In this episode of The Way, Dino Katsiametis is joined by Drew Gillett, VP of Marketing at Guild Mortgage. Managing a fully remote, 55-person elite marketing team supporting over 2,000 loan officers nationwide, Drew brings a wealth of modern brand-building expertise to the microphone. He details how high-performing mortgage advisors can break through market noise by executing highly disciplined, repeatable digital strategies across short and long-form channels…
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In this season one finale of The Way Podcast, host Dino Katsiametis sits down with fellow industry veteran Ryan O’Kane, CEO of Arbor Financial Group. Having both launched their mortgage careers in 1998, Dino and Ryan bring a combined half-century of real-world knowledge to the table. They unpack the bruising reality of the 2021–2024 market cycle, the rapid evolution of internal AI development, and the enduring power of human connection in a relationship-driven business…
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In this episode of The Way, Dino Katsiametis sits down with Rich Weidel, CEO of Princeton Mortgage. With a background as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs, Rich stepped into a small mom-and-pop shop in 2017 and led a massive rebuild. He scaled the company into a top 20 wholesaler before completely transitioning out of wholesale in 2022 to pioneer a hyper-lean retail infrastructure.
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In this episode of The Way, Dino Katsiametis is joined by the father-daughter lending team, Bill and Victoria Clayton. Bill is a 30-year mortgage industry veteran who literally grew up in the business, and Victoria represents the family’s third generation of elite originators.
Despite only being her third full year in loan origination, Victoria is on track averaging a spectacular six to eight closed units every single month. They pull back the curtain on how they dominate their regional footprint through uncompromised face-to-face trust, flawless operational integration, and sophisticated long-term cash flow and debt advisory planning…
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In this episode of The Way, Dino Katsiametis is joined by Steven Ross, an elite real estate professional and author of Doors Open When You Knock. By his own admission, Steven possesses the absolute “worst” psychological profile for a traditional real estate agent—he is an introverted, slightly antisocial tech professional who completely avoids networking events and refuses to work nights or weekends.
Yet, over a 22-year career, he has built an absolute powerhouse of a business by executing on one remarkably basic, highly disciplined concept: he knocked on more than 125,000 physical doors. Steven shares how…
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In this episode of The Way, Dino Katsiametis is joined by Alan Mack, the founder of Mack Financial Services. With over 38 years of experience in the industry, Alan has closed over a billion dollars personally and consistently ranked as the top producer in the United States for major institutions like Wells Fargo, Citibank, and Bank of America.
After retiring from corporate banking, Alan saw a gaping chasm in the luxury market and reinvented his business model. Today, he operates entirely as an independent financing advisor to the ultra-wealthy, captains of industry, and famous sports figures—charging flat consulting fees…
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In this powerful episode of The Way, Dino Katsiametis welcomes back long-time friend and industry titan Joshua Mettle. A high-performance mortgage advisor, real estate investor, and coach, Josh dives deep into the philosophy of success, the discipline required to maintain it, and the “fear of tomorrow” that drives him to maximize every experience.
Josh shares his journey from a childhood on food stamps to building a nine-figure real estate portfolio and a elite mortgage practice. He challenges listeners to pivot from being “loan officers” to “mortgage advisors,” emphasizing that true success is not something you catch, but something you attract by the person you become..
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In this episode of The Way, Dino Katsiametis sits down with Carl Streicher, Ethos Lending’s new Director of Mentorship and Growth. With a career spanning back to 1990, Carl brings decades of “old school” wisdom to a modern mortgage world. They discuss the transition from being a simple “loan officer” to a true “mortgage advisor,” the evolution of the builder business, and why the “go-giver” mentality is the fastest path to success.
Carl shares his journey from witnessing the 1987 stock market crash on his first day as an intern to leading major divisions at Bank of America and eventually finding his home in the broker world. This episode is a masterclass in building a career based on transparency, vulnerability, and a big heart.
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In this special episode of The Way, Dino Katsiametis welcomes back “repeat offenders” Rick Mount and Mike Hardy. Often described as the Socrates and Confucius of the mortgage world for their deep wisdom and constant pursuit of knowledge, Rick and Mike return to discuss their transition from the Independent Mortgage Banking (IMB) space to the hybrid broker model.
They dive deep into the pros and cons of the entire industry, exploring why the tide is turning toward the broker side and how professional originators can “meet the market where the market is”. Whether you are a “thoroughbred” originator looking for more control or an entrepreneur at heart, this episode provides a roadmap for navigating the future of mortgage lending.
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In this episode of The Way, Dino Katsiametis sits down with mortgage veteran and Housing Link co-founder, Scott Nicholson. They cover Scott’s unique transition from professional golf to the mortgage industry—starting on the morning of September 11, 2001—and his long-term philosophy of “education-based selling.” Scott breaks down why traditional methods like email-only pre-approvals are becoming obsolete and introduces the Housing Link platform as a solution for reaching modern, tech-savvy buyers and real estate agents.
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In this episode of The Way, Dino Katsiametis sits down with industry veteran Natalie Overturf to discuss her 30+ year journey in the mortgage industry. From starting as a temporary receptionist in 1993 to becoming a top-producing branch manager and coach, Natalie shares her hard-earned wisdom on how to survive and thrive through market shifts. They dive into the critical intersection of modern technology and the “old school” art of relationship-based lending, exploring…
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In this milestone 50th episode of The Way, Dino Katsiametis sits down with Austin Niemiec, Chief Revenue Officer at Rocket, to discuss the intersection of high-stakes leadership, cutting-edge technology, and the enduring power of human connection in the mortgage industry. Austin shares his 18-year journey at Rocket—starting as a loan officer during the 2008 financial crisis and rising to lead the Rocket Pro channel.
They explore how the “largest retail lender in America” …
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