Finance and Coffee: Friday Wrap

With over twenty years of experience in financial services, James Angus has seen it all. Currently with Bluestone as their Chief Customer Officer, many will also recall him as the former Co-Head of Personal Banking Intermediaries at Macquarie. While at Macquarie, he was a key figure in rebuilding and positioning the Macquarie residential mortgage brand with brokers and driving book growth through...

From a struggling single mother with no business skills living in a housing commission unit, turned award-winning business woman, Dien speaks to the lovely Victoria Coster about her journey going from  " From Zero to CEO".   Why do we place a stigma on people living in Housing Commission Flats? How does one overcome that mindset and succeed?  The fundamentals with life in general re...

With over 28 years experience in the Finance Industry, winning multiple national awards both as Broker of the Year and as a Mentor of the Year,  you could say Tracie has seen it all.  Working her way up from a Junior Bank Teller to the Youngest Female Branch Manager with Suncorp, hard work and determination was definitely something she had in spades.  Taking the leap away from Corpo...

No stranger to the pain and pleasures of growing a successful business, Dien speaks to Kristy about how she fell into the Real Estate industry and then into the Finance Brokering Industry.   Most brokers in the industry in Victoria know about her Super Broker husband, Josh, but for those outside the Loan Market circle, not many know about Kristy or what she did. From building her own Top...

In this episode, Dien speaks to Paul Smith about his accidental journey into the Finance industry in Australia and how he came to find himself specialising in the field of Digital Marketing for Finance Brokers.  The story begins with Paul coming to Australia with his dad on a two week holiday many years ago, that trip sows the seeds for his adventure Down Under a few years later. The podcast...

Overseas Experience (OE) is a New Zealand term for an extended overseas working period or holiday. Sometimes referred to as "The big OE" in reference to the extended duration of the travel - typically at least one year, and often extended far longer.  For many Kiwis, the first destination is Australia.  Bradley Ward didn't stray far from that trend.  Finding himself in St Kilda, he...

For those in the Finance Brokering World, you would know that the last 2 years (up to Aug 2020) has been one of the most tumultuous times that the industry has had to endure. Funnily enough, Dan Brown decided to take a leap of faith and give it a go as a Broker during this very period. As at time of recording, a milestone was reached, TWO Years as a Broker. What a fantastic milestone it was indeed...

Introducing Jane Slack-Smith, most likely the only qualified person to handle explosives in The Finance Industry! In this episode, Dien chats to Jane about her early career as an Explosives Engineer, her accidental move into sales and her journey into property investing. Being an engineer by training, she developed a meticulous formula that worked for her.  Her desire to help friends and coll...

In this episode, Dien speaks to Sam Arthurs, a Finance Broker in Warrnambool, Victoria, Australia. We discuss his journey coming from the UK and starting out in Regional Victoria, his time working for the Royal Flying Doctors and his transition into being a Finance Broker.  Regional Finance Brokers do not often get a lot of attention from Lender BDMs, perhaps due to a number of factors such a...

In this episode Dien talks to Nick Homes, Co-Founder and CEO of a Payment Platform called Billzy.  As with most people, Nick didnt start is career in Finance, it was actually Law. He fell into Real Estate and eventually realised that there was a Pain Point in the business he was in that could sink any large development... the issue of being paid on time. The issue is actually universal for an...

In this episode, I talk to Tanya Brimblecombe about being in a Sales Role inside a Bank - Business Development Manager Third Party.  Specifically her Mindset on how she approached it. Moving Interstate and then landing her first BDM gig (Heritage Bank) with zero connections must have been a daunting experience.  Then after many years, moving to a new employer (Adelaide Bank) with a diffe...

In this follow up episode, Dien talks to Sarah about being the face of The Stranded Aussies stuck in Peru when the Peruvian Government unexpectedly and suddenly shut it's boarders due COVID-19. Upon successfully lobbying for assistance from the Australian Government to assist with the evacuation, Sarah finds herself coming back to Melbourne just as the city was going into Lock Down for the first t...

