My company and title is… CNN Mortgage, Vice President, Sr. Loan Officer
A typical day in my life includes… Every day is different. My day starts with exercise and helping the kids get out the door for school, then to the office for whatever the day has in store for me. Usually my time at the office is spent trying to be as creative as possible to make difficult loan situations turn into successful closings. I have established a reputation in the business for taking outside the box scenarios and making them work best for the customer. I do a lot of credit consulting to structure a plan to achieve homeownership. I spend quite a bit of time outside of the office to meet with developers, real estate agents, and referral partners to focus on growing each other’s businesses. After work hours is typically spent collecting my children at whatever activity or sport they are participating in, then heading home for a family dinner and homework.
My favorite thing about living/working in the Scottsdale area is… I grew up in Arizona, went to college at the University of Washington in Seattle and came back home after school because of this #1 reason…the weather! Scottsdale is so wonderful to wake up to every morning; the sun is motivating and energizing. I travel a lot but also love to come home to Scottsdale.
My family… Consists of my husband of 12 years, Justin Whalen and our two girls, Lily (10) and Finley (9). We spend a lot of time together traveling, having fun dinners (usually sushi) and having fun at home too.
The business lesson I learned the hard way is… You constantly have to be in front of people to make sure they remember you. If you are not reminding them of you, someone else will be.
One thing I cannot live without is… My family. I wish for a happy and healthy family every day. We are so blessed to have each other which is the most important thing to me. We have both my parents and Justin’s parents that live nearby. My sister, her husband and their two kids live close also.
When I was younger, I
wanted to be… A CIA agent. Thank god that didn’t work out, it sounds scary!
The song I would sing at Karaoke night is… Wagon Wheel or Chicken Fried. I just love those songs right now.
The last thing that made me laugh out loud was… My kids make me laugh every day. Yesterday my 10-year-old Lily told me that a boy at school stopped her and said, “I like you, do you?” She said, “Yes, I do like myself!” It was funny!
My first job was… Besides a quick waitressing job during college, my first job was as a loan officer in the mortgage business. The same job I have today, 24 years later.
I’m currently working on… Taking more time to myself. I’m trying to relax and enjoy the things that I already have. I tend to always want more and forget to reflect on what I have earned.
The actor I would want to play me in a movie of my life is… Angelina Jolie. She is so interesting and was married to my favorite, Brad Pitt.
My words of wisdom to aspiring business owners… Work hard but play harder. It’s not worth all the hard work if you can’t enjoy it. Make sure to love what you do and everything else will fall into place.
