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My name is Jeff, and I'd like to welcome you on a journey of reflection and insight into the tolls and triumphs of a career in automotive repair.
After more than 20 years of skinned knuckles and tool debt, I want to share my perspective and hear other people's thoughts about our industry.
So pour yourself a strong coffee or grab a cold Canadian beer and get ready for some great conversation.
because in the early days of the business, I was working Saturdays, I was working late.
That's because I kept thinking I just need to fix more cars to make more money, which, as we know, is not the case.
Most shop owners that I talk to, and I'll preface this, that I talk to because of my social media community, most of them could change their entire business by just adjusting the way they run the business and they can actually do what I did where I worked on less cars.
But I actually started making more.
Good evening ladies and gentlemen and welcome back to another exciting thought-provoking episode of the Jada Mechanic Podcast.
My name's Jeff and I'd like to thank you for joining me on this journey of reflection and insight into the toils and triumphs of a career in automotive repair.
After more than 20 years of skin, knuckles and tool debt, I want to share my perspectives and hear other people's thoughts about our industry.
So pour yourself a strong coffee or grab a cold Canadian beer and get ready for some great conversation.
where that comes from but you know it's true.
You said something very powerful yesterday or last year when you first met Paul.
Do you remember what you said to Paul?
when he said none of this, none of this matters, none of this stuff matters.
I remember I was with you and you said what really stood out with Paul is how strong Paul was with his faith.
Yeah, correct.
And to not stop doing that.
Yeah.
So before I get too far into that topic, I want to just introduce, I'm sitting here today with Chris Enright of Enright Auto.
Hello everybody.
And his lovely wife Marissa.
Hello.
So, and we're at AST 2023.
Yes.
And it's, I just posted on the Jada Mechanic webcast, podcast Facebook, that's what you're listening to by the way, is the Jada Mechanic podcast, that it is a whirlwind here.
And it is just, you guys arrived late last night?
Yeah.
Yeah, later than I did.
And so we're here because you've done an episode with me and we've kind of told your story and everything else, but what I really want to know
is what is it like to have the, what's the business dynamic of the marriage?
And how does it, what are some of the obstacles?
What are some of the great things that come with it?
You know, like, because, and I'm not trying to delve into your personal life, understand that, right?
That's not what I'm about.
But I mean, I want to hear maybe the frustration sometimes that you have, like, because you had a rough day last week.
You had to spend your Sunday.
Tell us about that.
Yeah, I messed up a car I was doing a doing an oil pump reseal and it's a it's not a it's not a small job I sandbagged it too on top of that.
So it took me all day and then Once I found out what was wrong.
Yeah, and I only had like a
About an hour and a half less left in the day to try to fix it And so I tore it back down because I thought I knew what it was wrong with it And I didn't know what's wrong.
It was not the seal not the seal So then I had to go in on Sunday, you know family day that I love, you know, Saturdays and Sundays I'm close like I'm
Early on in the business, and we'll probably, actually, I'm sure we'll talk about this, but early on in the business, I spent a lot of time in the shop, and we had talked going into it, that we knew there was gonna be some sacrifices that had to be made, and that's a point I'll make, is you need to have those conversations with your significant other.
But now, I'm very, very particular, and I have very strong boundaries when it comes to the shop and my family.
And being that the shops at my house makes it difficult.
So we'll talk about that too.
So yeah, but I had to work my Sunday.
So that was not cool.
That sucked, but that was on me.
It was my mistake.
Cause I know, I know how important Sunday is to you.
Yeah.
You're a man of faith.
We were talking about that and, and it's, you, you believe that is the day that you should, even if it's not about faith.
Right.
Right.
And even if you don't practice,
but it's still the day that should be with family.
Is that, was that hard for you?
Like, did you feel a little bit of frustration of the fact that he's not going to be there on Sunday?
I did not.
I did not.
Um, and I, it's not going to always be that way.
It wasn't always that way, but I knew something was wrong.
Like I knew he was off and so I just let him have in space and then he just looked at me and he said, I'm going to have to work Sunday.
Do you remember what I said to you?
I don't remember now.
I just said, okay, because the worst thing that we can do as a supporting wife, when our husbands are in that tension is say, Oh, well, what happened?
What did you do?
Why?
Nobody wants to hear that when you know, you're already in a tough situation.
You're not making the situation any better.
So even if I'm inside, I'm like, Oh, well, that sucks, you know, but I looked at him and I said, okay, well,
Because I think I know as a man, if my significant other was to ask me, well what happened?
What went wrong?
She's asking because she's genuinely concerned.
Correct.
You're taking it as if immediately my back is already up and I'm like...
she's already frustrated and she's already venting to me about her frustrations and who am I going to explain to her because I mean I could tell her it's it's the who's on it and what's it and there's all the quarreling and she would not know what I'm even speaking of.
Yeah and it's one of those things like I talked about this because I shared all of this I was very I try to be as transparent as possible on social media so I shared all this on social media and I told everybody I said listen
especially to you shop owners, I said, if this situation happens like this with your tech, don't beat them up because I can promise you that no one's beating themselves up more than themselves.
And so when you go out and berate them and hammer them about the mistake they made, it just makes the entire situation worse.
And so I said, you know, just ask them what happened as an owner, talk to them, communicate, but don't berate them, don't beat them up because again, they are going to already be beating themselves up.
And that's how I am.
No one will ever beat me up about a mistake more than myself.
I was frustrated with myself.
I knew it was something simple and something dumb that I just didn't pay attention to.
And and that's exactly what it ended up being and so I was just frustrated at all the decisions I had made throughout the day as well sandbagging the job not paying attention Distracted just it was all on me.
So, you know, she does a really good job.
It wasn't always that way We've we've grown a lot, uh, even before The shop, I don't know how personal we want to get with things but we I mean i've shared it on several times on the podcast, uh, or you know on social media and stuff about
our experiences together, but you know, we've been through a lot as a couple for sure.
And instead of allowing those situations to break us and push us further apart, we've used them to, to work through it and grow together because we know
Well, we can't let those things dictate our marriage.
That's not where it started, and that's not where we are wanting to go.
So if we let the outside sources that are coming against us dictate our marriage, it's not going to go well.
You're always going to have something coming against you.
That's just how it is.
And that's the plan.
So we're just going to push forward.
And instead of pulling apart in this situation, we're going to come together and link hands because we both want the same end result.
And we talk about that end result.
OK, well, what do we want this year?
What are we going towards?
And we're on the same page when we're communicating.
That really helps us stick together in those hard situations when it seems like we're not getting to where we want to go.
But when we pull together, there's no option.
There's nothing else pulling.
We're pulling together and pushing through.
So you can't be butting heads when the situation gets hard.
Is it hard though, because you had a job where the business wasn't right in the backyard?
So was it kind of that little bit of time, that distance away from the home?
Was it easier to keep the job away from the home life when it was farther apart?
Or are you just good enough at handling it that it doesn't really matter that it's literally right outside the back door?
