About

I’m Michael Wignall, and I’ve spent more than 30 years in banking and home lending across the ACT, Illawarra, and Riverina regions of New South Wales. This site is where I write down what I’ve actually learned along the way — about sales, coaching, leadership, and the property market — rather than the recycled advice you’ll find everywhere else.

Three Decades on Both Sides of the Table

I started as a branch manager in Tumut in 2000, and since then I’ve worked nearly every seat in the lending business: relationship manager, sales and governance manager, home loan capability manager, specialist sales manager, and now leading a team of home lenders across three regions. I’ve helped first-home buyers get across the line, kept agents’ settlements on track, and structured finance for investors that actually holds up when the bank asks the hard questions.

That range matters. Most content about sales or property investment is written by someone who’s only ever seen one side of the deal. I’ve seen the buyer’s nerves, the agent’s timeline pressure, and the credit team’s fine print — often all in the same afternoon.

The “True Needs” Approach

Over the years I’ve developed and taught what I call the “True Needs” approach — looking past the headline interest rate to the actual financial driver behind a deal. It’s the difference between an approval and a decline when things get complicated, and it’s the same principle I bring to how I write about coaching and leadership on this site: the surface-level advice rarely holds up under real pressure, so I try to write about what actually does.

I also spend a fair amount of time mentoring lenders directly — helping them build the coaching, digital, and prospecting skills that turn a tough regional market into an edge rather than an excuse.

Why This Site Exists

Random Thoughts Whilst Working started as exactly that — a place to put down the ideas that come up over a career spent in meetings, on settlement calls, and coaching teams through regional markets that don’t always behave the way the capital-city commentary assumes they will. It’s grown into a broader look at sales, leadership, coaching, and property, written from the perspective of someone who’s had to make these ideas work in practice, not just in theory.

Outside of lending, I’m also a keen photographer — you’ll occasionally see that show up here too.

If you want to get in touch, you can find me on LinkedIn.