Success Comes From Outside The Comfort Zone

Kate Amor believes risking failure is invigorating and gets you noticed

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Chief Growth Officer

Kate Amor is an executive in charge of product development for Finance of America Mortgage. She started in the mortgage business right out of college, where she obtained degrees in Economics and Business Administration and has held various roles in the industry until landing in her current position developing new products.

“You must do the things you think you cannot do.”
– Eleanor Roosevelt

Kate, please tell us about your beginnings in the mortgage industry. Where did it all start?

KA: My journey in the industry started right out of college in 2007. I took a position as a loan officer in a call center. I took a three-week mortgage boot camp course before they set me free on the sales floor. Within another month, I had the second highest sales numbers in the company.

Not long after, the industry crash happened, and I found myself having to work several jobs to pay the bills. My husband was in law school, and we had just relocated to Cincinnati, Ohio, so I needed to find something stable quickly. I ended up at Fifth Third bank in 2008 where I developed a strong industry network that allowed me to take the next steps in my career. I held roles in consumer direct underwriting management, followed by enterprise risk and credit management, and then product development.

I spent eight years at Fifth Third moving up in the organization, taking on leadership roles including managing people, which allowed me to develop as a leader. It was then that I was in the right place at the right time and I found the role that I was passionate about and still am. When Finance of America offered me an opportunity to build a product organization from the ground up, I leapt at the chance and have never looked back.

Product development allows me to be challenged and creative at the same time. There is nothing more exciting to me than the launch of a new product and Finance of America is at the forefront of developing new products. Developing people, creating new products and innovative businesses is where I was always meant to be and it feels great!

Do you think trying out different roles is an important part of developing a successful career? How would you advise people to make the most of opportunities they may come across?

KA: Trying out different roles while building a career is critically important because it gives you exposure and perspective that allows you to grow.

One of my philosophies has always been that you must step outside your comfort zone and try new things to grow and evolve. Doing that in your career is more than important — it is vital.

Challenging yourself and being willing to step out of where you feel comfortable and safe will open doors and give you opportunities you might otherwise ignore or miss altogether. This is even more important for women in business to understand. Being willing to risk a failure and feeling afraid is invigorating; it also lets you learn, grow, and get noticed. When you take on a new task and see it through despite any personal doubts, it also builds inner strength.

Job descriptions are often aspirational. As a person in charge of hiring, I have hired people who may not have met every requirement in the description, but were enthusiastic, persistent, and showed me that they were willing to learn. That kind of positive, confident energy can have a big impact on a person looking to hire for a role even if the résumé does not have every box checked.

Raise your hand and take on new opportunities, especially if they push you outside your comfort zone. You may be pleasantly surprised at what you are capable of if you just step up and try.

How important is it to stay curious as you work your way up in your chosen career?

KA: Curiosity is so important in all aspects of life. It is what keeps us striving and moving forward. When you stop being curious about things in the world around you, you lose your ability to grow and evolve. I think human beings are naturally curious and it is one of the things that has driven our ingenuity and innovation from the beginning.

If you aren’t continually learning and asking questions you will become stuck, or worse, irrelevant. Life and work move quickly, and being actively involved in both means always looking around you and asking, “Why?“

When presented with an issue, ask is there a better way to do something? What technology can solve that problem? Why am I doing things this way and how can I solve this problem another way?

Curiosity is what keeps us living with purpose and zeal. We adapt because we learn, and we learn because we ask why. The people who ask the most questions seem to be the ones who get the most notice and don’t miss opportunities when they present themselves. Curiosity is vital to a successful life and career.

Kate, what does the term “trailblazer” mean to you? How does it feel to be a trailblazer?

KA: Every single person has an inner trailblazer just waiting to be set free.

To me, a trailblazer is someone who follows their inner compass and recognizes the worth they bring to any task. They challenge the status quo and move boldly forward even if the path ahead seems obscured or their confidence might be wavering a bit.

The most innovative and progressive individuals are the ones who follow their own North Star and work toward producing what they believe to be products and services that their customers want and need based on their research and good solid strategy. While it’s important to understand industry trends, trailblazers do not waste energy watching and trying to emulate or outsmart the company next door. They trust their intuition and act accordingly.

One example is how so many companies felt that remote work just wasn’t possible. Many thought it wouldn’t work so they gave up on it before even getting started. My response to this limiting mindset was: OK, what do we need to do to make remote work a reality? How can we build and foster a culture that is sustainable and productive with employees working from home or in different geographic locations?

A trailblazer has a mindset that says, “How can this be done?” instead of “That can’t be done.” They are willing to make the decisions that move us forward rather than waiting to see others succeed or fail.

Let’s build on that example. What recommendations would you give to keep a remote working business culture vibrant and engaging? What changes have you seen with remote work?

KA: Remote working is now the new normal for many of us. So, for managers and people who are leaders, it behooves us to make sure we keep things fresh, engaging, and creative even when we are not all in the same physical space.

Developing people, creating new products and innovative businesses is where I was always meant to be and it feels great!

First and foremost, I believe it is important to make sure everyone on the remote team is on the same page. It is critical to set firm boundaries and to respect everyone’s time.

I have set expectations for my team regarding flex time, core business hours, what their office space should be like, and what type of technology is necessary to make sure work time is productive time.

Making sure everyone is on board with the boundaries and expectations makes it much easier to have the team working efficiently and all members feeling respected and valued.

