Subscribe
Share
Share
Embed
Power does not always come from pushing harder. Sometimes in life and in business, the smartest move is to slow down so you can move forward with control, clarity, and intention. Just like a great driver, growth means looking ahead, preparing for the climb, and knowing when it is time to change gears.
00:00:01.82
Aniz
I know, I'm horrible.
00:00:03.30
Tonnika Haynes
It's terrible.
00:00:04.79
Aniz
Terrible, I'm taking care of the customer.
00:00:05.25
Tonnika Haynes
Brian, Anise, Anise, Brian. I don't know if you guys know each other because like Brian's on the tickety-tock and Anise is on the face space.
00:00:11.67
Brian
Oh.
00:00:12.61
Aniz
um'm on I'm on every space.
00:00:14.30
Tonnika Haynes
You're on every space. But why you guys together? I chose to put you together last minute because um you have similar stories. So like last year was both of you guys' his first year at ASTA Expo.
00:00:24.18
Aniz
OK.
00:00:29.22
Aniz
Yep.
00:00:29.18
Tonnika Haynes
And um so I know that Brian entered entered the industry because you're a technician and now you just opened your own shop in July, right? Hey, you have these use words, Brian.
00:00:41.69
Brian
Yes, correct. I'm
00:00:46.33
Brian
working on it.
00:00:46.65
Tonnika Haynes
Okay, and then, Anise, I don't even know your background as much as we talk.
00:00:51.19
Aniz
So I've been at this for about 20 years now.
00:00:55.79
Tonnika Haynes
Oh.
00:00:56.76
Aniz
So started a business back in 2006.
00:00:59.45
Brian
Same as me. Give it to you.
00:01:02.74
Aniz
We had a car dealership, but even going before that, I was studying journalism broadcast, which obviously now it makes a little more sense.
00:01:11.48
Tonnika Haynes
Makes all the sense in the world.
00:01:14.84
Aniz
But back then, as funny as it sounds, there were no Indian people on the radio or on TV. Like it didn't exist in my area.
00:01:25.30
Tonnika Haynes
Okay.
00:01:26.30
Aniz
I was the only, as politically incorrect as it sounds, I was the only brown person in my school.
00:01:29.37
Brian
Thank
00:01:32.57
Aniz
So there was me and everyone else was everyone else. So I was really singled out. So trying to get into an industry where you feel so singled out and the pay was not really what i was kind of looking at. I did that for about a year And I just did not feel like that particular color industry was going to welcome me. Like I wanted to be welcome.
00:01:56.80
Aniz
It's not like the automotive industry. It's completely different.
00:01:59.53
Tonnika Haynes
Yeah.
00:01:59.67
Aniz
So basically i got a phone call from my dad. We were looking for a business and he said, well, there's a car lot for lease. You know check it out? said, sure. We went, we checked it out. We leased it in about 45 minutes.
00:02:12.57
Tonnika Haynes
That's what's up. So you've been doing this for a while, but so ASTA Expo last year was your first year.
00:02:15.84
Aniz
Yep.
00:02:16.82
Brian
this
00:02:18.90
Aniz
Yes, it was.
00:02:21.34
Tonnika Haynes
Same for you, Brian. Had either one of you guys been to a training like that before?
00:02:29.22
Aniz
I've never, no.
00:02:30.65
Tonnika Haynes
Never?
00:02:31.16
Brian
No, nothing I ever have.
00:02:32.98
Tonnika Haynes
Why do you think that is? I'm just curious.
00:02:38.58
Aniz
Brian, go ahead.
00:02:43.16
Tonnika Haynes
Tell the truth.
00:02:44.73
Brian
ah For me, I live in a small town and... Uh-oh, what'd I do?
00:02:52.50
Tonnika Haynes
Nothing.
00:02:54.14
Brian
I just never had that offered to me before.
00:02:58.55
Tonnika Haynes
Had you ever heard of it
00:03:02.07
Brian
I don't know if it's me. Not ASTA, not anything like that. I mean, other than and but the only thing that was ever offered to me is like community college. So...
00:03:12.57
Tonnika Haynes
So how did you hear about Expo?
00:03:12.98
Brian
I had outside of the shop I worked and I had no idea.
00:03:19.10
Brian
i heard of the expo because of Check Engine Chuck. he yeah He had kind of taken me under his wing and helped me realize there's a lot more to the world that not everything needs to be sent to the dealer.
00:03:31.64
Brian
ah now There was more that I was capable of doing, especially in the electrical diagnostic world. So he he basically called me one day and put me on the spot and said, do you know what ASTA is? And I said, no. And he gave me like a three minute crash course and then said, so do you want to go?
00:03:49.14
Brian
I said, well, it's not really something I can afford. He said, I didn't ask you if you could afford it. I asked if you could go. I'm like, ah he goes, ah you will go and I will bring you, but i I need to know right now.
00:04:00.15
Brian
I'm like, I need five minutes to call the wife and and see if this is something I can do. And that's kind of how I got there last year. i mean, I had to fund my way for travels and the hotel, which is no big deal, but getting there, getting signed up for classes and and just being a part of it was 100% because of him.
00:04:18.42
Tonnika Haynes
That's awesome. Now, so do you think that you you're going to do it again? You're going to do it again. I'm not asking you I'm telling you.
00:04:27.86
Brian
I am trying like heck.
00:04:28.95
Tonnika Haynes
I know you're saying just open the shop you don't know if you can leave the shop and whatever.
00:04:30.58
Brian
Okay.
00:04:32.43
Tonnika Haynes
But if anybody else was in your shoes right now, what would you tell them? Like.
00:04:36.17
Brian
It's not that I
00:04:37.30
Tonnika Haynes
Go ahead.
00:04:40.92
Brian
find a way, and which is exactly what I'm trying to do. And it's not that I'm worried about the shop being closed for three days or something like that. I can deal with that. um It's just opening a shop literally a month ago.
00:04:53.82
Brian
i took every penny I had to get this place up and running.
00:04:56.71
Tonnika Haynes
Yeah.
00:04:57.72
Brian
um And the shop is, it's working. it's it you don't just open busy. So ah if the shop has enough money in the account where I know I can fund this trip and not come back and start over broke again, I would definitely be doing this.
00:05:12.25
Brian
So.
00:05:12.68
Tonnika Haynes
Anise. So you came down and um I know that it was hard for you to get, no, I don't think it was hard for you to get away from the shop. It was hard for you to be away from your family.
00:05:24.28
Tonnika Haynes
um
00:05:25.18
Aniz
for me, yeah, it was hard to be away from the family. I've got a wonderful wife and I've got three very young kids. At that time, it was five five seven and one.
00:05:38.24
Aniz
So I've got young kids and my wife leaving the kids with my wife, it was hard to get help for them. So it was a struggle, but I, I just basically told myself there's, there's no way I can't go.
00:05:50.94
Brian
No one. i
00:05:53.74
Aniz
So I have to find a way because it's that important for me to make it to this training, which again, I didn't, I had no idea, but that ASDA existed until I,
00:06:05.50
Aniz
I hope you guys have heard of the Jada mechanic, some guy named Jeff.
00:06:07.99
Tonnika Haynes
ah Yeah, I think I heard something about some jaded guy, dude.
00:06:09.92
Aniz
Yeah. Some Jada guy. But I heard about it on his podcast randomly.
00:06:13.05
Tonnika Haynes
Yeah.
00:06:15.95
Aniz
And from there, I was hooked because when he was talking about it, I said, why have I not heard about it? First of all, again, I'm in Canada. So things work very differently here. But once I heard more about it and what it's all about and the way Jeff was talking about it being like,
00:06:34.20
Aniz
a family. Like you're going there, you're not going there, you're going there for training, but you're going there to see your people. You're going there to catch up with all the people you probably haven't seen for a year.
00:06:45.43
Aniz
Hear are the stories, hear the struggles and get to a point where if you have a struggle, you've got people in your corner that are going to give you advice and tell you, look, Anise, I dealt with this exact situation and this is what I did to fix that situation.
00:06:53.64
Brian
Here we
00:07:01.81
Aniz
Because So much learning happens in the hallways and in the after, i call it the after party room. That's Mike Allen's room. But so much learning happens after the classes are done.
00:07:16.47
Aniz
And you can't get that going to a you know a quick little NAPA training or something like that. This is the place to be if you really want to step up your game.
00:07:26.55
Tonnika Haynes
Yeah. Like what were some of the key things that you took away that you were able to apply and that it paid for itself as soon as you got back home, Brian?
00:07:38.01
Brian
For me, I didn't have a lot of experience with DVOMs, push button start, stuff like that. So there were several courses i took that were related to that. um And it was just nice to have like people like Keith Perkins, who is a tremendous teacher, to break down systems and make it so I could understand it and I could apply that back home.
