Once a month, we host a four hour event called Spring to Success. Because the ultimate product we have to build is trust. Do your want to maximize your visability? Do you want a digital presence that says you are open for business? Do you want to maximize your ROI on your lead spend? Start with Sprint to Success. I will be running the next session on Friday, August 14 from 1pm to 5pm Eastern. The cost will be $995. The recordings of the course will be available in the Skool Classroom. If you have done 2 or more years of over $3mm of annuity production, this spring is not for your. This is for those looking to become MDRT eligible folks but need the trust factor. Who wants in?

I have completed the training on the One Pager in the Classroom. We will be offering this as part of the "The 21 Step Process from Lead to Super Fan™," a core training in "The 12 Week Breakthrough™ to agents as they come into the community. For current members of the 1.oak Collective, this training will be available for $49 (representing the number of years I have been alive but the price will go up on my Birthday--follow the countdown on LinkedIn); a ridiculous discount to quality and value it can provide. And, if you close a case in the next 60 days using the One Pager, email ermelis@1oaksupport.com and we give you the "prompt sheet for better results" PDF. And, I will hold a one time meeting on building One Pagers on Tuesday, July 28 at 7pm Eastern time. Do you want those details?

It's the end of the week folks. What Worked this week? What didn't? Did anyone use a One Pager? How did it go! In the last few hours of the work week, go get yourself a couple of wins before a summer weekend comes upon us: 1. Make a few more calls to get one more appointment next week. 2. Send Five emails out to people in your pipeline and tell them what you are working on or one thing you heard this week that can help them. The goal of the emails is to get a response in the next 48 hours. 3. Send 20 Connection requests on LinkedIn. Try this. Set a timer on your phone for five minutes for each task. Fifteen minutes total. Report your results in the comments.

As this community grows and individuals take the One Pager Training, I'd like the community to share what AI Notetaker they are using and why. In the training, I give the recommendation on what I use. My solution may not be your solution. So what AI Notetaking tools are you using for meetings. Share below. And give specific details like the tool, the cost, how accurate you feel it is and maybe share a tool or two you used that did not work for you. Bonus: If you want more details on AI also, look for the 1.Collective Podcast Conversation with Matt Halloran. We will be due to update that conversation in the third quarter. If you could as a Chief Evangelist of one of the largest Financial Pro AI softwares a question, what would it be?

Thought I'd share a quick recap. Nothing groundbreaking, just trying to stack good days together of small wins. This week I: - Closed a long-term nurture from last year. My client recently turned 59½ and was finally ready to move out of the G Fund into a strategy that better aligns with his retirement income goals. A great reminder that patience, organized asset under influence tracking, and consistent follow-up pay off. - Helped replace an underperforming annuity with a solution that was a better fit for the client's current objectives. - Completed 8 strategy calls, ranging from helping a 40-year-old think through investing for the future to retirement-focused conversations with people looking for a more structured planning process. - Completed 6 planning meetings, including one client with about $100k spread across a TSP, life insurance, and inherited funds. We organized everything into a clear plan, and she's excited for her solution meeting next week. - Completed 6 solution meetings, opened 3 Roth IRAs, and advanced another G Fund conversation toward implementation that should wrap up early next week. - Had a great conversation with a prospective client preparing to sell a condo. We talked through how to intentionally position the proceeds before the sale so the money has a purpose instead of sitting idle while decisions are made later. - Worked with another client on tax-reduction strategies, helping them see how tax planning fits into the bigger retirement picture, not just the investment side. - Not every metric was a win: I also had 10 no-shows, along with the usual ghosting and "unsubscribe" messages. That's part of this business. You can't control who shows up, you can only control your preparation, your follow-up, and how consistently you keep showing up. One thing I've been intentional about lately is doing whatever the week requires. That meant a couple of late evenings preparing for meetings, reviewing recommendations, and getting applications submitted quickly. Clients may never see those hours, but they absolutely feel the difference when meetings are well prepared and follow-through is prompt.