You leave it when you lock that door, you leave it there and you bring it home.
That's a good question.
Um, no like I feel like I was pretty good.
I mean I I had there were days obviously like everybody has days Um, but it was easier for sure to separate it and it wasn't my business, right?
And the fact that it's right outside is difficult, right?
So if I'm inside with the kids and there's eight cars out in the parking lot and I know I'm super swamped and I've got work to do, I'm thinking about it.
It pulls at you, right?
It's very hard.
Now I have, I feel like, and she'll be the one to have to attest to this, but I feel like I've gotten a lot better.
It's something that I'm trying to pay attention to and trying to separate myself.
Again, I'm trying to create clear boundaries.
And a lot of that has been done because of all these changes I made because in the early days of the business, I was working Saturdays and I was working late.
You were working a lot more.
Yeah, way more.
So, but that's because I kept thinking I just need to fix more cars to make more money, which as we know is not.
Car count is important, but it is not as much the priority as we have made it for so long.
It's not the yardstick of how we judge whether you're good or bad, right?
Not even close.
Most shop owners that I talk to, and I'll preface this, that I talk to because of my social media community,
Most of them could change their entire business by just adjusting the way they run the business, and they could actually do what I did, where I worked on less cars, but actually started making more revenue.
And I will say, when you made those changes, when we talked about it and you were like, this is what I'm gonna do, your whole attitude changed.
Like, when you came home from the shop, it was still hard, but you had a new perspective, and I think it really changed you coming home also.
Your attention and your optimistic outlook on the business.
Because I think, because you saw a different future, before you felt stuck.
You're like, there's no way.
You came to me one day and you're like, we can't make this work.
I remember you talk about the lot where you said to Marisa, you said, we're never gonna be able to hire another technician.
And then I have such admiration for you as I do a lot of owners that came from a tech background is because you appreciate how if you're gonna hire a tech, like you said to me, I'm not gonna hire a tech just because I need one.
I'm gonna hire one and when I can provide them with the lifestyle and the treatment and the culture that they deserve.
100%, right? 100%.
So good on you for not just making that snap decision.
I need somebody now.
I'm not going to be able to get these cars done if I don't get a person.
Yeah.
And I think a lot of that has to do with, I've seen like there's, there was several other people that I knew that had started shops around the same time that I had either before or after, and they grew a lot faster than I did.
And, but they weren't doing any better.
Right.
They were higher revenue numbers, but their profit margins weren't there.
They were still struggling with
Their their problems were just a lot bigger but for no more money and so I told her I'm like I want to make these changes Before we hire a tech before we grow into a bigger shop before we do that It's not gonna fix everything but my my plan is and my plan has always been since I started making these changes is to try to
fix these things now so that is a thing of the past and I can focus now on my business and my employees instead of I just need to hire more techs and get a bigger shop and then hire more techs and then just fix more cars and never fix the actual problems with the business.
And so that that has been my goal.
And so that's why we've implemented a lot of those things and a lot of SOPs and changed, you know, you know, the whole story, all that stuff.
So I didn't know that.
I mean, I, I guess I never really paid attention.
I, that my, you know, attitude and everything changed.
So that's.
Because I know for so long when I, when I was, and I've been in this industry a long time, I know that I can say honestly that I would come home so many days angry.
and just upset with how the day went in terms of the way I was treated and the political thing, right, that goes on within a dealership.
Did it ruin the relationship?
No.
It didn't ruin it, but it was definitely one of the factors of why I was not a nice person to be around.
And this is why, so when I talk about
what I want to change within this industry.
I'm not just trying to change it for him.
I'm trying to change it for somebody like yourself.
And God bless you for having the understanding.
of what he has gone through and what we've gone through and stick and buy it because was it Hocken that talked about the amount of the percentage of technicians and their marriage is not working?
Oh yeah I don't remember if that's who it was but I did see that yeah and it's a lot it's as well over 50 percent I think in technicians it's like 60 something percent or something like that it's a high number yeah I
You know and that like she talks about it like the end days of the dealership But you can touch on that like I was coming home like Yeah, just very angry.
You want it?
All you want to do when you got home was escape, you know video games and things I mean, I would literally this is I was would make dinner.
I mean I worked a full-time job at the time
came home, made dinner, he's playing video games, and I'm like, hey, dinner's gonna be ready in five minutes, never came to the table.
I sat and ate dinner by myself after working all day.
And I'm like, well, it would be nice to eat dinner with my husband.
I just made a meal.
But I think, honestly, he was just in that place of such frustration that he wanted to escape.
He couldn't even engage with his wife.
Not that he didn't want to, he just didn't have the capacity.
I didn't want to think anymore.
I just wanted to be,
Just wanted to check out not think about anything.
Just do something mindless after You know, I mean, it's the normal you're you're dealing with the the crap car or the crap warranty job or the advisor That's you know, i'll get you on the next one or you know all of that stuff So all of those things combined and then you just it continues every day now I will say this on on top of that because that's not all just
The place that I worked a lot of that does have to do with perspective.
I was not in a good place In my perspective as well now granted all that stuff is still true But you can you can take that, you know multiple ways and I just was not heading in a good direction At overall and so my perspective was bad.
My work environment was bad.
I mean I left the dealership out of frustration
like we had a date set and then I came home one time and I was like one day and I was like I'm quitting what would I say Monday or something yeah something I was like uh okay I guess we were planning on doing it several months afterwards I don't remember the exact time but I was like I'm quitting Monday I was like it's gonna be my last day or Friday or whatever it was right and she was like
Oh, okay.
And I was like, I just can't, I was like, I cannot take it one more day.
Just could not even my service manager, like was blindsided.
Nobody had any clue, but I just couldn't take it anymore.
And so, um, I was just ready for a change and, uh,
We had talked about it a lot.
I mean, we specifically sold our house before to buy this property, specifically knowing we were going to start a shop.
So I already had that in my head.
We just didn't have, like, I was still really nervous.
I was gonna say that.
You were very hesitant.
Yes.
And I think, honestly, you just didn't have the confidence.
You were scared.
Oh, for sure, yeah.
Terrified.
Oh, it is.
It's terrifying, for sure.
Any new change.
Not even just starting your own business.
Right.
But you know, I know what it's like to leave one place of employment and go into another one.
And it doesn't matter how the interview went.
It doesn't matter what they promised you.
Reality hits on the at eight o'clock that first day.
And that's not even really real reality.
That's just what they're going to show you.
Yeah.
We just we're just talking with another gentleman.
He talks about it's the first three months is like the honeymoon phase.
Working at a dealership is like a marriage.
The first three months is just like, wow, I'm making so much money.
yeah you know and and they're so good to me and they just they smile at me all the time and then at month three that very next day and going in month four it's like all of a sudden I think he's cheating on me because they might see another wheel toolbox wheel in and then all of a sudden trouble in paradise trouble in paradise you're you know
That's how it was in my first shop.
Like I just was so excited to finally make it into a shop and then I was just, you know, nothing else mattered.