00:07:50.99
Aniz
yeah.
00:07:57.27
Brian
ah And like you were saying, it's not just the classes itself. There's a lot in the people you meet, the like minds where if you don't understand something, these people sitting at a table next to the bar will gladly talk to you, talk talk to your ear off and explain it until you do.
00:08:13.30
Brian
So just the connections you make, the you know the phone numbers I came back with in this phone are worth more than the whole trip it itself. To be able to call and say, hey, man, I don't understand this. And they're like, yeah, I got you.
00:08:23.87
Brian
And they just walk you through it. These are people I would have never known about or met without going to ASDA.
00:08:28.38
Tonnika Haynes
yeah there's a power in networking and connections and there's so much more than just the classroom stuff the classroom stuff is amazing the classroom stuff you got stuff for your technicians you got your stuff for your service advisors the social media girl everybody has a place right there at the AST Expo and I think it's it's makes me sad and we're trying to do a much better job and let people know that we're here and it's just right here in in Raleigh it's in the south it's sticky sweet it's nothing really that you have to be nervous about walking into those rooms because I feel like if you walk into the room at AST Expo you already feel like you're in there with a bunch of cousins crazy cousins weird cousins all the cousins are at AST Expo
00:08:38.97
Brian
It is.
00:09:08.60
Brian
not Well, not just that. There's the saying of
00:09:13.11
Brian
And not just that, but the ah the thought of like, if you're if you feel like you're the smartest person in the room, find a bigger room. Every room at ASTA is a bigger room for you.
00:09:20.97
Aniz
Yeah.
00:09:22.26
Tonnika Haynes
I like how you put that.
00:09:23.74
Brian
So.
00:09:24.01
Aniz
I think if if you're going there with the mindset of you know, people are not going to associate with you because they don't know you or, you know you're going to go there and you're going to be alone.
00:09:35.05
Aniz
you're There's no way you can go to this event and not meet people because people are not not there to, you know, criticize your business because everyone's business has got something that needs work on.
00:09:35.29
Brian
Yeah.
00:09:48.95
Aniz
yeah Nobody has a perfect business. And like Josh Parnell says, we're we're all lifelong learners. you're You're not going to be perfect. But if you go there with an open mind that, you know, I'm going to meet people, I'm going to learn some stuff.
00:10:01.38
Brian
All right.
00:10:03.13
Aniz
And even if even if you go and it's just a refresher on some stuff that you may have forgotten, it's worth every penny because you're you're not going to get that from any other kind of training other than going to these. For us, we have to go to the States. We don't have, you know, there's so many different expos in the States that you can go to maybe 20 or 30 twenty or thirty Steininger, year if you wanted to but for for me it's there's hands down like I can't miss sta after I went last year for the first time.
00:10:36.41
Tonnika Haynes
So what do you think was your biggest takeaway?
00:10:39.29
Brian
Yeah, once you attend once, you're...
00:10:41.08
Tonnika Haynes
go ahead, b Brian.
00:10:41.56
Aniz
Sorry, I didn't get that.
00:10:44.53
Tonnika Haynes
Brian was saying.
00:10:46.99
Brian
Nope, go ahead.
00:10:46.97
Tonnika Haynes
No, I was going to say, what was your biggest takeaway for both of you guys?
00:10:47.39
Brian
You were asking an important question. oh
00:10:50.87
Tonnika Haynes
Like, you know, we're talking about going, we're talking about connections and we're talking about classes, but what's the biggest thing that hits you in the head like a brick when you're just like, wow.
00:10:54.30
Brian
Hmm.
00:11:03.80
Brian
The fact that you can walk in and there are people you don't know, and yet there are people you do know, whether it's, ah you know, Check Engine Chuck or Mr. Subaru or other big names that you're like, wow, I would have never met these people.
00:11:16.76
Brian
And they're there for the same reason you are.
00:11:18.20
Tonnika Haynes
Right.
00:11:19.60
Brian
They're there to learn just as much.
00:11:21.62
Tonnika Haynes
I like how you said that because I think sometimes people think, right, they put their pants on one leg at a time, just like we do.
00:11:22.04
Brian
You know they're not there to just strut being a celebrity in a sense, but just.
00:11:28.66
Tonnika Haynes
And that they're helpful. That's the best part about it. Like all of the ah social media celebrities and all of them, they are learning as well.
00:11:32.98
Brian
Absolutely.
00:11:37.87
Aniz
Yeah. Yeah.
00:11:38.84
Tonnika Haynes
So not think not going to a training because you don't feel like you know anybody or you think or you think you know everything.
00:11:40.67
Brian
Yep, absolutely.
00:11:45.46
Tonnika Haynes
Like if you walk in a room you think you know everything, you like you said, you need to find a bigger room. But like there's a lot of big rooms at the AST Expo. And so we want to welcome a lot of people to keep coming.
00:11:54.74
Brian
Yes, yes, there is.
00:11:55.74
Tonnika Haynes
A lot of big rooms. Like, I didn't know who Richard was because that's not, you know, I don't follow the check-in and Chuck on the TikTok. and um And so, like, my son was like, Mom, how do you how do you know him? I'm like, it's Richard.
00:12:13.34
Tonnika Haynes
scott He's got the glasses. It's just Chuck.
00:12:16.16
Aniz
Oh my God.
00:12:16.74
Tonnika Haynes
He's like, he's just a guy. He's a guy trying to learn and embrace the industry and keep keep moving forward.
00:12:18.26
Brian
You know, I followed him for so long.
00:12:22.52
Aniz
Yeah. But, you know, like,
00:12:26.23
Brian
Yeah, and i and I followed him for so long and never in my life did I think we'd become such good friends to the point where I talked him almost daily. um And the amount of the amount of stuff he has taught me, showed me, the time he has spent on the phone, I almost feel bad for the hours he spent on the phone with me.
00:12:44.28
Brian
um And he's pushed me to do so much in in less than a year. From going to ASTA to stepping out of my comfort zone and taking on projects I wouldn't normally even think about, ah to to taking everything I have and saying, let's go for it and opening a shop.
00:12:58.97
Aniz
Yeah.
00:12:59.72
Brian
So it's people like that that I want surrounded in my life because just that one person changed it. And there's so many more people at ASTA who have offered to help in such a way.
00:13:09.46
Tonnika Haynes
And that's true.
00:13:10.42
Brian
So.
00:13:10.74
Tonnika Haynes
That's gospel. Because same thing for me. I would not be where I'm at without the Expo. First time I went to the Expo, I was um going because Lucas, I was hearing Lucas Underwood kept talking about it, kept talking about it.
00:13:22.84
Tonnika Haynes
And honestly, at the time, it was only about three to four exits up the road from my house. So I don't have an excuse why not to go. But I really was afraid to go for my own reasons because I didn't know anybody.
00:13:32.06
Brian
Yeah.
00:13:32.28
Tonnika Haynes
Nobody looked like me, all of those things.
00:13:32.89
Aniz
Yep.
00:13:34.60
Tonnika Haynes
So, you know, those are the stories that I keep saying, because that's what my first first coach said. Those are just the stories that you're telling yourself. And then the other story that people tell themselves, like, I don't need it. I don't need it.
00:13:45.59
Tonnika Haynes
You do need it. Like technology is always changing.
00:13:48.37
Brian
Yeah.
00:13:48.43
Tonnika Haynes
And then what happens is you'll get a technician, a wonderful technician like Brian.
00:13:49.57
Brian
Oh,
00:13:52.92
Tonnika Haynes
that now you've opened your own shop. So now you need to learn how to run a business. That's a whole different ballgame. And there' are classes for that as well.
00:13:59.20
Brian
yes.
00:14:00.34
Tonnika Haynes
And so it's just like, get out of your own way. make your way to the expo. And it is life changing. Like for me, I didn't know what an ARO was. I didn't know this. I didn't know that. and I knew marketing.
00:14:12.79
Tonnika Haynes
I knew the body shop. I knew the body shop world because that's what I grew up in. But all of a sudden my roles have changed. I'm in a kind of a new industry, even it's still automotive, but it's a different aspect of it. But everything that just really lit the fire under my tail came from AST Expo.
00:14:30.49
Aniz
you you know You talk about light lighting a fire.
00:14:30.80
Tonnika Haynes
For sure.
00:14:32.69
Aniz
i mean just before Just before the expo, which was in September, you know before that we were using up until June, and we were using QuickBooks as our point of sale for the whole repair a business.
