Fox alumnus Stanley C. Middleman:

Embrace ‘everything you are learning’

Stanley “Stan” C. Middleman, BS ’76, founder, president and chief executive officer of Freedom Mortgage and vice chairman of the Philadelphia Phillies, visited the Fox School of Business in conjunction with the release of his biography, “Seeing Around Corners.”

Stanley C. Middleman, FOX ’76, can still recall one of the most impactful experiences he had while attending Temple University’s Fox School of Business: getting his first real job in finance.  

“I had a finance professor who was kind enough to get me an interview for the overnight shift at a local bank processing checks,” Middleman says.  

“To this day, I still don’t quite know if he was doing me a favor or not by helping me get a shift from 12 a.m. to 7 a.m.,” he says. “But regardless, I was happy to do it.”  

Nearly four decades later, that opportunity proved to be important.   

In an hour-long conversation in Alter Hall, Middleman addressed a variety of topics with students in attendance: the background on his biography, advice for the next generation of business leaders and the importance of fully grasping your collegiate experience.  

“A huge contributor to my success has been the ability to be prepared for what might be happening next,” Middleman says. “Being prepared for your future can be done by learning ‘how to learn’ now—consider how everything you are learning could one day be impactful beyond the classroom.”  

An alumnus of the Fox School, Middleman is a nationally recognized industry titan, business strategist, investor and philanthropist with over 40 years of experience in the mortgage banking industry. His company, Freedom Mortgage, has become one of the top mortgage lenders in the United States since its inception in 1990 and has been named to the “Inc 5000” list multiple times

During his talk, Middleman offered two specific pillars of advice to young entrepreneurs: the importance of formulating a strategic plan and the necessity of becoming comfortable with welcoming failure. 

“To me, the formula of finding success starts with the idea of having a new point of view, which helps lead you to a plan, then you need to act on that plan, and while you’re acting on that plan, you prepare yourself for things that might go wrong,” Middleman says. 

“If you cannot fail, you cannot succeed—that is fundamental truth to me, but if you follow that formula, your likelihood of success goes up immeasurable because you are doing things with a formulated purpose.”

Middleman’s return to Fox was coordinated in part by James Hansen, assistant dean of development and alumni affairs.  

“Stan is one of our most successful and accomplished members of our Fox alumni community,” Hansen says. “We are so thankful to him for offering us some of his very valuable time and incredible business insights to our community and students. 

“Our commitment at Fox is to cultivate the next generation of business leaders and pioneers—events like this are meant to inspire our students and showcase that commitment.” 

Previously a recipient of the Fox Corporate and Centennial awards, Middleman has been a stout source of inspiration to the Temple and Fox community.  

“There’s a lot that goes into pursuing success, but confidence is incredibly crucial,” Middleman says. “Success to me has always been the sum of small wins, and the culmination of those is what is going to give you that confidence. 

“Once you have that confidence, the whole world opens up to you, and if you don’t believe in yourself, who will?”

Q&A with Fox alum

Stanley C. Middleman

Since graduating from Temple University’s Fox School of Business, Stanley C. Middleman, BS ’76, has become a nationally recognized leader within the mortgage banking industry with over 40 years of experience. Under his leadership as founder, president and chief executive officer, his company, Freedom Mortgage, has remained as one of the top mortgage lenders in the United States since its inception in 1990.  

Middleman returned to Fox for an inspiring conversation with students and Dean Chip Hunter and to share his new biography, “Seeing Around Corners.” In addition to the event, Middleman offered additional thoughts on how to get the most out of your college experience, how the Fox School impacted his career path and how students can plan for the future. Learn more in this Q & A.

Photos by Joseph V. Labolito.

There are currently hundreds of students at Fox that are looking to forge their path to a successful professional career. In many ways, the act of vying for their place within the industry can seem like a stressful and competitive process. What advice can you offer to students about the importance of not getting overwhelmed and trusting in the hard work for the future they are setting up for themselves?

To me, I think it’s important to keep in mind that life is full of transitions. Just as the way you transitioned from high school to college, you will transition and find your path to success from college to your professional career. While it might seem daunting as you prepare for your careers beyond Temple, try to enjoy it, because I’ve found an important key to life is to always strive to learn and grow, and that is what you are all doing as students. Be patient and be kind to yourself—all your encounters, achievements and struggles are things you can truly learn from as you develop into the next chapters in the pursuit of your life’s ambitions.

Across the entirety of your professional career, what are the lessons that Fox has taught you that have remained engrained to you to this day? 

Fox helped me truly understand that change—whether it be changing classes, changing teachers, changing schedules—is inevitable. Understanding that concept is a very powerful key to self-fulfillment and driving the outcome of things. Additionally, I will always embrace how the school taught me to be focused on getting better and smarter every day. 

Why do you think the community at Temple, and even more specifically, community at Fox, is a place that can cultivate students to find themselves on a path to professional success? 

Learning to be a part of a community, particularly like the one at the Fox School where there are shared common interests and similar or shared goals, can create many wonderful opportunities for students that can prepare them for their careers ahead. Being in a campus community allows you to learn the importance of working with your fellow classmates to become a productive and contributing member of your shared environment—the relationships that can be built through those experiences can truly last a lifetime and will come back to help you across the length of your careers.