also on Season 1. His first talk with Dino is here: https://www.dinokatsiametis.com/podcast/amir-syed-coached-to-a-billion/
Views expressed are the individual’s own and do not represent their employer.
The Way with Dino Katsiametis https://DinoKatsiametis.com/podcast/s2e12-amir-syed/
#WhoCanWeServeToday

00:00 Welcome
02:23 Today's masterclass: the anatomy of a viral reel
03:26 Can anyone really go viral?
06:44 Nobody is watching as closely as you think
11:10 Agency, resourcefulness and perseverance
14:51 Climb the mountain one base camp at a time
17:09 Never break the chain
18:10 The 30-year interest-only loan officer
20:35 Why your spouse has to be on board
23:25 Why Instagram, and why now?
25:43 Fame is the greatest arbitrage
28:28 Let's get into the sauce
29:47 The day my wife swiped my reel
31:04 The three hooks
34:07 Tension, surprise, pain, curiosity
34:46 The re-hook
38:43 Hook, re-hook, early CTA
40:21 Crayons, not calculus
40:44 CTA versus CTC
42:46 Social media is business media
45:10 Why long form lives on YouTube
46:02 Two ways to write a call to action
47:22 Your bio is your business card
50:04 Own your audience
52:03 Fame in action
58:06 Your visibility must match your ability
59:44 Why this is not optional
1:02:38 The Round begins
1:04:08 Amir's morning routine
1:07:07 Ideas in the shower
1:09:32 What Amir would do over
1:10:28 What advisors do that does not work
1:12:05 Don't just say AI
1:13:20 Players and playbooks
1:15:00 The first-time buyer question
1:17:00 Why Zoom beats the phone
1:18:52 When a borrower says they can get a better rate
1:19:51 Favorite book
1:22:36 The Million Dollar Drop
1:33:49 The free playbook

Thanks for listening to "The Way With Dino Katsiametis"  
 For full show notes, links, and extra episode resources, visit dinokatsiametis.com.
Follow Dino for weekly clips and mortgage leadership insights on
instagram.com/dinokatsiametis | linkedin.com/in/dinokatsiametis
Learn more about Ethos Lending at ethoslending.com.

Send us Fan Mail
Steve Saxton says it plain: “It means that you’re niching down so that the person looking for you can find you.”
Steve is the founder of Christian Roberts Mortgage in Utah. He does jumbo loans for self-employed borrowers. In this talk, Dino and Steve go deep on one big idea. Send the right signals, so Google and AI know who you are.
Steve shares how he turns one closed loan into a blog post. He tells how a voice memo gets a Google review. And he says why every borrower needs one point of contact.
You will also hear what he says no to now, his favorite book, and his Million Dollar Drop plan.
Comment SIGNALS on any clip and we will send you the playbook.
Books mentioned: Can’t Hurt Me — David Goggins https://link.amazon/B02kHj9R5
Views expressed are the individual’s own and do not represent their employer.
The Way with Dino Katsiametis https://DinoKatsiametis.com/podcast/s2e11-steve-saxton/
#WhoCanWeServeToday

00:00 Welcome
01:58 What is your ethos?
06:02 The loan he wrote for free
17:27 Never downgrade your lifestyle
18:38 Who is Steve Saxton?
20:40 What would Steve teach in a masterclass?
22:34 From the Yellow Pages to AI
25:58 Get painfully specific
29:42 Niching down does not mean losing loans
30:44 Turn one closing into a blog post
32:03 AI does not know who you are
34:16 The voice memo that gets Google reviews
36:28 From loan officer to mortgage advisor
38:14 One point of contact
47:54 One story, many platforms
57:33 Why Steve posts on social media
1:00:18 They can smell your commission breath
1:04:38 Start with the end
1:05:29 The Round begins
1:11:31 What Steve says no to now
1:14:20 The best question to ask a borrower
1:16:40 Favorite book
1:17:04 The Million Dollar Drop
1:22:05 The free playbook

Thanks for listening to "The Way With Dino Katsiametis"  
 For full show notes, links, and extra episode resources, visit dinokatsiametis.com.
Follow Dino for weekly clips and mortgage leadership insights on
instagram.com/dinokatsiametis | linkedin.com/in/dinokatsiametis
Learn more about Ethos Lending at ethoslending.com.

Send us Fan Mail
Kayla Kallander says it plain: "Prescription without diagnosis is malpractice."
Kayla is a mortgage loan officer at First International Bank & Trust in Fargo, North Dakota. In this talk, Dino and Kayla go deep on one big idea. Ask better questions before you give any answer.
Kayla shares how she slows down to speed up. She tells why buyers open up when you ask what scares them. And she shows why one rate on a page is never the whole story.
You will also hear her favorite book, her Million Dollar Drop plan, and a few words about her four rescue dogs.
Comment DIAGNOSE on any clip and we will send you the playbook.
Books mentioned: Unreasonable Hospitality — Will Guidara
Views expressed are the individual's own and do not represent their employer.
The Way with Dino Katsiametis https://DinoKatsiametis.com/podcast/s2e10-kayla-kallander/
#WhoCanWeServeToday
00:00 Welcome
02:22 What is your ethos?
11:48 Unreasonable Hospitality and feeling understood
13:57 Slow down to speed up
17:37 How Kayla stays 99% self-sourced
21:40 The 15-minute discovery call
23:31 "Wait, there is more than one rate?"
1:04:21 The Round begins
1:11:11 The best question to ask a borrower
1:12:42 Favorite book
1:18:06 The Million Dollar Drop
1:24:55 The free playbook

Thanks for listening to "The Way With Dino Katsiametis"  
 For full show notes, links, and extra episode resources, visit dinokatsiametis.com.
Follow Dino for weekly clips and mortgage leadership insights on
instagram.com/dinokatsiametis | linkedin.com/in/dinokatsiametis
Learn more about Ethos Lending at ethoslending.com.