And then all that started wearing off and then you're just like, okay, you know, this frustrates me or whatever.
And again, I, I always like to say like it, it, a lot of it does have to do with perspective.
So we, we are involved with a lot of that, but yeah.
Definitely scared definitely like worried like she was home with the kids right at that time kid We had one one kid at that time.
So Yes, that was a big adjustment.
We went from me working full-time as an ophthalmic assistant And then we had a baby and then I came home all the same time.
I
Can you say what you were again?
Ophthalmic assistant.
I don't know what that is.
So it's an eye doctor, but they do surgery.
So they're a medical doctor.
So I worked for a glaucoma specialist and I just assisted him with all his procedures and things.
Keep this in a perspective, for a very long time as a tech, she was making more money than I was and she never went to school, never did any training, literally started there not knowing anything.
I knew nothing about the eyeball.
Ever, nothing.
And I became his head technician.
And so there were lots and lots of years that she was getting paid more than me, as a tech who went to school, went to training.
How much money invested in tools?
So much.
You?
Nope, nothing.
They paid for everything.
They got her certified.
They paid for my certification, yeah.
They had great retirement benefits, literally everything that you could imagine they offered.
And so yeah, looking at that time, I was just always frustrated that she made me not
for her, but I wanted to make more money.
To me, that's what I wanted to be was the provider of the family.
That's how I felt.
I'm like, I want to be able to provide.
I don't want you to have to make more money than me.
And so that was always the frustration.
I'm like, I should be getting paid more.
But now looking back, I see how much even more ridiculous it is
of how much we have to invest and put in all this stuff and getting paid less than someone who never had training.
And she did a fantastic job.
She was great at that job.
Her doctor loved her.
He was devastated when she quit.
And so, you know, it's just one of those things like, this is why we're doing what we're doing, right?
Like to help change all this.
But yeah, so doing all that.
And then I was making great money.
I was making a hundred grand a year, you know, before we left.
You were miserable, but you were making it.
Yeah, I was miserable for sure.
But I talk about that a lot, twice, actually probably more than twice, but for sure twice in my career I've taken major pay cuts and both times I was much happier taking the pay cuts and what I was doing.
And I would rather have a happy husband than going on four vacations a year.
Yeah.
So that's such a powerful thing to say because there's a stereotype sometimes that
A lot of people will look past the fractures and the chinks in the armor of their spouse.
How do we move away from this comfort level of living?
How do we move away from that?
That puts a lot of stress on all of us in the industry, but it puts a lot of stress on a man because you're like, when we talk about how men struggle with mental health and we struggle with that weight, you always feel like you're chained to everything.
It's because once you get to that level,
It's through thick and thin, for better or for worse, but it's not always for worse anymore.
It's not always through the thin times.
And we go to work sometimes feeling that pressure of, I don't want to take that from her or my kids.
That level of what I've provided for them, I don't want to take that away.
They don't deserve that to be taken away.
The reality is that it's not about deserve.
Right?
We don't get what we deserve.
That's a myth.
We do not get what we deserve and life is not fair.
We have to.
It's about self-preservation.
Right?
And it's a, God bless you for being able to make him feel like whatever is going to happen, if we make less, we are going to be okay.
Well, I think that's also about communicating, too.
Because he could, like you were saying, maybe he thought, oh, well, if I take a different job, I'm going to make less.
And she's going to be unhappy because we're not going to be able to do these things.
But when we're communicating, I'm going to tell him, I would rather you be happy and joyful in what you're doing every day.
And in turn, I can enjoy you and who God made you and then the whole family is happier and he can continue doing what he's called to do.
So if we're not communicating, then I could be put in a situation where I'm holding him back and I might not even know I'm doing it.
So.
Yeah, I mean, the family unit is such a powerful thing that people tend to
It gets overlooked way too much.
Way, way too much.
Huge.
Communication is huge.
We talk about that all the time now.
We're over communicators by nature, both of us.
And we're still, we still miss it sometimes.
We still miss it sometimes, but we're the type of people like, hey, I'm leaving.
I'll text her, hey, I'm heading out.
Then I'll text her, hey, I just got here.
Hey, this is what's going on.
We're constantly in communication.
It's just how we've, as far as, as long as I can remember, even since we were dating, we both just always done that.
And but we've always like especially big decisions like even when I'm buying stuff for the shop and things like that like Always talk to her about I'm like, hey, I don't just come home with like some random huge whatever I'm like, hey, I'm thinking about buying this and she always knows like when I'm doing those kind of things
you explain it well to you say hey I really think it's he's inviting me into the process I'm not in the shop every day with him I don't do anything involving the shop at all I take care of the home stuff I home school I take care of the kids I make sure that he comes home and I have a healthy meal for him and do my best on that part obviously I'm not perfect at all of it but you know anyway I can support him and that's where I feel like my role is really important
but when he brings me into our business, if you ever hear him talk, he never says my business.
He always says our business and I don't do a single thing actually inside the shop.
So he's honoring me by saying that because I am playing my part even though it's behind the scenes and maybe some people might discredit it and sometimes I do that to myself, but he always reminds me, you are a very important part of our, of our business, our business, not my business.
That's why you're humorous is because
And it's not that I would never do a dozen episodes with just you, right?
But we're trying to shine a light on you and other people that are in your situation.
The little threads you did I loved where it was like you were showing the tools and you'd put the tool down in front of her and you'd be like, any idea what that cost or what is it?
And everybody, your comments thread was blowing up with like, she's gonna lose her mind.
And you, you didn't blink an eye for whatever he said what it cost or what it did or whatever, right?
No, I don't.
I don't.
He supports our family with that, and he, like I said, if it's a larger purchase, he will come and say, hey, I'm thinking about buying this for the shop.
This is what I envision it doing.
This is my plan on how to use it, and this is my plan how to pay for it.
It's not like I'll figure it out when we figure it out.
No, we're talking about a plan together, and we're in agreement.
So we're gonna walk it out together.
I saw that discussion when you were talking about keys.
And you were talking about, Brian and I, what you would buy for investing in doing the keys thing, right?
Because it's a lucrative thing for you to tap into, but it's a big expense, right?
Big expense and you have to do the ROI on it, return of investment.
For those that don't know what ROI, I've been there and I didn't know what ROI meant.
I still don't know what ROI is.
Listen, return on investment.
He is way better at it than me too.
And it's the same thing, like I tried to quote what the 300% rule was today.
And I'm pretty sure I bought the last third of it, right?
It's funny because I know what the 300% rule is, but somehow I always mess it up.
I don't know why, but I always mix and match.
And I know exactly what it means though and how to do it.
That's what I live and breathe by now.
But yeah, like if you don't, so I was going to say as she was talking about this stuff, we also don't,
So the entire business has been run off of cash.
I'll state that, but that's because in our personal life, we were in a lot of debt and 19, actually a hundred percent of it all was for me.
I don't think you had any debt when we got married.
No, I didn't.