Mental Toughness is the key to being a Tier One Level Athlete.  Some would even say that trait it is also a deciding factor to being a sucessful business/salesman. In this episode, Dien speaks to Sean Wroe (who has represented Australia at World, Commonwealth and Olympic Level) about his journey from being an Athlete and competing at the Olympics to transitioning into a career in Finance Brok...

In this episode, I interview Esha Frykberg. We chat about how he has come to have a strange accent and how he fell into the Finance industry. Similar to myself, his first foray into sales was a call centre environment. We discuss the challenges that were presented there and how that has help him achieve a "think skin", a trait you need to be in Sales - no matter what industry. We also chat briefly...

In this episode, Dien talks to Maria Tomlinson (Owner of Complete Conveyancing Solutions) about her journey from working for a someone else in a Law Firm to taking the plunge to starting up her own conveyancing business. Being 2020, no one expected a Pandemic but then again when is there a good time to start a business? Luckily the process has been largely digitised which allows Maria to operate a...

An award-winning property investor, mentor and mortgage broker. When it comes to buying property, there’s a lot to know. Just as the State of Victoria was going down into lock down for the first time in March of 2020, Dien talks to Garry about his journey and his approach with his clients to that help them to understand what’s possible and how to focus on keeping balance when it comes to building...

Highly successful broker, Finance Industry Council Member and Vinnies Soup Van Volunteer. Have a listen to this wonderful human's journey since coming to Australia in 2006.

St Vinnies runs many initiatives around Victoria (and Australia wide), one of which I am involved with which is the famous "Soup Van". Every night the Vans go out no matter what the weather to feed the less fortunate on the streets, in the boarding houses and in some housing commission flats.  There are multiple teams across the state servicing different designated areas/regions. What many do...

“Sorry mate, not good news.” And with those 5 words, my twenty year career in Stockbroking came to an end.  When the GFC hit.  Almost overnight, the industry collapsed.  Stockbroking firms were hit hard, and good workers, with lots of long-term experience were being made redundant. I was at the crossroads, my son Alex was 18 months old and my 6 figure salary disappeared.  My St...

Coffee Cocktail: Bourbon, Frangelico, Lemon Bitter and Coffee. Dien chats to Lauren about protecting the home loan with insurance. No one expects a life event to impact them which makes paying a mortgage difficult. Did you know there is also insurance in case your child gets sick and you need to take time off work to look after them and not worry about losing your house?

I chat to Patrina Chia from Mortgage Zone over some coffee Cocktails. We talk about her experiences about being a broker. Telling it like it is. We discuss the differences prior to and after the GFC. We also talk about business relationship building, the basics, have they changed much over the decades?

Michael Budge. One of the OG member of Finance and Coffee. We discuss his journey from Broker to Asset Finance Specialist. Becoming a trusted partner to other brokers who did not specialised in Asset Finance. In 2019, he also added Heart Attack Survivor to his list. Now he spends his time campaigning to get a new treatment added to the PBS so that the treatment he has received can be accessed by m...

How traditional Vietnamese Coffee is made... slow drip. As it drips, Dien talks to Andrew about mentoring and what happens after the mandatory first 2 years is up. A true Master, we discuss why brokers/business owners need continued coaching regardless of how long you have been running a business.

Drive and determination are ingredients of a successful finance broker. Sarah has taken that by smashing it (making into the Top 150 PLAN Brokers). We talk about her passion to pass on her knowledge and experience by being an Accountability Coach.

Turkish coffee refers to the special brewing method. Turkish coffee is made unfiltered with finely ground coffee beans (so fine that they resemble the texture of cocoa powder). The ground beans are boiled with sugar and cardamom in a special pot called a cezve or ibrik - We also talk about how you can use a Deposit Bond as part of a home purchase process.