00:14:33.54
Brian
And
00:14:48.02
Aniz
Okay. And now I'm looking back and that's stone age compared to like, I'm using tech metric, which is the greatest software ever made for shop. And when you go from that, and then I got tech metric in June or July, learned it July, August. And then I'm going in with that knowledge into ASTA talking with other shop owners and they've got similar softwares even, and getting their input on how to properly use it.
00:15:17.94
Aniz
And you go from that, I mean, I'm i'm doing almost 50% to 60% more business than I was last year because I switched my software.
00:15:29.66
Brian
Peace.
00:15:29.69
Tonnika Haynes
And put processes in place. That is, that's crazy. Like, I don't think people understand what they don't know.
00:15:32.76
Aniz
And
00:15:35.69
Tonnika Haynes
You don't know what you don't know, but you get arrogance in the way or just maybe even just fear.
00:15:36.63
Aniz
you know exactly.
00:15:42.09
Tonnika Haynes
He's like, I don't want to learn anything new. I don't want to learn anything new. I don't want a new cell phone. I don't want to learn anything new because it's just like, ooh, but you know, when you get to the other side of that uncomfortable spot, then you know where the victory is.
00:15:53.90
Tonnika Haynes
And I think that's what a lot of people are missing when they don't go to training.
00:15:58.10
Aniz
you gotta You want to be able to work on the business instead of working in the business all the time. And again, I'll i'll tell you upfront, I'm working way in the business, but I've i've got a company that's helping me find ah someone to work in the front, a service advisor. I've got someone that's helping me find a tech to work in the back. So I've got that ball rolling, but some people that don't understand that you can't do everything alone,
00:16:25.08
Aniz
and try to run everything alone, you know, it's not good for your mental health. You're not going to be able to grow your business the way that you may want to. And again, we're at work more than we are at home.
00:16:38.71
Aniz
And the important thing is what's at home, not work. This is what we have to do to go home and be happy and provide for our family. So if we're going to spend so much time at the shop with our customers,
00:16:54.58
Aniz
We need to make it worth it. And we need to make sure we've got people in place where we can leave if we have to. we're not We shouldn't be missing baseball games. We shouldn't be missing football games because, oh, I've got this customer coming in and he only deals with me. No, but that's not the right way to do it.
00:17:10.78
Aniz
But if you've gone to training and you've had people from the Institute yelling at you with a cowboy hat on, okay, he's going to tell you,
00:17:21.62
Aniz
that you're an idiot.
00:17:22.12
Brian
I
00:17:22.34
Aniz
You need to get your stuff together and put people there so you can have a life outside the shop. Okay? Because without the shop, you're still you.
00:17:36.15
Aniz
But you need to focus on yourself. And i'm I'm saying this to myself. That's why I'm doing this. I'm not saying that I've got everything figured out because I sure as hell don't. But if you focus all your energy
00:17:46.52
Tonnika Haynes
Same.
00:17:49.63
Brian
I'm listening to everything you're saying because I'm a month in.
00:17:50.94
Aniz
If you.
00:17:50.97
Tonnika Haynes
yeah You're a month in you're years in and you're just getting, I mean, not just getting it. I'm 10 years on my own today. Today is my 10th year anniversary of me running everything by myself without my dad.
00:18:01.85
Aniz
Happy anniversary.
00:18:02.55
Tonnika Haynes
That beginning, working seven days a week, 14, 16 hours a day with elementary school kids. I'm the mama.
00:18:10.90
Aniz
That's hard.
00:18:11.19
Tonnika Haynes
I'm not trying to be sexist or anything, but you guys are the dad.
00:18:13.51
Brian
boy.
00:18:13.62
Tonnika Haynes
It's a whole lot more than the mama but when you don't know how to cut it off and you think you're saving the community.
00:18:17.59
Brian
course
00:18:19.22
Tonnika Haynes
but you're actually killing your home life. So what you're going to possibly run into, Brian, but it probably won't be so hard for you because you are now in train mode. As a business owner, Anise said something very strong.
00:18:31.42
Tonnika Haynes
You have to work on the business and not always in the business. But I want to fix that a little bit for our people that are just starting out.
00:18:37.16
Brian
I
00:18:43.29
Tonnika Haynes
My boy Brian, you're going to have do bur both for a little bit. You're going to you're gonna have to do both for a little bit, but you're going to learn that, okay, I got to do this. I'm a max it out and then I'm ah afford to pay somebody to do this, afford to pay somebody to do that. So I don't want the people that's had a shop for six months think they can be an absentee owner the way that I am kind of. Like I don't have to be at the shop.
00:19:07.32
Tonnika Haynes
I don't have to be there to open. don't have to be there to close. And that is a blessing. But before I was at there at six and I would leave at eight and there's still eight, nine, 10 o'clock nights, but it's because I choose to do it.
00:19:16.88
Aniz
Yes.
00:19:17.37
Tonnika Haynes
So that's the journey that training takes you on, getting out of your own way.
00:19:22.28
Aniz
Yep.
00:19:22.26
Tonnika Haynes
First, learning the roles, learning each role of the business so nobody can come in there and pull the wool over your head.
00:19:23.78
Brian
Bye.
00:19:28.95
Tonnika Haynes
So that means, Brian, you got to learn accounting and then all that crap other than just wrenching. And then you'll be like, you'll become the delegator. And then you'll just be the check writer.
00:19:41.82
Tonnika Haynes
But that comes with time. That comes with time and coaching and experience and setbacks.
00:19:46.69
Aniz
Yep, lots of stuff.
00:19:47.54
Tonnika Haynes
And all of that good stuff. And the AST Expo, what what we do, we're going to bring all the trainers to you. We're bringing in all the trainers from marketing, training about technical stuff, training about ownership, training but about leadership.
00:20:02.49
Tonnika Haynes
All of those different aspects that we don't know. Not we. I'm not a technician. I don't want to say you don't know what you're talking about. I kind of do cause I've been doing this shit all my whole life. Yeah, 30 years been on the check on the payroll.
00:20:12.66
Tonnika Haynes
I know and i know it's hard for some people in the internet. That's what I i don't even read my comments anymore. Guys are like, oh, don't what you're talking about. Shit. um
00:20:20.64
Aniz
I messaged a few of your comment people and gave them a piece of my mind because they, some of them are not nice.
00:20:26.74
Tonnika Haynes
I don't read them.
00:20:27.74
Aniz
no I messaged them and they blocked me, but I tell them like, going to lay off.
00:20:31.06
Tonnika Haynes
The internet is hilarious.
00:20:31.11
Aniz
Like, what do you do?
00:20:31.45
Brian
the internet
00:20:32.09
Tonnika Haynes
But here's the thing. Like Jim Coconis loves when I say this. but What you eat don't make me fat. I know my debt to income ratio.
00:20:38.27
Aniz
Hmm.
00:20:41.50
Tonnika Haynes
OK, I'm good.
00:20:41.68
Brian
okay
00:20:43.29
Tonnika Haynes
um I'm very, very, very good. So respectfully, Internet, kiss it. um But those who want to learn because I've been there, done that.
00:20:54.46
Tonnika Haynes
Listen, listen to Brian. Listen to Anise. Listen to the people bring. But let me get off that soapbox because I can do that for a minute. I don't read the comments anymore because it's hilarious.
00:21:03.84
Aniz
Some people are cruel, though.
00:21:03.80
Tonnika Haynes
But back to ASTA.
00:21:05.04
Aniz
They're cruel.
00:21:05.63
Tonnika Haynes
What did you say?
00:21:07.67
Aniz
I said, just side note, just some people are cruel.
00:21:13.94
Brian
They also have their own opinion based on where they are.
00:21:15.36
Aniz
Yeah.
00:21:17.02
Brian
Because I have people who constantly tell me, how come you don't do AC work? I'm like, it's it's not profitable in my area for me. And they're like, no, no, no, you're losing out. You don't know what you're doing. So well it's seven grand a machine.
00:21:27.99
Brian
You need three different machines.
00:21:28.18
Aniz
Open your own mouth, then.
00:21:29.47
Brian
In Maine, you have to have permitting it. And there's only one month a year that we do AC work. So why would I invest that amount of money into one month worth of work? It's not profitable for me.
00:21:40.41
Tonnika Haynes
Say it with me, Brian. What they eat does not make you fat. Bump them. and And people, they have so many opinions.
00:21:46.46
Brian
Yeah, it makes me sad.
00:21:48.64
Tonnika Haynes
And then you go look at a profile picture and be like, I'm so sorry, bro. Like, why are you not at work?
00:21:54.12
Aniz
Yeah. Going off what you were saying, Tanika, is all the different classes.
00:21:55.58
Tonnika Haynes
Like, what are we doing?