We have an employee engagement committee that sponsors activities to foster teamwork and a good workplace culture even from afar. Everyone on the team takes a turn at setting up and running events and it makes everyone feel included and that they have a role to play. Having people rotate responsibilities keeps it fresh and the team engaged and energized.

One of the things I swear by and that was taught to me by more than one of my mentors as I was building my career is to never manage by email. Email is simply a way to cover yourself and create a paper trail and should never be a substitution for important communication. Ask yourself how much time is wasted by employees waiting on responses to emails before proceeding with important tasks?

I coach my leaders to follow up with a different type of contact just like you would if you were in the office. Sending an email is fine, but if a response does not occur within a short window of time, follow up in a more instantaneous manner. We have all these communication tools at our disposal, and we need to use them efficiently.

This is even more important when we are working at a distance. When you can’t simply walk over to someone’s desk and ask if they have had a look at your email, a different method of eliciting a timely response is not only available but needs to be used.

Remote work has come a long way due to the pandemic making it a necessity in most professions. I also believe that it presents an opportunity to increase engagement and productivity when done with purpose.

One of the benefits about working remotely is the time that would be ultimately wasted on things like a commute or figuring out what to wear to the office is significantly reduced. Remote work has freed us from those relatively unimportant tasks and given us more time for creativity and productivity.

One of my time-saving tricks is I bought several of the same simple — yet professional — shirts for all my online meetings. I don’t waste time wondering what to wear when I have an important meeting. It is a freeing feeling to leave that worry behind.

Kate, please tell us where you see yourself and other women in our industry going in the next five years? What does that landscape look like?

KA: I think this is an amazing time to be a woman in this business. The entire paradigm of how we view ourselves and our professional roles is shifting. It is an exciting time for women to have a seat at the table and really let our lights shine. There are many studies indicating that the more diversity we have in our organizations, the more successful we are.

More awareness creates more opportunity. For women who are willing to step up, raise their hands, and say, “Take a look at what I can do,” the possibilities are truly endless.

I see only more growth and diversity in the years to come. Women are taking their rightful places at the executive table and in all roles in our industry. It is a joy to watch that unfold. I see a landscape that includes women in every level of organizations being recognized for the talent, drive, and creativity they bring to their professions.

Challenging yourself and being willing to step up and out of where you feel comfortable and safe is something that will open doors and give you opportunities you might otherwise ignore or miss altogether.

What would be your advice to young women just starting out in their careers in the mortgage industry? What would you like them to know based on your experience?

KA: I want the young women starting out today to do things that push them far outside of their comfort zones. To spread their wings and believe they can fly even if they have never tried before. Taking that leap, even if it terrifies them at first, will build confidence, grit and resilience that will carry them further than they can imagine.

So many women don’t apply for that great job, or step forward to run a project or whatever the opportunity is because they are afraid and don’t believe in themselves. I say, “Do it anyway.”

It is worth every drop of sweat and every shaky moment just to prove to yourself that you are worthy, capable, and tough enough to rise to the challenge.

Every step in this direction is another opportunity to build resilience and that resilience is confidence. Confidence that comes with facing your fears and realizing that you are worthy of that promotion or new role or whatever it is you want for yourself.

Don’t allow negative thinking to stop you or be the reason you opt out of something that you are passionate about. Choose to be brave and allow yourself the luxury of confidence and strength. Visualize where you want to go, and the road will appear before you in the form of new challenges to be met.

And what is your opinion about mentors in a career? Do you think they are important?

KA: I think mentorship is a huge component of building a career, especially when just starting out. Finding the right person to support you and push you through the difficult times when you feel like you want to stop or turn away from an opportunity is of inestimable value.

Confidence and resilience can come from within if you have the right person drawing it out of you with advice, hard-earned wisdom and experience. I would even advise finding more than one mentor if you can. Experience and differing points of view are critical to developing and growing into your profession in a successful and healthy way.

When Finance of America offered me an opportunity to build a product organization from the ground up, I leapt at the chance and have never looked back.

What do you like to do outside of work?

KA: My husband and I enjoy renovating and restoring historic homes. We own several property investment companies and we find historic homes, purchase them and renovate and rejuvenate them.

I also like to spend time on myself, so I practice meditation, journaling, and gratitude. I believe in working on myself regularly to become the best version of myself I can possibly be.

One of the keys to my success has been recognizing and working on developing my best self through a positive mindset and choosing to see myself as the author of my own destiny and not a victim of any set of circumstances.

Kate, where did your positive mindset really get started? What made you change your outlook?

KA: I have always been into self-improvement projects and am naturally curious. My goal is to continually evolve, investigate myself and find new and better ways of doing things.

During this journey, I’ve discovered that I have a light within me that needs to shine outwards. It is my authentic self, and it is more than worthy of being seen by the world. It offers hope and hopefully, provides inspiration to others around me.

When we spend more time looking inward for answers rather than worrying about what others think, or comparing ourselves to others, we begin to know who we truly are. A positive attitude follows naturally from knowing your own capabilities and strengths. Having a strong support network is important; however we also need to allow ourselves to get to a place where we can be introspective to solve issues and recognize our ability to be a light and a leader.

If you want to be a leader, trailblazer, or a beacon of light to others, your first task is to work on yourself and be the best and most authentic “you” possible. When that has happened, you can begin to show others how to find that best version of themselves. You have an obligation to do that inner work and transcend your own issues before picking up the mantle for others and giving them the support they need to follow your example.