The Mortgage Rainmaker Podcast
What if the mortgage business could be more simple and fun? What if you could double and triple and quadruple your results with less complexity and less stress – and without the sales roller coaster? I'm Shayla Gifford and this is The Mortgage Rainmaker Podcast. If you're a loan officer looking to sharpen your skills, grow your pipeline, and get fired up – you're in the right place. We bring you interviews with top performing loan officers, my personal insights, and success stories from within my Catalyst Coaching community. I've spent my entire career as a loan officer and helping loan officers. So I kn...
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The Hot Seat with Zenon Issel
<p>The bar is lower than you think. Show up, sell yourself, and do the damn work.</p><p>Hey there, Rainmakers!</p><p>In this episode, I’m coaching Zenon, a Catalyst member who’s just over a year into the mortgage business and hungry to build.</p><p>We break down how to earn more opportunities with real estate agents without hiding behind complicated loan products. From positioning yourself as the backup lender to leveraging niche wins and mastering follow-up, this conversation is about learning to sell what matters most: you.</p><p>Because agents aren’t just buying...
AI Prompts Every Loan Officer Should Be Using with Ryan Erekson
<p>Ryan Erekson wants to build a $24 million mortgage business working five hours a week. And AI is how he plans to do it.</p><p>Hey there, Rainmakers!</p><p>Ryan is my AI coach, and in this episode, we’re breaking down how to use AI to create more money, more time, and higher-quality work—without replacing the relationships that actually grow your business.</p><p>We get tactical with how AI can help with pipeline reviews, borrower and agent updates, database opportunities, follow-up, and everyday tasks that eat up your time.</p><p>Key Insights</p>Start with...
How I Doubled My Lead Conversion with Alex Dykes
<p>Alex Dykes went from taking out personal loans to pay his bills to becoming a Chairman’s Club producer on pace for 202 loans this year.</p><p>Hey there, Rainmakers!</p><p>Alex Dykes is proof of what can happen when you get humble, get coached, and stop trying to figure everything out alone. After watching his production collapse to 52 units in 2023, Alex doubled down on himself—and completely rebuilt the way he serves clients and grows relationships.</p><p>In this episode, Alex shares his YES Framework for finding possibilities where other lenders see dead ends. We break down...
The Hot Seat with Art Shalomov & Tanya Brown
<p>What if you could sit in on a real coaching call and hear exactly what’s keeping another Rainmaker stuck?</p><p>Hey there, Rainmakers!</p><p>Today, I’m pulling back the curtain and letting you inside two real one-on-one coaching conversations with Art Shalomov and Tanya Brown, two students in my Catalyst coaching program.</p><p>This is The Hot Seat. No polished interview. No prepared answers. Just real loan officers bringing me the real stuff happening inside their businesses—and us coaching through it together.</p><p>Art came to me overwhelmed by all the things he tho...
From Recovery to Rainmaker: How Anne Solano Rebuilt Her Life and Mortgage Business
<p>What happens when you stop trying to look like a loan officer—and start showing up fully as yourself?</p><p>Hey there, Rainmakers!</p><p>Anne Solano went from losing everything and rebuilding her life in recovery to becoming one of the most exciting new loan officers I’ve watched enter this business.</p><p>In her first full year, Anne closed 42 loans with 25 different Realtors referring her business. And she didn’t do it with some complicated sales strategy. She showed up relentlessly, built genuine relationships, found difficult loans other people didn’t want, shared her wins, and beca...
83 | Using This Simple System Tripled My Mortgage Business with Brendan Williams
<p>Hey there, Rainmakers!</p><p>Brendan Williams is proof that you don’t have to become someone you’re not to build an incredible mortgage business. He’s not living on social media, chasing endless coffee meetings, or reinventing his strategy every six months. He created a simple system around relationships, calls, follow-up, and organization—and kept showing up.</p><p>In this episode, Brendan breaks down the system that helped take his production from $20 million in 2024 to $43 million in 2025, with nearly $60 million in his sights for 2026. We unpack his exact theme days, how he organizes hundreds of agent relation...
From Scared to Unstoppable: The Shift That Took Me From 2 Loans to $22M with Amy Roe
<p>What if the breakthrough you’re waiting for is on the other side of your fear?</p><p>Hey there, Rainmakers!</p><p>Amy Roe closed just two loans in her first eight months as a loan officer. She questioned herself, froze at networking events, and wondered if she’d made a huge mistake. But she kept showing up. That persistence took her to 34 transactions in 2024, then 49 transactions and $22 million in 2025.</p><p>In this episode, Amy and I break down the shift that changed her business: owning her value, finding her people, tracking the activities that matter, asking for...
The FREE 5-Week Sales Challenge Every Loan Officer and Realtor Needs
<p>What if the business you're praying for is already sitting inside the relationships you have today?</p><p>Hey there, Rainmakers!</p><p>If you've ever said, "I'm just not a salesperson," this episode is for you.</p><p>I hear it every single week from incredible loan officers and real estate agents. You're amazing at serving people. Your clients love you. You know your craft. But when it comes to consistently growing your business, putting yourself out there feels uncomfortable. You don't want to cold call. You don't want to chase strangers. And honestly—you shouldn't have to.</p>...
Building a Mortgage Business That Doesn’t Own You with Tasha Hastings
<p>What’s the point of building a successful mortgage business if you don’t have a life left to enjoy it?</p><p>Hey there, Rainmakers!</p><p>My good friend Tasha Hastings has spent 13 years building something so many loan officers want: a thriving mortgage business that doesn’t own her. She’s a top producer, a wife, a present mom of three, and a leader who has been incredibly intentional about protecting what matters most.</p><p>In this episode, we talk about taking over the business her mom built, going all in on a builder relationship when the...
79 | Mastering The Ask: How This New LO Closed $4M with Jannette Gomez
<p>What happens when a brand-new loan officer stops overthinking and starts running the plays?</p><p>Hey there, Rainmakers!</p><p>Jannette Gomez left a 13-year career as a dental hygienist because she knew she was capable of more. Just 14 months into the mortgage business, she closed a $4 million month by staying hungry, asking for help, and doing the work most people avoid.</p><p>In this episode, we break down exactly where her business came from: open houses, cold calls, and the 10-10-10 strategy that became her biggest source of closed loans. This is proof that you...