00:21:56.57
Brian
so
00:22:00.31
Aniz
There's classes, and I went to some on how to deal with these type of customers that come in. yeah Like there's class, I can't remember for the life of me which class it was, but there was a class and the whole thing was basically how to deal with, I'm using air quotes, problem customers.
00:22:18.65
Tonnika Haynes
Yeah.
00:22:19.06
Aniz
People coming in trying to tell you how to run your business. It's like you did not pay the hydro, pay the mortgage or anything. here I'm running it the way that I'm running it. And if it doesn't do well, that's my own problem. But you don't tell me about doing or not doing AC.
00:22:35.01
Brian
Live learn.
00:22:35.38
Aniz
So there's different classes that are going to tell you, hey, look, this is the way that you can talk to the customer to deal with this. You can say, yep, I understand what you're saying is something that we're going to look into because something a comment like that, it ends a conversation because they want you to go and buy it right now. go call your Napa rep or whoever and say, hey, send me an AC machine.
00:22:57.48
Aniz
But If you respond like I've learned from ASTA, oh, that's something interesting. We'll look into it. The conversation's over and you can move on to the next customer.
00:23:06.71
Tonnika Haynes
Yeah, my version of that. It's okay. I love you. Bye. Yeah. So, but think about it.
00:23:10.68
Aniz
Or that. I'll write that one down, yeah.
00:23:11.53
Tonnika Haynes
If Brian was affected emotionally, like, oh man, why don't I have three AC machines? that's what you got your village for.
00:23:21.82
Tonnika Haynes
Like if you get in the way and you're like, Hey Richard, somebody said something about the AC machine. I've been thinking about it and maybe I should go ahead and get one. And he'd probably talk you out of like, bro, why?
00:23:30.93
Aniz
Yeah.
00:23:31.32
Tonnika Haynes
Like that's, that's a community that's finding the right community.
00:23:31.47
Aniz
Yeah.
00:23:35.19
Tonnika Haynes
You know, making sure you're in the same room with people with similar or better mindsets because people will try their best to make you feel miserable because that's where they are.
00:23:35.95
Brian
Absolutely.
00:23:44.12
Tonnika Haynes
People will try their best to keep you down
00:23:47.03
Brian
absolutely.
00:23:47.19
Tonnika Haynes
Like the next thing you're going to run into is when you run your business and your pricing needs to change because you've added an employee or this and that and whatever. Now you've got a roof to pay for. You're not mobile.
00:23:57.63
Tonnika Haynes
You're not working out of your car anymore. You've got things to pay for.
00:24:00.11
Brian
right.
00:24:01.18
Tonnika Haynes
And like, oh, man, won't you just hook me up? You didn't say that when you went to Chick-fil-A. So that is the thing. You're going to have people, the crabs in the bucket that are going to try to bring you down in the community that you've built from ASTA and the knowledge that you get from the classes kind of help you say, you know what?
00:24:09.35
Brian
Okay.
00:24:18.18
Tonnika Haynes
I'm going to give you the best. No, I can. No. Like learn to say no for me in that first year. The second year, I can talk about that all the time because we used to do anything that came in the door.
00:24:30.55
Tonnika Haynes
oh Can you put this part on for me? Your daddy used to do it for me. Can you fix this tractor tire real quick?
00:24:36.99
Aniz
Yeah.
00:24:37.34
Tonnika Haynes
Your daddy used to do it for me. And it was just all these things.
00:24:40.07
Brian
you
00:24:40.81
Tonnika Haynes
And everybody was my cousin. Like, I'm your cousin. Like, I don't even know you. Like, I've never seen you. And you want to help the community. And here's the thing. A lot of technicians leave the shop.
00:24:52.98
Tonnika Haynes
Because they think, and they probably can, a lot of them can't can do a better job than the company they were working for. And they think the owners are charging too much money because they think the owners are putting all of that money in their pocket.
00:25:04.98
Tonnika Haynes
And they think they can go into the industry, open the shop and charge half the labor rate. And then what they end up doing is hurting themselves, their families and their livelihood period.
00:25:18.39
Tonnika Haynes
Because you realize how much things actually cost to run a business.
00:25:23.15
Aniz
Yeah, I
00:25:25.68
Brian
Profit is not a dirty word in any way.
00:25:27.25
Aniz
It's funny you said that because I just posted on Facebook yesterday that exact statement.
00:25:33.82
Tonnika Haynes
Profit is only a dirty word to people when, I guess, when they can look us in the eye. Like, think about how much money people spend on things. They will go spend the money on the car, the Yeti, anything.
00:25:43.38
Aniz
Mm-hmm.
00:25:48.26
Tonnika Haynes
And they really don't think what they're spending the money on. But when it's coming to your fellow, your neighbor doing this job for you, you want him to do it at a discount. But if you ask Rick Hendrick to do it for you, you don't want a discount.
00:26:00.14
Brian
Yep.
00:26:02.04
Tonnika Haynes
ah He's flying around in helicopters. You're driving a Chevy and you want me to give you the discount, but you don't have the same anger for the guy that's making billions. You're mad at the one that's making.
00:26:13.51
Tonnika Haynes
He's a thousand there, not the billionaire.
00:26:15.45
Brian
yeah i
00:26:15.95
Aniz
Yeah.
00:26:17.85
Brian
One of the big conversations I had with Check Engine Chuck was understanding that customers, in a way, don't like to see you succeed off of them, in a sense.
00:26:26.36
Tonnika Haynes
hmm.
00:26:27.96
Brian
And that you're going to, he explained to me how you're going to understand a customer is going to be upset because you charge this much. But when you talk to a shop, another shop, they're going to say, geez, how could you do it so cheap?
00:26:39.80
Brian
And you start understanding that they're the people who are going to support you are the people who understand the struggles that you're currently going through.
00:26:44.22
Tonnika Haynes
Right. I'm so glad he got that in your head because that's something that I had to learn. I was called everything when I try to fix my shop and make sure it was profitable and I didn't have to look at the check and balance every day to make sure things were going to clear. And I had to stand firm in what I was learning.
00:27:01.06
Aniz
Yes.
00:27:01.98
Tonnika Haynes
Literally, one of my father's friends referred to me as a bitch. But he, oh yeah. Oh, i listen, Anise, I see that face, baby.
00:27:11.08
Brian
Mm-hmm.
00:27:12.42
Tonnika Haynes
People don't bother me because I know my debt to income ratio. yeah I can tell you that. But I'm telling you, he ate those words later on. He did apologize for it.
00:27:24.28
Tonnika Haynes
Because I said, you don't have a problem with paying anybody else but me, but you want more effort from me. But your tribe will come. Those same customers that you start out with are not going to be the same customers that you end up with.
00:27:37.29
Aniz
Yeah.
00:27:37.30
Tonnika Haynes
Same thing for employees.
00:27:37.51
Aniz
Yep.
00:27:38.54
Tonnika Haynes
the same The first couple that you start out with are not going to get you to the next level. I've got clients that congratulate me. congratulate me. I used to be afraid to drive whatever I drive because oh I don't want anybody to think I make money, but I'm fixing your car.
00:27:53.49
Tonnika Haynes
That's the same. I'm not beneath you, you know, but I've got customers now that are just like, girl, what are you doing? Where are you going on vacation? I'm so proud of you. This is what I'm referring people instead of the people that are saying, Oh, you could have hooked me up.
00:28:07.48
Tonnika Haynes
Oh, you think you better than us now? What? What?
00:28:12.44
Aniz
All these...
00:28:12.50
Tonnika Haynes
But they all they don't give it it away to everybody else. So that's one thing that I really was able to take care, take take away from ASTA with coaching for me and with, with um you know, just with the community in the beginning. and I would send Lucas a direct message all the time and say, hey, I need a bitch check. Am I doing this wrong? Am I being too firm? Is this too much?
00:28:32.63
Tonnika Haynes
Like questioning what I believed.
00:28:35.16
Aniz
Mm-hmm.
00:28:35.86
Tonnika Haynes
But then you have somebody with a similar mindset that's a little bit further than you saying, no, just keep fighting the fight.
00:28:42.03
Brian
Yes.
00:28:42.10
Tonnika Haynes
You're doing it right. And those are the conversations that happen in the lobbies and then in Mike's boom, boom room at ASTA, those connections.
00:28:45.24
Aniz
Hello?
00:28:51.78
Tonnika Haynes
You look at somebody and you're like, brother, I've been there, done that. I know it hurts and I know you're not sleeping well at night, but this too shall pass.
00:29:01.58
Aniz
Hello?
00:29:03.19
Brian
You know, I sat down at a table last year with Rich, Check Engine Chuck, and a couple other people that I knew from TikTok. And very quickly, that table filled up with 10 or 15 people I didn't know.