Um, so I brought, I,
had debt after I married you because your debt became my debt.
Correct, yes.
But no, I did not bring any extra.
Yes.
So, you know, I've walked into the marriage with, well, after the school was after, but you know, $30,000 for UTI and I had a $20,000 cardo.
I had lots of credit cards, like eight or nine credit cards maxed out.
Like just wow.
Before you were like 20.
Yeah, buried in debt.
You were 21 when we got married, so.
So we got married young she was 19.
I was 21.
So just buried in absolute debt now some of that was after we got married and so once we got out of that I called us out and
By the grace of God, we got out of that one.
So we got out of all consumer debt, aside from our mortgage, and that's how we've ran the business.
But when you pay cash for something, it's different.
Even if it's not actual physical cash, but when it's coming out of your bank account,
You want to look at the ROI because you see that money, but when you run it on debt, you don't pay attention to it nearly as much.
All the statistics are there.
You don't have to take my word for it.
Look up the statistics.
And do the research yourself.
It's amazing.
But that helps with less stress on our marriage because we're not so focused on, you know, do we have all these debt payments that we have to pay every month and how strapped are we going to be?
And do we do we pay the parts bill or do we go to the grocery store?
Exactly.
Right.
Right.
Lucas and David talk about that, how they were literally like we were going to either buy groceries or pay the parts bill.
Yeah.
No.
Well, and it's just you two.
Maybe you can figure it out, but when you've got a house full of... Not a house full, but you have two children at home.
How do you come home to them and say, there's no cereal, there's no milk, there's no bread, because we're paying a parts bill at the shop.
Those young children, that means nothing to them.
They have no grasp, no concept of what's going on there.
This is why, you know, when Luca started to show me the realities of what a lot of shop owners are, and as I've gotten to know you and when you were first starting out, what the reality was,
I've changed some of my perspectives about what a lot of shop owners are.
And we had, just as I was sitting over there, we get talking a lot about fear and fear being the motivation for why or why we don't do things, why we don't make changes.
And I've come to realize that a lot of people are just scared.
But I also made a very poignant statement to them, what the reality is, at the end of the day, we can't still use fear as an excuse, because it's a more accepted excuse to not do something.
The reality is, is there's examples like yourself, there's examples of other successful people out there that have done it, that we can't continue to sit there and say, it's okay because you're scared.
The change has to happen regardless.
Yes.
So scared is not going to cut it anymore for the reason why people don't do it.
Right.
And that's still that's tough talk.
Yeah.
It really is is because you know and here's what I feel I'm feeling like as some of the people are getting our our
and I'm older than you guys, but the younger people that are starting to age up in this industry and are doing it a different way and setting a different example, like yourself, of how you market yourself so well, the older people I think are starting, older, more established shops are starting to go, wow, there is some truth to what they're saying, that you don't have to,
Always do it the way we always did it because that's always the way it's been done, right?
Yeah, that doesn't fly anymore, right?
We're in a we're in a situation here where we have to change things up in order to sell this To the customers.
Yeah, and to sell it to the next generation.
I want to take this on as a career Yeah, and and I'm scared to It's not hacking it.
You got to face your fears one day
Because every other industry out there is evolving, is changing daily.
And we're still sometimes sitting in the, well, they bring their own parts because we let them and we've always let them.
And I don't know if I didn't let them where I'd be.
At the end of the day, that's like in that, what we were talking about earlier in Cecil's class, like his, what he said is like, he, his goal is to get you making money so you can be home with your family.
And I heard something really powerful from a TikTok recently, um, it was a few months back, but he was talking about your kids and he was saying, your kids only want you.
They don't want anything else.
They don't care.
They don't care about the bills.
They don't care about how stressed you are.
They don't care what's going on at work.
They don't care about your fights as a husband and wife.
All they want is you.
They don't care what's going on around them.
They literally just want mom and dad and they want to spend time with you.
And if you're at the shop all day long,
24 seven working every day.
You're going to miss it and you're going to regret it and they don't have that that Acceptance and obviously we accept them, you know and love that you love your kids That's just how it is.
But if they don't receive that and understand that and know that guess what everyone everyone desires love I don't care where you are where you're from everyone desires love and guess what if your kids aren't getting it from you They are going to go somewhere else and look for it somewhere else and it's not gonna be in a good place
And that's it's that's the scary thing right when we see so many people that fall into into bad bad ways bad places Yeah, it's not that they always come from I mean everybody every parent every out there says I loved my kids Yeah, but it's did you love them by what you were doing, right?
I
As a way to show love when the reality is you just miss things, right?
We worked with teens a lot at our church and we see it come from great families, you know healthy families But there we haven't invested as parents into our kids enough in the way that they can receive the love everyone kind of you know takes love in a different way, but you have to learn and have a relationship with your kids to understand how to love them properly and
to let them know, hey, you think one of our kids thinks very differently than we do.
So it's been a challenge to really figure out how we can communicate to them to show them that we love them and care them, even though they're very different from our personalities.
And they're both very different from each other.
And so we have to show them love differently than the other.
Like my, my one, my son is much different than my daughter.
And so we do not show them love the same way because they don't, it's not the same for them.
So can we, can we elaborate on that?
So besides the fact that they're boy and girl, obviously that makes a big difference.
I don't care what anybody else says.
It's a big difference.
But our one is very, our daughter is very creative.
She thinks very out of the box.
She's very, she's never played with toys and nobody ever believes me when we say that.
But she's never played with toys.
I mean, I walked into her room the other day and she had decorated her room with tissues.
You know, so just things like that.
And Chris and I walk in and we're like, oh my gosh, this is a mess.
Like, this is terrible.
To cut her down in something that she's so proud of and that she took time and you know We're gonna say wow, that's really cool.
Like you decorate your room with tissues in my mind.
I'm like, that is the craziest thing I've ever seen that's $50 for the tissue.
Yeah, because you're thinking like it's a mess you have to clean it up, you know, it costs money but to her she just made the most amazing thing ever and she spent all this time and so and and I want to let everyone know I am
still learning all this and I have fallen very short on this and it was a very
Rude awakening on some several situations that I had and I was just it was for sure God like letting me know like hey This is not how you handle this and you need to figure this out and pay attention because again to her like she has this Great grand idea or whatever and all's I'm focused on is.
Oh, it's gonna cost this or now I got a mess like you made a mistake.
You did it wrong that sort of thing.
She She does no idea.
She's six years old.
I
Yeah, she don't know right so but you know to me i'm like, oh, but you you have to set aside that and again Far from perfect.
I need to reiterate that far from perfect i'm still learning all of this and I think a lot of times when people Listen to this you're like, oh, well, you know, it sounds like they got it all figured out.
No, we do not not even close We're still in the learning progress or process of all of this And we're still growing every day.
And so we're just trying to figure it out.
But the great thing is is we noticed it
and now we're trying to nurture it and better ourselves.
So now instead we have to stop ourselves, be aware, and okay, now I need to approach this a different way.
