Auto Repair Shop Owners Need a Plan

Need a Plan by Rick White, President 180BIZ

I'm going to ask you a really simple question. What's the plan? That's right. What's the plan? Dwight D. Eisenhower once said, “Plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.” You must have a plan. Set your intentions for where you're going in the coming week, the coming month, the coming year. We’re almost halfway through 2020. Don't let this year just flushed down the toilet. If you do, that's on you. That's your choice. You have an opportunity for an amazing rest of the year. What are you going to do in the next six months to create that year? What are you going to do in the next six months as an opportunity to grow 2021? Use these last six months as a springboard for amazing results now and growing through 2021.

Everything that's been going on this year has been like a one-two punch. Hasn't it? Between the Coronavirus and the shutdown. And then the racial tensions and stuff like that. And my heart goes out to everybody. I'm not going to get into that, but what I'm saying is from a business perspective, this has in some areas really hurt us.  But within that hurt, within that slow down, whatever it is, has given us an opportunity to learn, to grow, to get better.

So now my question is, what's the plan? What's the plan for this week? What's the plan for today? I know you set a plan out and all of a sudden, the plan hits the day and it just unravels sometimes. But the plan does a couple of things. The plan creates intention. In other words, because you know where you want to go you start to create a plan to get there.

Don’t get so hung up on the plan that you miss the destination. Create that plan for the week. Plan for who's going to do what and what are you going to achieve? How many cars do you need? What do your hours per RO need to be? How are you going to get there? What are the things you're going to do to create that plan, to create that destination? If you don't have a plan, it's like getting in your car in the morning and not knowing where you want to go. When you don't have a destination, any place will do.  Instead of bitching about where you are today, tomorrow, next week, next month, start to create a plan. That's going to help you get to where you want to go.

If you need help with this reach out, I am here to help and serve. I have plans for the week, not just to get up and do the same thing. You can't build a business when you're ambivalent, when you're burned out, when you're not excited. Just coasting through is not a growth strategy. You must get tapped into what excites you. Why did you start the business? Who are you serving? What do you get out of it? These are things that should excite you about the potential, about the opportunity. There is opportunity laying all around you. Do you have the eyes to see it? I'm telling you the planning helps.

Yes. I know you hit the day and some of the things go South and that's okay. Because at the end of the day, you're going to be a little bit closer. You're going to be a little bit closer to where you want to go. So I hope this has really helped. This will make a difference. Share your plan here. It doesn't mean it's going to be perfect, but you have the destination that’s all your own.

So, I want to wish you a great week. I want you to go out and make some money, make a difference. Thank you so much. Take care. And God bless.