00:29:14.62
Brian
And within a five-minute span, i'm not going to say I remember everybody's name, but we were all friends.
00:29:18.64
Tonnika Haynes
Right.
00:29:20.12
Brian
And it was ah talking for hours. I'm looking at the clock going, I got class tomorrow, and it's 1130. And I'm like, oh, boy. But it was worth it. know Just the the amount of people you're going to meet is astronomical.
00:29:33.16
Aniz
you
00:29:33.18
Tonnika Haynes
But here's the better thing, Brian, you wait until two, three, four years from now when someone's saying the same thing about you. Now, that is something hard for me to chew up and and accept.
00:29:44.73
Tonnika Haynes
You know, when somebody gives you a compliment, you're like, oh, it's nothing.
00:29:45.53
Brian
That would be cool.
00:29:46.77
Tonnika Haynes
Oh, I like that. was nothing. But the fact that I'll get a text message from someone that I know is on their way up and has had a hard time and they're asking for advice and I can call and check up on them after I've given advice and they win it and they're winning.
00:30:04.06
Tonnika Haynes
Like there's no other gift. as big as being able to help someone and actually seeing someone grow and go through the same things that you went through and you helped them.
00:30:15.93
Tonnika Haynes
So that's that's my favorite thing about ASTA.
00:30:17.59
Brian
Yeah, being able to climb the ladder
00:30:18.33
Tonnika Haynes
I have been to all the trainings this year, except for Apex team. I haven't been to one of those, but I will be going this year. I've been about all automotive trainings. And I know I'm partial because ASTA is, you know, I'm on the board and everything.
00:30:32.18
Tonnika Haynes
But the community that is in those rooms and in the lobby and just in the various meeting spaces, you can't pay for that, man.
00:30:40.15
Brian
Yeah, absolutely.
00:30:41.99
Aniz
There's no comparison. i think.
00:30:44.12
Tonnika Haynes
You can't tell me I cannot call Brandon Steckler right now and say, hey, dude, my tech's having a hard time.
00:30:44.30
Aniz
right
00:30:49.29
Tonnika Haynes
Here's the phone. It's like, what's the price of something like that?
00:30:52.27
Aniz
Well, Nika, you and i met again at Vision earlier this year and you know it was it was great, but it's And I probably mentioned it to you there. I'm like, it's it's not ASTA. It's not that because like, you know, that was my first time i didn't know anyone and you know, I'll be, umm I'm an open book. I had a night there at ASTA where I was not feeling good.
00:31:20.28
Aniz
not Not my stomach or i was something like that.
00:31:20.31
Tonnika Haynes
I know.
00:31:23.56
Aniz
I was just not feeling good because I think I just got overwhelmed with all the people there, and I was just feeling down and out. I was in the Mike's party room, I'll call it, or actually I'll call it the learning room.
00:31:38.33
Aniz
And I was just not feeling it because I flew in alone.
00:31:40.42
Tonnika Haynes
don't know about all that.
00:31:43.06
Aniz
i didn't really, really know anyone. So I went upstairs, and i mean, a couple people could see it on my face that I was just not feeling it. I went upstairs and I sat in my in my bed and I was just missing my family.
00:31:57.14
Aniz
i was missing my wife.
00:31:57.55
Tonnika Haynes
Yep.
00:31:57.98
Aniz
i was missing my kids. And I'm like, what am I doing here alone? i have no one I feel that I can talk to other than people that I just kind of met online here and there before going.
00:32:10.07
Aniz
Within about 15 minutes, I get a text from Benji. And Benji is sending me a long message. Hey, what's going on? I saw you leave. you know Come down. Let's let's hang out.
00:32:22.04
Aniz
Another few minutes later, i get a message from Tanika. It's like, Hey, she sent me a picture of the bottles. She's like, let's have a drink. What's going on Come down. You're not going to get this kind of, uh, I call them like y'all are my family.
00:32:36.20
Aniz
You're not going to get this kind of family feeling at another expo because they didn't have to do that.
00:32:36.54
Tonnika Haynes
Yep.
00:32:42.14
Aniz
They could have just went on and talked with all the other people that were there. that may have been first timers or they could have been people that are there for five or six years, but they took the time to reach out to me. And that meant I had told Tanika all the time. I think it meant a lot to me because I was in a real dark place because was, was missing home. I'm far away.
00:33:01.78
Aniz
And it took the time to send that message, which they didn't have to. And that meant a lot. And I came back down and, you know, the rest of the, the rest of the trip was great. And I got to meet so many people that I've only seen their, their Tik TOK. So the videos on,
00:33:17.05
Aniz
Facebook or listen to their podcasts. But you know you're you're meeting a whole different crowd at this expo compared to any other, in my opinion.
00:33:26.82
Tonnika Haynes
You're meeting a part of the industry that we want to aspire to be. You're meeting a part of the industry that's not throwing wrenches anymore. That's the thing. Like you eat you go on social media and the thing that gets the most attention is the negative.
00:33:40.37
Tonnika Haynes
And again, that's why I don't go into my comments, like really get a life. But we're not, yeah thank you, I appreciate it.
00:33:44.12
Aniz
I'm going in there for you. don't
00:33:47.84
Tonnika Haynes
We're not saying that we've got it all together. But what I'm saying is child and did that. And let me tell you, this is what I wouldn't do.
00:33:58.08
Aniz
No,
00:33:59.38
Tonnika Haynes
Now, if you choose to touch the stove, touch the stove, like Tanika, I touched the stove anyway. I know you told me not to do it, but I did. and I'm like, damn it. It's family. It's aunties. It's uncles. It's cousins.
00:34:10.42
Tonnika Haynes
It's grandpa's Cecil.
00:34:13.10
Aniz
she's not.
00:34:13.48
Tonnika Haynes
It's going to get me. But it's got, if you've got, you've got so much wisdom in the room with Cecil and Dutch. You know, you've got so much youth in the room now.
00:34:24.15
Brian
You know.
00:34:24.12
Tonnika Haynes
Like, um' my son's excited about going. You got these 20-year-olds that are still excited about an industry. And so that that means, Brian, you've got people that are going to be looking up to you. anee that You're going to have people that are going to be looking up to you.
00:34:34.22
Brian
Here's.
00:34:36.63
Tonnika Haynes
And they're going to look up to you, Anise, for a different reason. They're going see this brown guy. like Whoa, you went?
00:34:41.42
Aniz
Yeah.
00:34:42.87
Tonnika Haynes
And that might not be dude.
00:34:44.62
Aniz
100%. I looked.
00:34:46.23
Tonnika Haynes
Yeah, that might not be the calling that you want, but I'm gonna tell you, God told me, I don't care what you want, Tanika, take your goofy black butt in that room and make people feel comfortable.
00:34:52.30
Brian
Thank
00:34:56.30
Aniz
I'll roll with it. There's already one more coming. in I know that. So.
00:34:59.99
Tonnika Haynes
And it's not about race, it's about inclusion and comfort and family and the industry.
00:35:02.86
Aniz
Inclusion, 100%.
00:35:05.37
Tonnika Haynes
And so if me being in there and being myself and having this podcast and ignoring comments, if I am reaching another young lady, black, white, brown,
00:35:05.51
Aniz
Yep.
00:35:15.77
Aniz
Even one.
00:35:16.33
Tonnika Haynes
Asian. And it's just like, oh, well, I feel comfortable around her.
00:35:20.67
Aniz
Okay.
00:35:21.21
Tonnika Haynes
If you feel comfortable around a niece, Brian, there's going to be somebody that's looking for you. So there's going to be people looking for you guys at the expo. And I want you to do your jobs and bring them into the fold.
00:35:29.30
Brian
That'd be cool.
00:35:32.69
Tonnika Haynes
If you see someone that might be struggling or in the corner, not speaking to anybody, auntie said, you better go over there and be nice to your cousins. And those are the people that, like I said, the same way check engine Chuck or Richard, whatever want to call himself today, reached out to you and that jaded guy, how he spoke to you, even not directly, but how he spoke to you.
00:35:56.15
Tonnika Haynes
You guys are going to be speaking to people by your actions.
00:36:00.92
Aniz
I I'll be honest. A lot of the the reason, a lot of the reason I'll be honest with Tanika that I'm going is not a hundred percent for the training.
00:36:03.95
Brian
I've
00:36:13.69
Aniz
And I'll be frank with you. I'm i'm excited about the training. but I'm more excited to talk to other people that were in my position last year that are feeling afraid or feeling that this industry is eating them up or I'm not making money or I don't know what to do.