I need to look at this, it's fine, whatever, the mess, there's always a mess.
When you have kids, there's always a mess.
So you just okay, that's so amazing, you know, we show her excitement and we you know Get in there and do it with her like oh not appreciate it Yeah, like oh, let me help you decorate the room or let me help you do this Like get involved with it now instead of making it, you know So that initial reaction that you had yeah, is that how you were brought up?
Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
Okay.
Yeah.
Okay very much.
Yeah, and
very very very tough my my dad and you know, my dad was very tough when I was young and You know, I've got some stories, but I have a great relationship with my dad now So but he was raised with nine other kids or nine kids total, right?
Yeah, he was one of eight and his dad died when he was 15 one of nine.
He's one Yeah, he's one of nine and his dad died when he was yeah super young
So his mom basically raised all of those kids.
All nine kids by herself.
She's a saint.
So he became a man at a very young age.
Very, very young.
And then my mom got pregnant when she was 15.
Yeah, so yeah, see he didn't have a great example as well and same thing like he he's the hardest look I'm not kidding you when I say this is the hardest working man you will ever meet in your entire life so that was my example growing up is work harder work harder work harder and Thankfully like I do work very hard like especially when that when the time comes but I also again know now that
Now that I understand it and have now created these boundaries But I'm also in a position with my business where I've changed so many things that I don't have to work 24-7 to make the money right to feel like you know, I mean because you you're in that situation I don't fault anybody for doing that because that's what they have to do in that moment but if they just take the time to learn it and understand it and I I
I will preach this probably to the day I die.
Learn your numbers.
You need to learn and understand the numbers.
I cannot say that enough because you can't know how to run the business without understanding the numbers.
And I'm not even that great at the numbers.
Someone like Dutch is like, you know.
It's it's so it's such a different level with him, right?
Yeah, I don't even try to discuss this the way you just try to discuss a business thing with him I just sit back from the mechanic standpoint any any any beats me in every kind of conversation that we have about perspectives because it's like He's just such a an intelligent learned.
Yes individual that you cannot and it's not just somebody who's read a whole lot of books No, it's lived it
Yeah.
Oh, a hundred percent.
Right.
So that's the other thing that is, is what makes it even twice as effective is because he doesn't just, you know, talk to a whole lot of people and take perspectives.
Yeah.
He's been through it.
It's tested, tried and true.
Right.
Like so.
You knowing those numbers too, I feel it gave you peace.
Yeah.
because it's like the unknown.
And when you're struggling in the unknown, it's so much harder.
And then once you had that click, those numbers came together, you had peace over it.
It was still hard, but at least you knew where you were headed.
Yeah.
And also, um, you know, understanding and learning that helped me, you know, make the changes that I needed to make knowing what I needed to do, because I had no idea.
And it's so hard as I feel like a lot of times as one person shop owners, cause this doesn't get talked about very much.
But you're because you're doing everything most of the time you feel so overwhelmed.
You don't know what to do It was either vision or ASC.
I can't remember I was in the middle of a class and they were talking about putting all these processes in place And so they asked for questions and I'm like, listen, I'm gonna be honest with you.
It's just me.
I'm doing everything and I
In my mind, I can't make another change because I feel stuck because I'm so busy literally doing everything.
But you have to slow down a lot of times, which we're usually unwilling to do.
Slow down, take some time, understand it to make the changes and it sucks and you're gonna probably lose a little bit of revenue.
It's scary to slow down.
But it's going to benefit you way more in the long run
But you have to make the decision.
I can sit here and preach at you all day long until that person makes that decision.
I saw that when you, I can remember it from your TikTok and your Instagram, when you're talking about your numbers.
Know your numbers, know your numbers.
And you and I know who you're addressing that to.
Certain people in your followings and certain people in the social circles that we run, where we know shop owners in those groups, and we're like, you need to know them.
And then we see some people that have big followings,
that you know from a business standpoint are drowning.
Like they are brilliant mechanics but they are so in need of these kind of conversations and they're so in need of a trip to here like this.
That's why I'm so proud that Rich is here.
I'm so proud of that.
People think it's just crazy that I'm so excited that a guy like
him meets a guy like you.
Yeah.
Right.
Awesome.
Because it's like you're on one side of the not one side but you and I are tight in ASOC and change industry.
Yeah.
We're heavily involved in that.
And then you've got a guy like him that is just it's a new thing to him.
Yeah.
Right.
And he's starting to see and it's like we want to bring those people to this and it's not like trying to get everybody going to the same cult or church or whatever like that.
It's not about that.
It's not trying to sell anybody something it's just like
These people can help you.
Yeah.
And the most of them will be willing to do it for free.
Yeah.
The way you learned.
Well, and it's like, it's the, we've talked about it before.
We don't agree on everything.
You, me and Brian don't agree on everything.
Me, you know, uh, like there's oftentimes we're getting discussions and we don't agree on anything, but we're all respectful enough because at the end of the day we have a common vision.
We know where we want the industry to go.
And so it,
there's something bigger than us.
So we have those conversations and we may not agree, but it does get us thinking.
I say that all the time, like somebody, like I'm very hardheaded, as you know, very hardheaded.
And so a lot of times, like there are some times somebody will say something to me and I'm like, nah, like instantly brush it off.
And then a couple of days later, I'll start thinking about it.
And I'm like, Hmm,
You know what that's probably pretty good and then it starts to and I start to ponder and ponder more and then I'm like You know what?
They're probably right and then I'll start diving into it and do my own research and then there are other times they'll say something I'm like no and then I think about it later.
I'm like, oh that's stupid.
Yeah, I just it's it is dumb, but
Even me being hard-headed as I am, I'm still open enough.
Give the thought a chance.
Give the thought a chance.
There are only a couple things I never ever question at all, but aside from that, everything else, I'm like, it's open.
Let's discuss it.
Let's see if it actually works and have those conversations.
But again, just because we're, like you said, we wanna get everybody here, it doesn't mean we're not all gonna agree on the same exact stuff.
That's okay, but rising tides raise all ships.
And that's that's why when I want to reach out to more and more people and I want to say like My dream for this this conference would have been if we could have had Chuck check out and Chuck and Paul sit down.
Yeah, because I mean it's like you shared the meme that went around Mario, I think spearheaded at first and it's like you better lower your voice when you talk to me if you don't know scanner data Somebody immediately within you know, ten minutes that being up goes
You better lower your voice to me if you don't know who Chuck Injun Chuck is and we're literally talking about the divide of one person is on in tick tock in a very big way.
Yeah, that's Chuck.
And then Paul is in a big way on YouTube.
And what I'm not trying to do is, is one is better than the other.
Yeah, no.
But I mean, the fact that they that Chuck knows who Paul is, but Paul doesn't get to know who Chuck is.
Right?
Or, or
They know who Mario is.
Like, it was so cool last night to be sitting here, and I kept saying to Mario, I said, I name off this name, and I name off that name, and he's like, I might have seen that guy.
but I don't really know who that is.
