Don Dreiske is the Man!

You are probably asking yourself, "Who is the heck is Don Dreiske"? Well in the next 2 or 3 posts I am going to tell you. Today it will be about how I met him. Next, Don in business and lastly, Don personal life.

Don Dreiske is a self made man. More about that later. I had never heard of him in my life until I was introduced to him when I was a Mortgage Broker/Mortgage company owner. He was the owner of a few motels and the one he had in Norman, Oklahoma needed to be refinanced. He had his corporate headquarters in that Ramada Inn and was an up and coming hotel owner. I was looking for people who needed financing and he needed financing and we hit it off. We were and are very different people. He was getting rich, I wasn't. He was a self made businessman, I was trying to be. He was a highly knowledgeable hotel/motel person, I was not. He drove a BMW, I drove a Cougar.He was not well educated, I was. He walked the edge of envelope in everything, I did not like to be "out there".He was extremely business smart and I was a novice. He was mean and I was nice (or so I thought). I was a Christian, he was not. But we both had one thing in common. Nothing.

When I met him at his property, he bought me lunch. The restaurant (Kathie's after his wife Kathy) was exceptional. There was a real chef, outstanding food, it was very clean and it was very well run. We talked about his property and his plans for the future and what he needed in financing. We talked about family and cars, traveling and people, and financial information on the property. He was very open and very knowledgeable. As a Mortgage Broker, you are always trying to get the information you need for your package to send to prospective lenders and you are always fixated on having the client sign an agreement so that you get paid. I asked Don to sign the contract and he said we did not need one. He told me that as long as I was doing what I said, he would do what he said and for some reason I believed him. As a Mortgage Broker it is important to get them locked up in that you do not want others looking at the deal or the client talking to others while you are trying to make the deal. Don said he would not do that and he did not.

So here I go on the adventure of a lifetime. Just by meeting this one guy, it changed my life forever. Not as life changing as coming to know Jesus Christ as my savior or meeting my wife, but life changing nonetheless especially in the business sense. Little did I know what was in store for me in the future. It was an amazing partnership. We still talk today and a are good friends. If I ever needed anything, I would never hesitate to contact Don. And yes, I did arrange the requisite financing and yes I got paid. Most of the time you make sure that when the loan closes, your fee is on the closing statement. Don paid me before closing!

What do you think so far?