00:36:31.27
Aniz
I want to talk to those people and tell them I was freaking there. i was using the same software that you can sell flower pots with.
00:36:39.22
Brian
Yes.
00:36:39.93
Aniz
Okay. ah Like it's ridiculous, but I've, overcome that. I've talked to people that have gone leaps and bounds ahead of me. And when you're getting this advice from people at this expo, there's no strings attached. They're not going to be sending you a bill. They really want to help and they really want to see you succeed. And they check in on you. Hey, how's it going from our conversation of September? Oh, you're doing well? Great. If you need something, let me know.
00:37:08.90
Aniz
They're not coming there with the intention of just You know, I got to make sure that I don't give away any of my golden nuggets or gatekeeping. There's so much open information.
00:37:18.87
Tonnika Haynes
No gatekeeping.
00:37:21.08
Aniz
And, you know, one thing I've had on my desk, i someone gave me this as a gift when we first opened. I'll kind of put it on the camera. It says, never get so busy making a living that you forget to make a life.
00:37:34.62
Tonnika Haynes
Yeah.
00:37:35.77
Aniz
And I've had this on my desk for 20 years since the first day we opened.
00:37:38.75
Brian
Very true.
00:37:40.28
Aniz
And every time someone comes in, they read that and they stop and think that we're so busy at work for nine hours, 10 hours a day. We go home, we barely make it in time for dinner. We tuck in our kids and we have dinner. We sit with our our partners for an hour. We go to bed.
00:38:01.10
Aniz
But what are we doing? We're working and working and working because we have A lot of us have gone for training, but Tanika, you can agree with me. The industry as a whole, very few go for training and it's really sad.
00:38:18.26
Aniz
And these are the people that need to be here. They need to be in these classes. They need to have a chat with the industry auntie. They need to have a chat with Brian.
00:38:30.78
Aniz
and get all these nuggets to change their life. Because if you continue like this, who are you working for? When you're going to work, you're opening this business, you're trying to grow big, who are you doing it for?
00:38:43.73
Aniz
You're doing it for your family, but they're the ones that are at home waiting for daddy and mommy to come home.
00:38:47.19
Tonnika Haynes
suffering
00:38:49.43
Aniz
But we're too busy at work for 10 hours and we tuck them in and then they grow up and they're 11 years old. you're like, well, what the hell just happened? But you're not gonna,
00:38:57.30
Tonnika Haynes
Now, being at work for 10 hours is always not a bad thing.
00:39:00.57
Brian
Roll
00:39:00.66
Tonnika Haynes
But with when you're at work for 10 hours and you're miserable, when you left a career turning wrenches you're
00:39:05.14
Aniz
Yes. Mentally drained. Yeah. mentally drained
00:39:09.14
Tonnika Haynes
And yeah, it's mentally draining and you're miserable. And just because you don't know how to deal with that misery or you don't know who to reach out to. Because there's times that I'm just like sitting at and like, I just cannot.
00:39:22.30
Tonnika Haynes
And that is true. Ten years in by myself, sometimes I'm just like, what just happened? I can't with these people.
00:39:31.42
Brian
I mean, so life is hard.
00:39:31.73
Tonnika Haynes
It's coming. It's
00:39:35.11
Brian
Running a business is hard. We're all going to make mistakes and we learn from those mistakes, but it sure is a lot easier to listen and learn from someone else who's already made that mistake and can teach you or help prevent you from following that same road.
00:39:47.16
Aniz
it
00:39:48.86
Brian
Not everything needs to be that the hardest way to learn.
00:39:50.10
Aniz
It doesn't matter if you've been at it for two years or 20 years, there's someone that's been at it for 30 and someone's been at it for 40.
00:39:50.42
Tonnika Haynes
Oh, yeah.
00:39:57.02
Aniz
So you're going to be learning at this expo from so many different so many different groups of people. And there's no clicks at this expo, by the way, whoever's listening.
00:40:09.27
Aniz
If that's what you think it is, that it's all very clicky, or there's a whole group of people here, the whole group No, everyone's all mingling together and everyone wants to know what's going on in everyone's business because this is how you change the industry.
00:40:11.19
Brian
No.
00:40:23.26
Aniz
If you're not going to be able to talk with other people, give them advice, no strings attached, and be a part of this industry, that's the only way you're going to make it better and not make you know people think, oh, the typical mechanic, they're holding a grease rag over their shoulder, and that's all it is.
00:40:41.90
Aniz
Mechanics and advisors have as much education as and as much skills as a lawyer or someone else. okay It's different fields, but you've got to put some respect on their names, really.
00:40:56.69
Aniz
their Mechanics and advisors, anyone working in this industry, put some respect on that name because that's a hard job. we're not just out there, you know, turning wrenches and we go home and, you know, it's off our mind. I'm sure Brian, you go home and there's a car that's kicking your butt and you're thinking about it.
00:41:14.10
Aniz
So you may be learning, you may be going on talking to Chuck and like, how the hell do i fix this?
00:41:15.71
Brian
Oh
00:41:19.46
Aniz
You're, you know, learning after hours because this is not an easy job. And when you go to these expos and you talk to hundreds and Thousands of people that are in the same situation, in the same industry that you're in, they're going to tell you the same. No, it's not easy, but you can persevere. You can get to the next level, but you need to do it step by step and do it the right way and take advice from the right people.
00:41:48.41
Aniz
And I want to emphasize the right because you can get a lot of bad advice that people don't want you to fail, but you need to know who you're talking to.
00:41:49.08
Tonnika Haynes
Oh yeah.
00:41:56.79
Aniz
and understand that not everyone is there to help you, but the ones that want to help you, you're going to find them at this expo.
00:42:07.00
Tonnika Haynes
Right. Is it what was great for you?
00:42:08.98
Brian
what What was great for me was, okay.
00:42:11.27
Tonnika Haynes
go ahead, honey.
00:42:15.70
Brian
um Last year for in September, I was still working at the same shop I had been at for many, many years. um There were several people who kind of got to know my story, the situation I was in, and kind of where I was trying to go.
00:42:29.05
Brian
A lot of that came from Check Engine Chuck and and how much he helped me. But walking around the expo, just kind of exploring and and meeting some people, whatnot, I had people that would come up to me and shake my hand. they're like, hey, Brian, you know, i I actually heard about you. I know your your situation. And I was there and I'm rooting for you. if you need something, here's my number.
00:42:49.21
Brian
And that happened to me so many times. And i i went back and I was smiling and I'm talking to to Rich and he's like, what's going on? I'm like, man, I've got three numbers to three people I don't know, but they know of me.
00:42:59.83
Brian
And I just, it blew my mind that everyone's kind of paying attention in a way. And once your story gets out there, it can change so drastically.
00:43:05.30
Aniz
Mm-hmm.
00:43:09.27
Tonnika Haynes
Yeah, that was go that's what I was going to hit on.
00:43:09.71
Brian
So, and ASTA is definitely, you know.
00:43:11.90
Tonnika Haynes
you can You've got so many people cheering from you from from the background. like ah I was like, I don't know. i asked you yesterday, what is your government name? But I've been watching Wrench in 88 for a while, and I'm just sitting here rooting from you for you know down here in North Carolina.
00:43:27.67
Tonnika Haynes
And I was like, well dude, what is he what is even your name? there There's so much connection to be had there. But you being you were at a shop still when you came to the expo in September?
00:43:40.34
Tonnika Haynes
Okay, had you had, okay, you had just exited.
00:43:41.46
Brian
Yes. Oh, yeah. I just left. like
00:43:44.78
Tonnika Haynes
Had you had any training? Did that owner offer you any training?
00:43:50.90
Tonnika Haynes
So this is my message to the text.
00:43:53.05
Brian
So throughout the years, yeah, I am
00:43:53.06
Tonnika Haynes
That's crazy. That is absolutely crazy because I wonder if there's someone sitting out there just like you, Brian, that could use some training, just stuck in a little wheel and, um,
00:44:06.07
Brian
absolutely.
00:44:07.61
Tonnika Haynes
I want them to know that you do not have to come to this training with your business. Like this is open to everybody. Like if you're just an individual technician and you're like, huh, I'm interested in some classes. I want to do better. I want to move my business forward. I have ideas.
00:44:26.97
Tonnika Haynes
Yes, you can come to AST Expo. You do not have to come with your shop. You take yourself a ah holiday pay of whatever. And I might get in trouble for saying this, but that's your brain.
00:44:40.72
Tonnika Haynes
You're going and I'm talking directly to the camera. That is your brain. You're going to have to invest in yourself. If you're a service writer and you're stuck at this daggone shop and you know you can be so much more than you are and you have these ideas of what you want a shop, what you think a shop look like.