Send us Fan Mail
Brady Thomas moved 3,000 miles away from his business, and it grew. His personal production went from $124 million to $179 million, up 45% in a year, while he worked out of a basement in Boston and his clients and agents were in Oakland.
He calls the system referral gravity: the right agents send you the right loans without you asking. In this episode he walks Dino through all three pillars. Transactional clarity, which is naming the one problem you want to be known for. Authority, which is being trusted before you are needed: a point of view, two email lists on two clocks, and a thousand five-star reviews earned by asking at every closing. And operational excellence, which is delivering every time as volume grows.
Along the way: why a niche is a sign and not a fence, the $250 charity donation that replaced every closing gift, the Times Square test for your inbox, and the second conversation he added after rates jumped.
Then in The Round: the one question he asks every borrower, the AI tool he cannot live without, and what he says to the client who has talked to seven lenders.
He also answers the Million Dollar Drop: new state, no clients, no agents. He would run the same playbook.
Brady Thomas is a producing Branch Manager at LaSalle Mortgage in Oakland, California, and has ranked among the top 100 originators in the country over a 16-year career.
Comment GRAVITY on any clip and we will send you the playbook.
Books mentioned: Key Person of Influence — Daniel Priestley
The Way with Dino Katsiametis https://DinoKatsiametis.com/podcast/s2e09-brady-thomas/
#WhoCanWeServeToday

00:00 Meet Brady Thomas
02:34 Sixteen years in Oakland, and a move to Boston
06:08 What is referral gravity?
10:49 Pillar one: clarity and the Two Home Tango
14:37 A sign, not a fence
17:14 Pillar two: authority and a point of view
19:13 Two newsletters on two clocks
22:25 How he got 1,000 five-star reviews
23:50 $250 to charity at every closing
26:01 Where the business comes from
30:27 Inside a team of eight
33:04 Your office is in Times Square
34:20 Pillar three: operational excellence
41:43 Staying with the client after closing
47:03 "I couldn't cold call either"
48:54 The Round: lightning questions
54:22 The AI tool that changed how he works
59:13 "I can get a better rate somewhere else"
1:05:03 Favorite book, his ethos, and the Million Dollar Drop
1:12:12 Consistency: 700 posts later

Thanks for listening to "The Way With Dino Katsiametis"  
 For full show notes, links, and extra episode resources, visit dinokatsiametis.com.
Follow Dino for weekly clips and mortgage leadership insights on
instagram.com/dinokatsiametis | linkedin.com/in/dinokatsiametis
Learn more about Ethos Lending at ethoslending.com.

Send us Fan Mail
Most loan officers try to win a client in the first three minutes. Sosi Avila runs a 30-minute first meeting, and he says it is the reason he closes almost everyone he talks to.
In this episode Sosi opens his consultation slide by slide and walks Dino through what he says, in what order, and why. He explains the one question he asks before anything else, why the phrase "walking into equity" is a myth, how a VIP pre-approval makes a financed offer read like cash and closes in 15 to 17 days, and the doorbell camera trick that gets an offer in the seller's inbox before the buyer gets home.
Then in The Round: why he gives every consultation on video, why he says relationship is last place, and what the right answer is when a client asks for a better rate.
He also answers the Million Dollar Drop: no database, no network, one unfamiliar city. His plan has three targets and one of them is a CPA.
Sosi Avila is a $100 million producer and the President of Mamba Capital Lending. This is his second time on The Way.
Comment CONSULT on any clip and we will send you the playbook.
Books mentioned: $100M Offers — Alex Hormozi
The Way with Dino Katsiametis https://DinoKatsiametis.com/podcast/s2e08-sosi-avila/
#WhoCanWeServeToday

00:00 Cold open 
01:37 Welcome back, Sosi Avila 
03:50 The one thing he does differently
05:33 Eight planning meetings, one consultation 
09:38 Three parts: engage, options, decide 
12:48 Setting the objective of the call 
15:23 What's your learning style? 
16:56 Handing the client the scoreboard 
18:44 The market as a story with dates 
28:32 Building one scenario live 
30:43 The walking into equity myth 
33:50 Temporary buydowns 
37:20 Regular pre-approval or VIP 
39:50 The Ferrari and the doorbell camera 
46:19 Slow down so you can speed up 
48:36 The Round 
01:05:32 Favorite book 
01:07:10 The Million Dollar Drop 
01:13:36 People sleep on stories
01:17:00 Close

Thanks for listening to "The Way With Dino Katsiametis"  
 For full show notes, links, and extra episode resources, visit dinokatsiametis.com.
Follow Dino for weekly clips and mortgage leadership insights on
instagram.com/dinokatsiametis | linkedin.com/in/dinokatsiametis
Learn more about Ethos Lending at ethoslending.com.