And I'm like, Mario, I haven't mentioned your name to anybody in a long, long time that doesn't know who Super Mario diagnostics are.
Yeah.
And he just, he goes, blah, blows it off.
But I mean, so the whole thing for me to come here to this and to bring, to see you again and to be able to bring rich and was to try and get those people to connect with what we're trying to do.
Right.
Yeah.
Because
If they listen to this, that's one thing.
They listen to this and they go home and, and, and, and, you know, maybe change how they do things at the shop to make it easier on their home life.
Yeah.
You know, they learn how to tweak their numbers a little bit so that they don't have to work seven in the morning until seven at night, six days a week.
Yeah.
And you don't have to, by the way.
Yeah.
But, but you'll hear the excuses, right?
Of why you have to.
Yeah.
And you know that the excuses are not the truth.
Right.
Yeah, we've seen him.
We walked him.
And I think you first you have to stop telling yourself that.
Yeah.
Well, again, like we talked about like you and I and Marissa and everybody else we can talk and I love podcasts.
You know, I'm a huge proponent of podcasts.
I've I want to get as many people on this podcast as humanly possible.
But at the end of the day, like you just said, like,
we can only talk so much, we can talk to our blue in the face, but until we actually put some action behind it, it doesn't change anything, and I had to make the decision myself to make those changes, and that's why I constantly say when I'm doing these videos talking about what I've changed and what I do now in my shop, guess what?
I was in your position working seven to seven.
I was in your position not making any money.
I didn't take a paycheck for the first six months that I started my shop.
I realized that my shop was not going to survive if I kept going the way I was going so I had to make changes.
I can't tell you why it was easier for me than I see a lot of shop owners do at making those decisions and changes because it didn't take me long.
It might be.
I mean, also, what about support?
I was just going to say that.
How big a factor is she?
I mean, it's very possible.
I mean, it's always a big factor to me.
She has never, ever gone against me.
She's always been supportive from the very beginning.
I might ask questions.
Either if I don't understand or I'm like, it doesn't sound like a great idea.
Can we talk about this a little bit more?
And I'm not a mechanic.
I know nothing about cars.
So I might ask a little bit more questions or I'm not an entrepreneur.
It's just not inside of me.
So I might have a little bit more questions, but I'm not second guessing you.
I just want to know more so we can be on the same page.
Yeah, like somebody asked us because I did questions on our way down here and somebody asked like, were there ever any doubts?
And I was like, nope, she had no doubts.
I was like, yeah, I have lots of doubts.
But she never doubted for a minute that I wasn't going to succeed.
So
You know, how much does that do for me, right?
Oh, it's it's you can't you can't put a measure on.
Yeah, and she's been like that You know even before when we weren't on a journey of like just growing and better ourselves and having these crazy life Experiences and stuff when you go through stuff like that It changes your perspective right your entire outlook on life and everything changes.
So I
I think that's one of the surprising things when I came to AST.
This is my second year.
So I came with Chris last year and he was like, hey, I want you to go with me.
And I was like, why?
I was like, that makes no sense.
I'm gonna have to figure out what to do with the kids.
I'm like, I gotta get a sitter.
I gotta pack their food and make sure everything's good.
I'm like, that just sounds like a lot of work for me to follow you around a conference with a bunch of dudes.
Okay, like just being honest.
Hey, there's some ladies here.
There are some ladies I have met a couple ladies that are great.
But he just he really wouldn't let me say no.
And he was like, you're coming with me and it's going to be fine.
I think the most surprising thing for me coming here has been the I didn't expect it to be so like welcoming, even on my side.
Yeah.
So it's been a really benefit.
I mean, I've taken notes in classes to help me.
And my goal, obviously, I'm not going to implement those in our shop, because I don't work in our shop.
But I can help encourage him as he is doing that.
So I actually texted myself today, and I said, a note to myself, this is specific ways I'm going to start encouraging him every day.
Because I know that he is going to be
Heading up some hard things he's gonna do that and if I'm not there encouraging him Who's going to if your wife if you're if you're not encouraging your husband who's gonna encourage him?
He's you're the one that he sees every morning and every night and every day.
So I'm just challenge you out there wives and
even if you are frustrated with your husband or if you feel like he's not doing his part on the business side or the family side, challenge yourself to get over yourself and just encourage your husband and just try it.
I'm just challenging you, try it, see what happens.
Because if we continue doing that, then if I make him feel like he's the greatest man alive, then guess what?
He's gonna go out there and be the greatest man alive.
So just do it.
It's that vote of confidence and that security of feeling like
everything can go wrong.
And she's pulling for it.
Right?
Yeah, we had days like that.
Oh, yeah.
We talked about like that.
Like, you know, some of the cars that just kick your butt.
Oh, yeah.
And it's like, so much for me where it went wrong is I would have days that were nothing went right.
Cars would kick my butt.
And I didn't really have anyone to come home to.
Yeah.
That that wanted to understand.
Yeah.
You know what it was about or even, you know, they just
It was tough, you know, it is really, and so when you have somebody that makes you feel like whatever it is, you let your, close that door, leave it behind you.
Yeah.
You're now, this is the real reason that you're here.
Yeah.
This is the real point of your life.
Yes.
Is your children and your wife and the legacy that you're gonna leave.
None of that mattered.
It doesn't matter after we come through that door.
And it's hard to separate that.
That's just not in our industry.
I think it's in so many industries and anybody's workplace.
But I'm better at it now.
But I mean, I have a little white dog that I can complain to in that situation.
She loves me regardless.
And that blew my mind.
I didn't realize how much better I was at my job
when I had somebody that I could just come home and relax with, which it can be a pet, but I mean a spouse, it doesn't matter.
I really fear for the people that I've seen go through a relationship breakup and they come home to not a lot.
Not a lot, but here's the thing.
I'm just gonna push for AST or some sort of training because when you come here now, you create,
Relationships with other shop owners and so you feel like you're the only person Going through this eric just told me today after their episode drop He had so many people emailing him saying we're struggling with the same thing like everybody thinks that they're struggling with something by themselves you're not the only person and like
How many times have I messaged in the group asking for help for something and I'm having a rough day or whatever, and y'all help me?
That is the kind of support system.
If you're not married, if you don't have a girlfriend or something, you can still have a support system with other shop owners or other people in the industry that you can relate to them and they can relate to you.
And it's
Do you need that mentally physically you need all that spiritually you need all that stuff to?
You need basically like a sounding board just loneliness is a real thing.
Yeah, and I think people run away from it or deny it Yeah, um, they're ashamed that if they feel lonely and you can feel lonely even when you're married
Yes, I feel lonely in the shop all the time because I work in the shop by myself and I absolutely hate it I don't like being out in the shop by myself It's one of the worst things that I deal with is being out in the shop by myself all day long Maybe that's why I started out whenever you want
And maybe that's why I started recording myself.
I have no idea.
I was going to ask you because I mean it's you seem very like all your stuff when you put it out there seems very random.
Like it just kind of happened and it's like I'm going to record this.