00:44:55.11
Brian
Yeah.
00:44:55.96
Tonnika Haynes
Go to training. You can go to training by yourself. Well, you won't be by yourself because we'll be there.
00:45:00.30
Aniz
Mm-hmm.
00:45:01.75
Tonnika Haynes
But you have to invest in yourself because I can't take any of Brian's knowledge. If you work for me, I can't take your knowledge from me you. But as far as my technicians, if they work for me, they are my toolbox. I don't have a toolbox. Those are my tools.
00:45:15.83
Tonnika Haynes
Those guys help me make my money. Your tools help you make your money. I am going to invest in my toolbox. I'm going to give them as much knowledge as I can. Front office, back office, everybody.
00:45:26.57
Tonnika Haynes
There's training for everybody. And I'm the owner that's willing to invest. Unfortunately, there are owners that are not willing to invest. They don't know, like, oh, I can't spend all that money and have them travel.
00:45:32.69
Brian
Absolutely. Thank
00:45:35.61
Tonnika Haynes
I shut my shop down. Everybody gets a hotel room. I want them emerged in the experience. I want them to be able to hang out at the bar. I want them to be able to go to this room. I want them to be able to go to the pre-party, not just be stuck in a class.
00:45:47.22
Tonnika Haynes
so I want them to experience everything. So it's not just like a job for them, but whatever they learn, I can't take it from them if they decide to leave and they move on.
00:45:52.16
Aniz
Yep.
00:45:56.38
Tonnika Haynes
But what I can give them is say, hey, I thank you for working for me. And so I am going to continue to invest in you. It's like reciprocal.
00:46:07.48
Tonnika Haynes
So I just wanted to put that out there real quick for technician, service advisor, um anybody who's in the industry and yourre your boss man or your boss lady is not giving back and you guys are not getting training and you're hearing about all of this and you're interested.
00:46:09.83
Brian
Absolutely.
00:46:21.94
Tonnika Haynes
Yes, you too can join and register by yourself.
00:46:27.73
Aniz
I'll leave it.
00:46:29.91
Brian
absolutely and If anyone who's watching this, if they're even remotely hesitant about it, the automotive industry is so much bigger than the four walls that you work in.
00:46:41.62
Brian
Going to ASTA will really open up that for you. You're going to be able to find, again, like-minded people. you're going to be able to find information you didn't know was available to you. um If you're in a shop like I was in where the the going joke is send it to the dealer, you're going to learn that that's not always the option you have to use, that you can fix this stuff. And if you're uncomfortable with...
00:47:06.87
Brian
ah where you're at in your knowledge now, this is just ah it's a step to to so much more. You're gonna learn so much more and have the capabilities to reach out to those who are willing to teach you.
00:47:19.61
Brian
I was stuck in a shop that, um he was an older gentleman that he is very knowledgeable, but you know up until like 95. And then after that, it became difficult for him. He didn't wanna learn.
00:47:30.51
Brian
And when I stepped in, there was nothing for him to teach me further than like the basics.
00:47:33.98
Aniz
Yep.
00:47:36.25
Brian
um So I spent many years with you know, if it was a can network issue or an electrical issue, like we we didn't touch it. We sent it away. And I thought that's what everybody did.
00:47:46.52
Brian
I thought everyone sent it to the dealer. Um, so to, to have someone like check engine Chuck, who thankfully helped me out with that and, and got me to understand that I am capable of doing this and it's the training that I need.
00:47:58.62
Brian
And going to ASTA was huge for that. So anyone who is watching this, I really do hope you, uh, even if your boss is not willing to spree for it for you, I hope you consider it. And anyone who's walking around, if you see me, come up and talk to me. i'm I'm friendly as can be, you know if you want to hang out, if you feel like you're alone, I'm here.
00:48:15.72
Aniz
I was actually going to say the same thing. Anyone listening, if you're, you took the words out mouth, if anyone listening and feels like scared, like i I was when I went last year, you know, feel free to reach out to me, ask me questions, send me a message.
00:48:17.24
Brian
So I'll be there.
00:48:32.47
Aniz
And you know, there's no silly questions or anything.
00:48:32.82
Brian
Absolutely.
00:48:36.06
Aniz
And if if you want someone, you know, to be there that you know, you know me, you know, Brian, you know, Tanika, right? There's three people right here that are not going to turn you away.
00:48:47.26
Brian
Absolutely.
00:48:49.27
Aniz
They're not going to be like, why is this person talking to me We, I can, I'll speak for the three of us that we welcome anyone listening, come and talk to us.
00:48:55.82
Brian
Thank you
00:48:59.35
Aniz
We are not scary people. We are regular. We got the same blood, just a different negative, positive, you know, ABCDFG. We are all people. We would,
00:49:10.07
Aniz
love to have anyone that's listening come to this expo. And you know for me, it changed changed my life and same with Brian and Tanika, it changes everything. don't Don't let the reason for you not to click that button to come, being afraid of being the only being alone, because you're not alone.
00:49:22.25
Brian
very much.
00:49:30.30
Aniz
You will have an immediate family as soon as you walk into a room.
00:49:33.84
Brian
Hmm.
00:49:34.42
Aniz
And Tanika, correct me if I'm wrong, Is there a special notation on a first time attendees badge?
00:49:40.76
Tonnika Haynes
Yes.
00:49:42.14
Aniz
So I didn't know about that until I think Mike told me, cause I had it on mine and he's like, have you had people come up to you randomly and say, hi? i'm like, yeah. He's like, yeah, that's your badge.
00:49:52.20
Aniz
I'm like, oh, but
00:49:54.20
Tonnika Haynes
Well, because we want to make sure first time attendees don't feel isolated. You know, we want to make sure that everybody's welcome.
00:49:58.86
Aniz
a percent.
00:50:01.86
Tonnika Haynes
I don't ah we don't want you to register and then come take classes and disappear to your room and go watch first 48. No, we want you like b Brian said, it's 1130. These people still talking to me.
00:50:12.25
Tonnika Haynes
We want you in the lobbies. And it's not about we do the parties and we do those events because that's about networking. That's about you shaking it off and getting comfortable and finding finding your tribe.
00:50:22.83
Aniz
Thank you.
00:50:24.44
Tonnika Haynes
You know, it is survivor. So we're finding our tribes. You know, and that's what it is about. It is about so much more than the pencil pushing in the class. It's about when you're done being taught by Keith Perkins. You can actually have a conversation with Keith.
00:50:41.82
Tonnika Haynes
He doesn't bite. When you're finished being taught by Rick White, he's sitting there with his cup of tea and he's ready to talk to you.
00:50:44.94
Brian
Yeah.
00:50:48.89
Tonnika Haynes
Like there's nobody that's walking out with security and nobody nobody's above anyone at the expo. We're all in this together, just like the world should be. Hey, we're just at different different levels of struggles.
00:51:00.35
Aniz
Yeah.
00:51:00.54
Tonnika Haynes
What I got going on, what you got going on, we all got some stuff. And I'm going to say this. I'm getting in trouble for this one. I hope Braxton doesn't make this a clip. So what I tell my employees is when we get in our own ways and we get in our heads and we're going through something, have to remind people we all have shit.
00:51:15.83
Tonnika Haynes
Well, as a human, we all have shit. Now, sometimes you're constipated. Sometimes you got the runs. And sometimes it's just regular old shit. But we all have shit. So remember that when you walk in a room and you think you're around people that think they're better, and they they don't.
00:51:28.76
Tonnika Haynes
They got some shit going on. We just don't know what level of shit they're they're at because they're gatekeeping their own shit.
00:51:35.15
Aniz
Oh, man, he's going to making a good clip out of that one.
00:51:35.48
Tonnika Haynes
So AASP, please come out. What'd you say? You want to use that one?
00:51:40.34
Aniz
I said, Braxton's going to be making a good clip out of that one.
00:51:42.55
Tonnika Haynes
you go to make that and We do. We have different levels of shit going on. I don't care how rich or poor or how new your business is, how old your business is, how many shops you've got.
00:51:46.76
Brian
Thank you.
00:51:52.15
Tonnika Haynes
I don't care that you got three shops and you did 15 million last year. You did 15 million with what? So, yeah, we're ah we're we're good. And I cannot wait to see you guys.
00:52:03.19
Tonnika Haynes
Wait to see you guys at the expo.
00:52:03.80
Aniz
Well. Going off what you said, Tanika, everyone's got their own shit they're dealing with, and ASTA Expo is going to provide any type of shovel to scoop it and fix it.
00:52:16.27
Aniz
How's that?
00:52:16.87
Tonnika Haynes
We've got shovels, Pepto-Bismol, all the things, prune juice, baby wipes.
