Debt collection is not career that gets a lot of attention. Nonetheless, debt collection is a much-needed service. The most successful in the industry can make a good living tracking down debtors and getting them to pay. If you have what it takes, you could start and build your own debt collection agency from the ground up.
Just like any other profession, debt collection requires a certain amount of knowledge and skill. But it also requires some inherent qualities that you cannot learn in a classroom. They are either innate to your character or are learned on the job.
Are you intrigued? If so, here is what it takes to succeed as a debt collector:
A Curious Nature
It is no secret that debtors can go to great lengths to avoid paying. According to Salt Lake City’s Judgment Collectors, avoidance is a big problem when it comes to enforcing civil judgments. In order to get around avoidance tactics, you have to be willing to dig. And to be a good digger, you have to be curious.
A person with a curious nature doesn’t walk by a rock and ignore it. He bends over and looks under it. Debt collectors do this all the time. The best are immensely curious. They are curious enough to poke around anywhere they find an opening, knowing that their curiosity will eventually pay off.
Initiative and Creativity
Curiosity represents just the start of a debt collector’s research. Once curiosity is peaked, initiative and creativity come into play. Debt collectors need the initiative to start digging around where other people are unwilling to dig. Creativity helps them uncover details others have missed.
A Willingness to Persevere
Even the most curious, motivated, and creative debt collectors do not resolve cases overnight. Collection takes time. In the case of unpaid judgments, people willing to avoid paying long enough to be sued are often willing to continue their avoidance tactics for years. Therefore, debt collectors have to be willing to persevere. They have to be willing to keep at it until they succeed, no matter how long it takes.
Control of One’s Emotions
The biggest enemy to debt collection is allowing the emotions to get in the way. It is easy to get frustrated and angry with a debtor who refuses to cooperate. But if a debt collector lets their emotions take over, they are likely to make mistakes. Success requires keeping emotions under control. It requires doing everything logically, thoughtfully, and with a clear head.
Technology Know-How
In the modern world, technology plays a key role in debt collection. To succeed in the debt collection industry, one has to have at least a basic aptitude for technology. Debt collectors have to know how to use the internet and scour social media. They have to know how to glean data from databases. They have to know how to communicate electronically.
A Basic Understanding of the Law
Finally, one must have a basic understanding of the law to succeed as a debt collector. The fact is that state and federal laws dictate what debt collectors can and cannot do to resolve their cases. Moreover, state laws can vary quite a bit. It is important that debt collectors be familiar with the laws in each state in which they operate so that they don’t run afoul of them.
For right or wrong, debt collection is a profitable business. It can make for a very rewarding career if you are the type of person who enjoys solving puzzles and meeting challenges. Do you have the right stuff to be a debt collector?