But you wake up every day with a dialogue about what I'm going to somewhat when and what I'm going to discuss today.
And that's hard for me because like going back to it I reached out to you because it's like the podcast was doing good but I'm like
There's so many people that I want to reach with.
How do I do that?
And you just started giving me little like little tidbits of like, OK, so put that on TikTok and put that on TikTok and put that on Instagram.
And this is and you're going way over my my level.
But I mean, I'd be lying if I said TikTok hasn't been the biggest growth of of my podcast that I've been responsible.
Now, Paul Danner, every time he mentions me and the podcast,
the analytics just shoots through the roof.
Like Lucas and David and I were talking about it before lunch, he says it's crazy.
Every time Paul says that 5,000 more people find your podcast, 5,000 people find it.
And that's what's wild is when you think about it, you know, how many times he mentions it, but how big the following is, that's what I hate the most about the algorithms is like,
You know, I can post a real I have 50 something thousand followers on Instagram Only 5 000 actually see it.
Yeah, it's like well, I have five fifty thousand people Like that's so frustrating.
That's not frustrating at all it's like you put all this work in and you're like you want to put it out there and you want people to see it and interact with it and they don't because the algorithm is goofy, but you know, that's the nice thing is like these people that are connected
Again, all are looking to do the same thing.
We're all looking to help the industry and better it.
That's why I love what Paul's doing and making these videos, having these conversations, because again, we need to talk about it and then we need to put it into action afterwards.
Like let's figure out what
Okay, this is what we want.
We're going to figure that out and talk about it.
And then how can we put it in action?
What can we do after that as a collective, the entire industry, and then go from there?
Like Paul and I were talking last night and I said, you know, this is what we intend to do with you is that we're going to have a commercial that's going to run during every episode of the podcast.
And he gets so mad because he's like, you guys mention me in every podcast.
And I go, first of all, I don't tend to mention you.
The guests are always mentioning you.
Yeah.
Because the common thread here with all so many people in the industry that we're now talking to is it was through him that they found their path.
Yeah.
Right.
So and he says, and I said, so well, he's like, I want to sponsor you and all that kind of stuff.
And I'm like,
dude you know you've already done so much more for me and he's like but no he's like i want to do it i i no one has you know i need to do this for you but he doesn't realize he's starting to realize but the same as he doesn't think he did all anything all that special i don't think me mentioning him so much and talking about him is all that special
I'm just being genuinely transparent when I say the man changed my trajectory on where I was going with this industry.
There's two two guys, Lucas and Paul.
Right.
Yeah.
That's it.
And so when he gets all shucks about it and you know I want to like he's he's he's better now.
He's starting to really realize he said to me just the other day I didn't realize how many people's lives I touched until I started to to see the feedback that's happening in this podcast.
Doesn't that happen sometimes?
You put in and you put the seed in the ground and you put it and you harvest it.
It takes a while for that to come up.
In the beginning seasons, you have to work on things before you can push it all the way out there.
And it comes from such a magical place from him because he literally, if you go back and watch his first videos, he is literally just in a classroom recording the video
to be able to then just have it as a learning aid so that they can go back if they miss the lecture, if they miss the classroom, be able to watch it and it's uploaded on YouTube.
Oh yeah, I've heard that a lot, Plainen.
Well, I'm laying in bed trying to go to sleep.
That's what we told her last year when I met him.
I was like, well, she probably heard your voice a lot when I was laying in bed because, you know, I'm like you or weirdos that we work on cars all day long and then go home and learn more about cars.
But I mean,
It is true and I think it was a big deal for me to be able to meet him.
I was all giddy about it last year.
He literally shaped my diagnostic testing
Career, like that's how why I started branching out.
I was at the dealership They didn't even know what an oscilloscope was at the dealership I was the first person to ever buy one and use it at the dealership and like what is this and I helped a guy Diagnose a can bus issue from a body shop car and I didn't even know what I was doing Yeah, I was just poking and prodding around and we figured it out and it was great And I was like, oh my gosh stuff actually works but it it makes a difference like I think we just
Don't know like that's what I told her like I none of this started like my social media stuff I didn't start to do any of this.
We're just talking about this.
I didn't start at all to Try to change the industry or you know be a voice for the industry.
None of that stuff It started out with me wanting to get free tools.
That is literally how it started and then I was like I
the tools are nice, but it's just not like, I don't know.
It's not fulfilling.
And I still like the, I love tools.
Yes, we can see that.
I love, love, love my tools, but being able to talk about the automotive industry stuff and especially like, it seems like TikTok, that's very popular.
And I was not utilizing TikTok now that I am like those videos do really well.
And the conversation's really great.
And there's a lot of people talking about it and more and more people are understanding it.
And it's it is it's much more fulfilling and the goal is I think collectively again for all of these people is We want what's best for all of the people in the industry because we so undervalue ourselves so so undervalue ourselves even to this day like I
Pretty I value myself pretty well, and I still feel like I undervalue myself even more and I think that's just it is You know, we we try to we were very as a collective group.
We're all just kind of Humble, I guess I don't know I guess it's probably the best way to put it like we don't want the spotlight like I don't want people to come up and you know I'm like, I just that's not why I did it like yeah talking about the the mat thing.
I tore that before.
Yeah, I don't I
Yeah, it's not why I didn't do it for that.
I don't and and and I'm I'm I said to you right at lunch I'm I was bragging on you because then that's what I do because it is such a and hopefully when he arrives Tomorrow we might be able to sit down with him for a few minutes.
Yeah, and and get because I want to hear him I really want to hear him talk about If he'd ever made this kind of move in his career without you, I think we know what the answer is on that, right?
Yeah, we kind of talked about that
So I am so proud of you because, you know, and some people could say, well, Chris does that to get follows.
Chris does that to get people to like it, to watch his next reel.
I know I've known you long enough now, right?
Because we were connected really last year at AST.
Yeah.
I know that that's not where the motive is for Chris.
No, I can attest to that.
Chris wants to see this industry, you know, and I'm even worse than you because you've seen me.
I'll share stuff and it's like, this guy is saying this about, you know, text the dealer and I'd punch him through the phone if I could.
And you get mad, but you get mad in a different way.
And you step up and go in a much more diplomatic way, dude, you need training.
Whereas I might go, you are the problem with the industry.
You get up there and go, dude, you need training.
I was exactly where you are.
And then people go, well, okay, that's a lot of people just leaving it there.
For what you did for that young man, I'm so excited to be able to hear and see now.
if any of it sticks, what he's going to be exposed to if any of it sticks, and I hope to God it does.
I want to be confident that it will, right?
Because you had resistance to making the change, right?
We all talk about that.
And I hope that he's got the same kind of security, I don't want to call it security, but like support system that you are, to see him achieve that.
Because that would be phenomenal.
Yeah.
I think so.
He told me that he had talked with his wife and kids before.
They had discussed it as a family.
So I don't know much about him.
I'm excited to meet him and talk to him.
Yeah, me too.
