The Best Always Get Help

by Rick White, President 180BIZ                                                                (Estimated Read Time 4 minutes)

In this episode, I’ll talk about getting help. I want to spend some time on this topic of getting help to understand why we are where are and why are we in the position that we're in. There are probably a few different reasons and I want to touch on one of them now. It might just hit close to home.

One of the reasons shop owners can't find help is because the shop owner isn't excited about the shop. The shop owner isn’t excited about the potential. The shop owner isn't excited about adding another team member.

One trainer asked, “Rick, what are you doing in here?”

Years ago, I was doing some training. One of the other instructors came over at break time. It was a Sunday morning, and I was just finishing up the management training. The trainer came over and said to me, “Rick, what are you doing in here?” And I said, “What do you mean?” He says, “I’m in the room next to you. I can't hear what you're saying, but I hear your voice going up and down and loud and soft. It sounds like a Baptist Sunday service over here. What the heck are you doing?” I looked at him and smiled as I said, “I'm just training.” He said, “I can't believe how much energy you have.” And I said, “If I'm not excited about presenting the material, how am I ever going get the attendees excited about implementing it?”

Do you remember the first day you stuck the key in the door?

Do you remember the first day you stuck the key in the door, turned the key, and opened that door to your shop? All you saw was potential. You saw yourself taking over the world, taking over your market, making a difference in your lives and the lives of others around you. It was going to be amazing. Then over some time, maybe it's a week, a month, a year, 10 years, who knows. All of a sudden you don't see the potential anymore. You see the problems. Potential is tomorrow, problems are today.

You get so stuck in the problems that you can’t see your potential any longer.

You get so stuck in the problems that you can't see your potential any longer. Problems just grab you and drag you down. You begin to feel like this is all there is. This is all that will ever be.

But here's the sad part. Is the potential still there? Yes. Just like the first day you opened the shop when all you saw was potential.  Were problems there? Yes. The difference is your focus. Will you focus on potential and tell me what tomorrow will look like? Or are you focused on all the crap going on now and feeling like there's no way out? It's completely up to you.

If you don’t see the potential, your team won’t either.

If you don't see potential in your shop, your team won’t see it and your potential candidates won’t see it. A potential candidate wants a path. They want to feel like they joined a place to get further along.  As they grow, they’ll be worth more and be able to do more.   They want to work at a place that recognizes that and rewards that growth.

Are you ghosted after the first interview?

If all you're looking at are problems, and then when you are looking for help, you’ll be surprised when people ghost after the first interview. It’s because you didn’t infect them with your potential.  This is why we have a problem with help today.

The reality is most of us shop owners, me included, started as technicians. For me, it was being able to take control of my own life. I wanted to have a shop so that I wasn't at the whim of some guy that was thinking about closing the garage or turning it into a Dunkin Donuts or something like that.

I quit working for a jerk and I went to work for a complete lunatic.

I quit working for a jerk and I went to work for a complete lunatic. And that lunatic would be me. I didn't know what I was doing. Many shop owners, instead of getting the training like I did, instead of realizing they don’t know this stuff, instead of realizing they need to learn stuff, get stuck. You got yourself stuck in a rut and you're frustrated, but you feel like you should know how to do this and you don't.

It all starts with MINDSET.

It all starts with mindset. When I started coaching, I thought all I needed to do is teach clients a couple of strategies and how to read their numbers. Then everything would be great. Done.  I've been coaching shops for 20 years now, and most of the time I'm up here in the mindset helping people navigate fear, self-doubt, imposter syndrome, and lack of value. I am helping them to understand the incredible people that they are.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

Listen, it doesn't have to be this way. If you want to get people into your shop, the first thing to fix is to fix your potential. One of the saddest things I have ever heard or read is a shop owner telling a potential someone excited about coming into this industry, “Not to, don't bother, you can't make any money. It's a hassle. All it does is cost you money in training. It beats up your body.” blah, blah, blah. C’mon. We're better than that. This industry has so much potential. There are many shops knocking it out of the park. Isn't it time for yours to do the same?

Please, if this message resonated with you, will you share it? Let's help those other shop owners who have to look up to see the curb. Let’s help those who are broken, bitter, barren, and lifeless. We can fix

God bless. Stay safe, have some fun, and go make some money.

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