Mortgage Soup fires the questions at Aaron Clark, mortgage and protection adviser at Just Mortgages.

Mortgage Soup (MS): Before becoming a mortgage adviser, you spent six years in the police force. What role did you play and what drew you to policing?

Aaron Clark (AC): I was a police constable working as a response officer in the Medway region of Kent, dealing with 999 calls on a continuous basis and providing blue-light response. My job included everything involved in frontline policing and working in some really deprived areas. It was challenging, but it was hugely rewarding too.

It sounds cliché, but my motivation was to help people. My parents came from a background of financial services and have been really successful.

I was lucky to experience all different types of jobs growing up, but I wanted to do something that really gives back to the community.

MS: What led you to leave the force and explore mortgage advice?

AC: I was unfortunately injured while tackling a baddie on duty. It forced me to stop and really reassess my options. I spoke with friends and family and explored options that suited my skills.

I have a friend who has done very well for himself in this industry and he said there’s a lot of opportunity to do well financially, but also, get a good sense of job satisfaction. He moved from the police too so I definitely took advice from him.

I did some research online and came across the Just Mortgages Academy. I just thought, why not? I’ll apply and see what happens. The rest as they say is history.

MS: What are the parallels between being a policeman and a mortgage broker?

AC: There are so many transferrable skills. In both, you’re managing cases – hopefully with very different outcomes! You’re speaking regularly with people from different walks of life, managing often stressful situations.

Organisation is a necessity in the police and key to this job too. Fact finds are also critical – asking the right questions, gathering the right information and conducting proper due diligence.

There’s also the pressure involved too. Mortgage advice is high pressure in its own way – doing everything you can for the client and making sure they are given the best possible service.

You want to make sure you’re doing a good job. Handling that pressure is definitely a transferrable skill I’ve learned.

MS: With no prior mortgage experience, how did you find training from scratch?

AC: It’s been a big learning curve and very challenging but also really amazing. I’ve been very lucky because the company has given me a lot of support throughout the whole process. I think I would’ve crashed out if I hadn’t received such support. I met some great people on the academy too who have since become really good friends.

We were in safe hands with really experienced trainers who have been in the industry a long time. Each trainer had their own perspective and brought different training methods – with some covering processes, others looking more holistically and lots of real life case studies and role playing scenarios.

It was certainly an intense course, but it was well worth it and set me up massively for what was to come.

MS: How has your first year as an adviser been?

AC: The initial transition into an estate agency branch was daunting. The team were really welcoming and I quickly built up good relationships and learned a lot about the estate agency function.

I was given a buddy who I could speak to on a regular basis to discuss cases, as well as a development manager who would do a weekly catch up with us all where we could ask any questions, talk through cases and learn from each other.

My manager Sharman has been amazing too. She’s been the best manager I’ve ever had throughout my career.

Now, I’m writing mortgages in the double figures every month, which I’m really proud of. I’ve realised that consistency is a massive part – learning the process, following the process and sticking to it – even if you’re up to your eyeballs.

Keep doing the basics right and have that great initial meeting where the clients feels heard and all their needs are considered. Just Mortgages is very good at prioritising a holistic service.

That’s part of how I sell myself as an adviser and I think that’s where some of my success so far has come from.

One case that stays with me was a gentleman in his 40s who never thought it was possible to get a mortgage based on his salary. But, we talked through his options, understood what he wanted and ended up getting him a mortgage and his first house.

He was delighted and bought me a bottle of champagne as a thank you – which wasn’t necessary. Helping him achieve that life goal was more than enough reward.

MS: What are your ambitions moving forward?

AC: My next goal is to widen my knowledge on more niche parts of mortgage advice – such as portfolio investors or overseas investors – to deliver more specialist advice. The aim then would be to look at a senior mortgage adviser role which is a good goal.

MS: What would say to someone thinking of retraining or taking up a career as an adviser?

AC: I would say, just go for it. You have huge potential to do well, both financially and in terms of job satisfaction. For my ex-colleagues, there may be those more senior officers worried about their earnings initially, but with the right work ethic and support, you’ll do well for yourself and it’s a very rewarding job to do. It just takes a bit of a leap of faith.

It’s thankfully worked out really well for me – partly down to my own hard work, but also thanks to the support available.

My advice would be to apply for a company and structure that will help you to succeed and provides the support and training to do so. Don’t rule out hard work – plenty of that is needed too.