The Financial Wholesaler Podcast Episode 8: Decide. Commit. Become.
In Episode 8 of The Financial Wholesaler Podcast, Mitch Santala and Darren Cde Baca’s unpack a proven growth formula for financial wholesalers: Decide. Commit. Become. Instead of focusing on sales tactics, Darren breaks down how bold goals begin with the right mindset, gain traction through disciplined habit sets, and turn into measurable results through persistence. The conversation challenges wholesalers to embrace discomfort, build new routines, and recognize that sustained performance is the outcome of intentional decisions repeated over time.
You’ll learn to:
Decide with a growth mindset, a clear purpose, and present focused “I am” language
Commit with a strategy, calendar based actions, and a persistence trigger for distractions
Become by celebrating wins, making adjustments, and evolving toward a bigger goal
If you are ready to stop repeating the same year and start building measurable momentum, this episode will help you decide boldly, commit intentionally, and become the wholesaler who reaches the next standard.
Watch now and take the next step forward!
Episode Timestamps: Decide. Commit. Become.
0:20 – Introduction: Mitch introduces Darren and the Decide. Commit. Become. framework.
1:07 – The Framework Overview: Three segments, three elements each, built around bold goals.
1:45 – Defining a Bold Goal: Discomfort as the first signal you are thinking bigger.
2:10 – Growth vs Fixed Mindset: Progressive thinking versus obstacle thinking.
3:13 – Are You Playing Small?: How wholesalers can self assess their mindset.
3:48 – Bold Goal Examples: Doubling production, top 5 percent, private wealth focus.
5:04 – Breaking a Plateau: The value of mentorship and outside perspective.
5:29 – The Three Rs: Reassess, Restate, Reactivate.
6:16 – Purpose as Fuel: Why bold goals require a meaningful personal why.
7:11 – Pain vs Sacrifice: Intrinsic motivation sustains discipline.
8:47 – Borrowed vs Personal Purpose: Defining success for yourself.
9:53 – Present Focus: Why future and past language weaken accountability.
10:45 – The “I Am” Shift: Present tense rewires performance thinking.
13:25 – Applying “I Am” in Wholesaling: Daily accountability in action.
14:38 – Decide Summary: Growth mindset, purpose, present focus.
15:16 – Commit Begins: Moving from mindset to habit set.
16:00 – Strategy, Actions, Persistence: The three elements of commitment.
17:00 – Mount Everest Metaphor: Breaking big goals into base camps.
18:40 – Doubling Production Example: Turning vision into measurable steps.
19:18 – Monthly and Weekly Targets: Strategy backed by daily action.
20:23 – Why Goals Fail: No strategy, no consistent action.
21:06 – Ownership and Risk: The courage to define measurable goals.
22:49 – Become: Enjoying earned results and fulfillment.
23:45 – Rinse and Evolve: Elevate success instead of repeating it.
24:53 – Celebrate Wins: Pause, recharge, and upgrade.
26:31 – Adjust, Don’t Excuse: Refine strategy after setbacks.
28:01 – Team Application: Internal sales desk example.
29:50 – Control What You Can: Coaching through discouragement.
32:57 – The 5 to 10 Percent: Who truly adopts a performance mind map.
34:03 – Specificity and Momentum: Why smaller defined steps build energy.
36:32 – Closing: Decide. Commit. Become. as a repeatable performance system.
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The Financial Wholesaler Podcast
Episode 8: Decide. Commit. Become.
Mitch:
Before we jump in, I want to pause for just a moment and ask for your help. We are several episodes into this podcast, and we continue to hear from wholesalers across the country who are striving to elevate their meetings and their performance. We are grateful you are here.
Today’s episode is about something foundational. Not tactics. Not scripts. Not territory mapping. We are talking about mindset. About the internal wiring that determines whether goals stay ideas or become realities.
I am joined again by Darren Cde Baca, and we are unpacking a framework he has refined over decades in the field: Decide. Commit. Become.
Darren, welcome back.
Darren:
Thanks, Mitch. Always good to be here.
This framework is about rewiring how we think. Most wholesalers are looking for another module, another technique, another script. But if the mind is not aligned, none of that matters.
