Mindset Before the Meeting: 5 Tools for Financial Wholesalers
What if the key to changing your behavior - and creating your future success - had nothing to do with willpower or discipline? What if it came down to how you thought?
ESA CEO Mitch Santala sat down with DCB Strategies’ CEO Darren Cde Baca in this month’s episode of The Financial Wholesaler Podcast to dive into the power of mindsets and habit-sets. With four decades of financial industry experience, Darren drove home a truth too many ignore: your thoughts direct your actions and your actions create your future.
The conversation kicked off with self-talk, highlighting simple but powerful shifts in how you talk to yourself—speaking in the present tense and using short, decisive phrases. Change how you speak to yourself, and you change how your mind interprets challenges and opportunities.
According to Darren, there is a three-stage progression of deciding, committing, and becoming that leads to better-defined goals and clearer pathways. Relationships flourish under the guidance of these steps because, "If you have the right thoughts, you're going to parlay yourself into the right actions."
And that brought the discussion back to habits. Remember, “effort will only get you so far.” Strong professional habits remove the guesswork from your day by turning the essentials into second nature. When you no longer have to stop and rethink what comes next, you free up energy to focus on higher-value work. The result? Efficiency and effectiveness become two of your greatest assets - and daily consistency sets the stage for lasting success.
Ultimately, the decide–commit–become framework and the habits that sustain it all point toward one outcome: greater impact where it counts. When your mindset is clear, your commitments are steady, and your habits carry you forward without wasted effort, you step into every interaction with focus and purpose. That’s what creates meetings that matter—conversations where you show up prepared, intentional, and fully present, driving stronger connections and more meaningful results.
Want to hear the rest of Darren’s insights? Listen to the full episode of The Financial Wholesaler Podcast. Available now on Apple, Spotify, and YouTube.