00:52:21.52
Brian
Oh, yeah.
00:52:25.85
Brian
and And not just that... Everyone is there to help you. The last night of ASTA, I was sitting at a table real late with Check Engine Chuck, Mr. Subaru, a whole bunch of people.
00:52:37.27
Brian
And they were trying to set up a laptop for me for programming so I could do module programming back back home because there's not a lot of that here.
00:52:42.74
Tonnika Haynes
Mm-hmm.
00:52:45.31
Brian
And these are people, again, ah Chuck is like the only one that's really close to me. Everybody else I've met over these three days. And this laptop is being passed around and they'll try this, try that. Oh, no, hang on. Let me log into that and help you.
00:52:59.86
Brian
These these people don't need to do this, but they want to.
00:53:01.45
Tonnika Haynes
Because somebody did it for them.
00:53:03.48
Brian
And I.
00:53:04.12
Aniz
Yep.
00:53:05.85
Brian
Absolutely. And i I keep saying how beyond grateful I am ah for these people, because when I say they changed my life, they they really did. I mean, a year, a year ago, i was not in the position I'm in now.
00:53:18.68
Brian
And that's that is because of them.
00:53:20.42
Aniz
In one year, i went from you know using ah outdated software and not knowing my numbers to you know doing the business I'm doing now and being more outspoken in the industry and trying to talk to as many people as I can.
00:53:37.69
Aniz
And like now, like I started a podcast and I've got my co-hosts from Canada's even coming with me on this trip, which he made a bet with Buckaroo Bob and you should never bet with Buckaroo Bob, but he's coming with me.
00:53:49.32
Brian
Oh, that's cool.
00:53:51.09
Tonnika Haynes
Never bad would look real pile.
00:53:53.17
Aniz
So now I'm coming with one other person, which is cool, but you know, he's going to get to experience this expo as well this year. And he's super excited.
00:54:02.49
Tonnika Haynes
Yeah, because they've done tools. is um and And that's another thing. If you've come to the expo and you you agree with everything that we're saying, not even everything, you agree with 50 percent, 67, 75 percent. Please tell somebody, do not gatekeep.
00:54:17.36
Tonnika Haynes
That's not how we grow. Gatekeeping is not how we grow. There is one point seven billion cars. I don't know. i just made that shit up on this earth. We cannot fix them all. In your neighborhood, if there's five shops in your area, you guys cannot fix all the cars by yourself.
00:54:33.25
Tonnika Haynes
Don't gatekeep. Because if we keep doing that, the industry is still going to go backwards. If we share the knowledge with that shop down the street that you know is not doing it quite right, maybe they just don't know what they don't know.
00:54:39.54
Aniz
percent
00:54:46.20
Tonnika Haynes
So I would say extend the invitation. Hey, bro, I went to this training last year. Maybe you should go. If they say, want go into training, then they don't want to go to the training. But you knocking on the door and inviting them, they might say, you know what?
00:55:00.25
Tonnika Haynes
I think you're right. I might just show up. And maybe they'll show up for one day. Maybe they'll show up for all three days. But extend the invitation to your fellow shop owner, fellow service advisor, your fellow technician, and say, hey, I think you need to be in this room.
00:55:16.95
Aniz
It costs nothing to be polite.
00:55:19.58
Brian
Well, not just that. They may not oh sorry they may not know about the the actual expo itself, or they maybe they know about it, but they're scared because they don't want to go alone.
00:55:28.14
Tonnika Haynes
Right.
00:55:30.14
Brian
So if they actually know someone, whether you're a close friend or not, they say, hey, geez, he's right down the road from me. I do know him. At least they have someone to look forward to knowing while they're there, or they can look for.
00:55:39.74
Tonnika Haynes
Look for me.
00:55:40.31
Aniz
know i mean it It doesn't cost anything to be polite, really. i mean
00:55:44.75
Tonnika Haynes
doesn't.
00:55:45.27
Aniz
What do you lose by mentioning it to a shop down the road that, Hey, you know, I'm going to this expo, it's an automotive industry.
00:55:54.22
Brian
Nothing.
00:55:54.74
Aniz
It costs you nothing, but you may have that person's shop from going from here to here because they may learn so much that they've been trying to figure out for the past 10 years.
00:55:56.98
Tonnika Haynes
it doesn't
00:56:07.74
Aniz
And they may come at like, you know, Brian, man, thanks for telling me about this expo. I had no idea that this was even out there. And now next year, I'm bringing my whole crew. And then five years later, this guy's got two shops, maybe.
00:56:21.94
Aniz
And he's like, I've grown. And if I didn't go and get training and be exposed to this, I would have just been, you know, writing paper tickets like ah all the other shops in my area.
00:56:33.40
Tonnika Haynes
yeah They think it's a waste, but people don't know what they don't know. And then people are afraid to ask for help. I know I'm afraid to ask for help. I hate asking people for help, believe it or not. Tag on it. But you have to ask for help. That same shop that you know will shop your prices, say, hey, what are you charging for this?
00:56:50.97
Tonnika Haynes
No, you can't do it like that, sweet. But they don't know any other way to do it. Like I don't want to be the cheapest shop or want to be the most No, I need you to base your labor rate based on what you have to pay in bills.
00:56:56.32
Aniz
Yeah. Yeah.
00:57:02.84
Tonnika Haynes
What is your health insurance? What does this cost you? What does that cost you? That's how you come up with a labor rate. and they're like, what? And so I just assume at this level that everybody knows that, but there's still people that don't know that because very respectfully, I'd say we've got these...
00:57:18.26
Tonnika Haynes
awesome techs that were fed up with where they were. And then he went open a shop and they start wrenching and they are doing a hell of a job fixing the cars.
00:57:26.48
Brian
Yep. Yep.
00:57:26.55
Tonnika Haynes
But then there's more month than money. like Wait a minute. Where did it go? So, you know, learning QuickBooks and learning your accounting software and learning how to properly mark up parts and just be like, yeah, if I want to eat anything other than ramen noodles,
00:57:43.52
Tonnika Haynes
I might need to charge another $10 an hour and not base my prices off of the dude that's working in his garage at home. You know? So...
00:57:52.08
Aniz
Yeah. You know, you and i'll do I'll do me. And if you want to create generational wealth and not just be bottom feeding and doing a, you know, making 40 bucks here, 50 bucks here and thinking that you're going to be able to survive over time and provide a good, you know, standing for your family and be able to provide down the line. You need to get the proper training. You need to know your numbers and you're not going to get that all from YouTube. You'll get some information, but you're not going to get the industry standard with the kind of,
00:58:26.65
Aniz
teachers that are at this expo. These people have been through it. They've been doing this for years. So what they're telling you in these classes, if you've never been, this is all tried and tested. i mean, you know, I took Rick White's class last year.
00:58:42.01
Aniz
i took it again at vision because was awesome. I mean, you're, you're getting to meet and talk with these people that have been through all this, that have seen the struggles from countless other clients that they have, and they're able to pour all that Kool-Aid in a cup and hand it to you and say, here, drink this and this is what's going to work.
00:59:02.97
Tonnika Haynes
There y'all go with the Kool-Aid again.
00:59:07.48
Aniz
ah Tanika's got a whole lot Kool-Aid in that cup.
00:59:08.19
Tonnika Haynes
Yeah. Got a whole lot of Kool-Aid in the cup. Well, guys, I am going to see you in, what, about six weeks?
00:59:18.87
Tonnika Haynes
I have no idea. Yeah, it's about six weeks now.
00:59:22.20
Aniz
like that, yeah.
00:59:22.44
Tonnika Haynes
AST Expo is September 24th through 26th in Raleigh, North Carolina. um If you want to attend and you're listening to this podcast and you have questions, you can inbox myself, Tanika, Anise, um find Brian, if you know Brian, ask the question.
00:59:42.84
Tonnika Haynes
um Also, if you're ready to to register, you're ready to push the button and make the commitment, you can get $25 off of registration by using my registration code, which is just downshift25.
00:59:43.32
Aniz
Please.
00:59:44.22
Brian
Absolutely.
00:59:53.65
Tonnika Haynes
And again, that's $25 off registration. So hopefully i will see some new faces at the Expo this year. And I'll see Brian. I'll see you at the bar.
01:00:03.66
Tonnika Haynes
We're side check engine Chuck. And Anise, I'll see you in the weebies.
01:00:10.22
Aniz
Can't wait.
01:00:11.67
Tonnika Haynes
All right.
01:00:13.50
Aniz
All right.
01:00:14.59
Brian
Well, I'll be there.
01:00:15.46
Tonnika Haynes
right.