If your mind is in it, game on.
If it is not, it does not matter how good your strategy is.
Mitch:
You talk about rewiring. What do you mean by that?
Darren:
Rewiring means shifting from reacting to circumstances to owning the internal narrative.
Life throws distractions at us constantly. Markets shift. Advisors cancel meetings. Internal expectations change. If your mindset is not disciplined, you start negotiating with yourself.
So the first step is Decide.
And Decide is not casual. Decide is bold.
Mitch:
What makes a goal bold?
Darren:
Look at what the average is willing to say out loud. That is your baseline.
If your goal sounds like everyone else’s, it is probably safe.
Doubling your production in six months.
Becoming top five percent at your firm.
Building a private wealth village where most of your business comes from elite teams.Those statements feel uncomfortable because they are not average.
That discomfort is a signal you are thinking bigger.
Mitch:
So discomfort is part of the process.
Darren:
Absolutely.
Most people want growth without discomfort. It does not work that way.
The Decide phase includes three elements: a growth mindset, a genuine purpose, and present focus.
Mitch:
Let’s unpack purpose. There are a lot of voices telling us what our purpose should be.
Darren:
Exactly.
Your firm has targets. Your manager has expectations. The industry defines success for you.
There is nothing wrong with external expectations. But there is work you can only do alone. You have to sit long enough to ask yourself: What do I want? What is my purpose?
When your purpose is deep and personal, you are willing to pay a bigger price in discipline and effort.
That is where bold goals become sustainable.
Mitch:
And present focus?
Darren:
We weaken ourselves when we live in the future or the past.
“I will be disciplined.”
“I used to be consistent.”That language does not create accountability.
“I am disciplined.”
“I am building a top five percent business.”Present language wires the brain differently. It creates ownership.
Mitch:
Alright. So once you Decide, what does Commit look like?
Darren:
Commit is where strategy and action live.
A bold goal without strategy is fantasy.
Take the Mount Everest example. If your goal is to double production, that is the summit.
But you cannot stare at the summit every day. You break it down.
What is the monthly strategy?
What are the weekly actions?
What are the daily disciplines?Then you add persistence.
Mitch:
You often say, do not make excuses, make adjustments.
Darren:
Correct.
Excuses protect the ego. Adjustments improve performance.
If a strategy is not working, you refine it. You reassess. You restate. You reactivate.
That is how momentum builds.
Mitch:
And then we get to Become.
Darren:
Become is about fulfillment.
When you reach a goal and feel that success, enjoy it. You earned it. No one else did the work for you.
But do not rinse and repeat.
Rinse and evolve.
Take the same Decide and Commit framework and replay it at a higher level for a larger goal.
You manage your own franchise. It is your decision how big it becomes.
Mitch:
You shared an example of working with an internal sales desk.
Darren:
Yes.
We defined a bold goal as a team. We clarified purpose. We examined how they were talking to themselves and their external partners every day.
We aligned strategy and accountability. We built in persistence.
They started stacking wins. They felt fulfillment. And then they were ready for something bolder.
That is how it works.
Mitch:
You also mentioned that only a small percentage truly operate this way.
Darren:
Five to ten percent.
Most people say they want bold goals. Few rewire their thinking to support them.
The ones who do separate themselves.
Mitch:
As we close, what do you want wholesalers walking away with?
Darren:
Own your franchise.
Decide with boldness.
Commit with discipline.
Become through earned fulfillment.Then evolve.
Mitch:
Decide. Commit. Become.
Thank you, Darren.
For those listening, revisit the framework. Identify your bold goal. Examine your purpose. Define your strategy. And elevate the standard.
Welcome to The Financial Wholesaler Podcast, conversations about meetings that matter.
Meet the Coaches
Mitch Santala
Mitch Santala is the CEO and co-founder of ESA with over 30 years of entrepreneurial leadership. ESA supports over 500 sales men and women in the financial industry with world class appointment setting services.
Darren Cde Baca
As the founder of DCB Strategies, Darren Cde Baca brings over 40 years of leadership experience to help professionals grow with intention. His mission is to equip individuals and teams with the mindset, tools, and commitment to become who they’re meant to be.