I want to know the back story.
Yeah.
I don't know.
I literally know nothing about him.
I think he is like I don't think he has a backstory similar to you and I I think he's almost all self-taught he might be yeah, I like like I said, I don't know it's just Like we had talked about I just stood on it for multiple days and I thought well what what's gonna what can I do?
what can I actually do to make a change in this this guy's life and I
I don't know.
I do believe your words were I'm going to put my money where my mouth is.
Yeah.
Something along those lines.
Like I'm just going to actually just do something about it.
And that's exactly what you did.
And there's so few of us that don't like I was bragging on last night and it's just like we don't like there's a lot of people in a way bigger operation than yourself.
Way different numbers than what you make.
I'm not you don't have to disclose your numbers or whatever.
Right.
But you know what I mean.
Yeah.
Yeah.
That wouldn't do that.
Hmm.
Yeah.
And I would hope they would.
Yeah.
But they don't.
And I asked you just at lunchtime, I'm like, how did you think about that?
Because he's all of a sudden going to take, open up his wallet, grab a stranger and, and, and.
I trust his heart and I trust his discernment.
So when he told me, I said, Oh, well, that sounds awesome.
Great.
Let's do it.
Yeah.
I mean, again, if you're going to do something like that,
You just have to say, we're so focused on like, if we're gonna pay for this or do this.
The end result.
What's the end result?
They may not show up.
What's the investment gonna return?
And it's like, you just, you can't think of it that way.
It wasn't a business move.
No.
It didn't benefit me at all.
I didn't make any money.
I lost money.
I mean, I'm not lost, but you know what I mean?
I'm not getting money back.
Nobody paid for anything.
I just decided, and I was like, well, I was weighing out the pros and cons, and I thought we might pay, and he might not show up, because I had to pay before him.
But I thought, you know what?
Who cares?
It's 500, 600, I don't even know what the total was.
500, 600 bucks.
Whatever.
You were coming anyway.
Coming anyways, it's no big deal.
If I can help him and change the trajectory of his career like it has for me, then why not?
It's worth the chance in my mind.
What's 600 bucks at the end of the day?
Another family is worth the chance.
Oh, 100%.
Because if he improves the things that he needs to, it will change his entire outlook and family life.
It'll change his family tree.
Legitimately change his life, his wife's life, his kids' lives, their kids' life.
That's what Dave Ramsey always says, is changing people's family trees.
That's literally what it'll, it's changed ours.
I mean, because we weren't going anywhere.
The business, we were either gonna stay that way forever and never actually make money, which profit is not a dirty word.
I just wanna continue saying that.
or we were gonna go out of business, and then I would have that failure hanging around my neck, and who knows how I would take that, because that's just, some people take that differently than others, and I'm not that type of person to take failure very well.
I adore you to heck, but I have a feeling that if you had went out on your own and it failed, you would have been almost unemployable.
I would say you're probably 100% right.
Because I know what your personality's like, and I know your pride, and I know your stubbornness, and your strength of conviction.
And I think that that's what happens to a lot of people out there after they do that.
And you see these case, you know, these stories of I owned my own shop.
And then Mario has a co-worker who I was talking to his shop owner and he used to run a shop.
And then he made some really good business and he doesn't even need to work.
He's very well off.
Yeah.
Like wealthy.
Yeah.
But why is he still going in and working on vintage Porsches all the time?
Because he absolutely loves it.
Now, that's a guy that is going to have a successful... I used to be a shop owner, now I'm an employee again and it's successful.
Yes.
Because there's that safety blanket there.
You and I
I haven't even been the shop owner yet and it's very frustrating sometimes for me with all the people I network with and all the things that I've learned and been shown and seen.
I'm not always the easiest person to employ because I've always been the way that I will say what's on my mind.
If you ask me, how would you handle that?
That's probably not the best way to do it because I'm going to be like,
Well, firstly, you know, and then it goes in a tie rate.
Yeah.
And then the person's looking at me like, first of all, where did you get all that information?
And then second of all, how dare you?
Right.
Because I don't just back it up with an opinion.
I'll back it up with an example of how somebody does it different and why it works for them.
And I'll some even some facts.
that's not always welcome.
So I'm glad, I'm proud of where you are and I'm proud to know you and I'm proud to see that this is going so good for you and I'm proud to heck of what you've done with this young man because it's you know I'll brag about you for a long time because if we see
it changes life, like we said, then there is nobody that deserves more credit than yourself and him.
I'll just give God all the credit.
Yeah, well, but you're the, you're the, the, the, the vessel, the vessel.
Yeah.
Right.
Yeah.
I mean, I, you know, sure.
Yeah.
Yes.
I am the vessel.
I mean, you did say yes.
It is a very, yes.
But, and, and, and again, I don't know.
I'm just, I don't, it's weird to me.
Like I just don't, it's,
Like you don't want to make it about yourself.
Yes Yeah, I know It is worth celebrating what you did.
Yeah, you know, it really is Yeah, and I mean even if it doesn't pan out to be something great for him or he may he may take a job driving Truck in two years.
We don't know.
Yeah, right Well, maybe it's an opportunity for somebody else who feels that tug on their heart towards somebody or maybe it's a frustration tug You know, just just do it
Yeah, just do it.
I mean shout out to David Hall again Like he paid for his flights to get here like, you know out of that video how many other shop owners saw that video and And I gave the open welcome that anybody who wanted to help they were more than welcome to and only one person reached out to me so You know that
The invitation was open and a hundred, like, I think the last time I checked it was like a hundred thousand or over a hundred thousand people saw that video.
So, and that was just on TikTok alone.
So I, you know, we've got to do something different.
Yeah, that's right.
I guess that's what I would say about all that.
We've got to try something different.
And if different is, is start paying for people's, because they're not going to do it on their own in most cases, unless they're in such a desperate situation where they absolutely have to.
And so this gives them an opportunity.
Now, I will say again, I think they need to have some sort of skin in the game.
They need to pay for something.
I don't like paying for literally everything.
so I want them to have some skin in the game and you just have to count the money gone and You know, it's it's not about the money right?
Like it's about the person and hopefully that they take it and learn and grow and and
learn the same things that I did and better their lives.
At the end of the day, that's what we want.
Because the more people that better their lives and better their business, the better off everyone is, the better off the industry is, the better off their employees that they hire are.
That's what he said in the original response videos.
He wants to grow the business eventually.
There is no better place to learn how to grow an automotive shop than here any sort of training event and I like someone just asked me like hey, which one do you think's the best?
I'm like AST because it's like the family one like you can get to know way more people It because it is a little bit smaller and that's getting bigger very quickly but it's it's still my favorite by far and so, you know, I
I just can't say enough about training and the trajectory and what it's done for our lives and for sure.
It's changed a massive amount.
What day do you teach with Kim and Brian?
Tomorrow morning.
And you're gonna be doing what with them?
Short form video.
So it's rev up your marketing with video.
Yeah, did you ever think last year?
That you'd come back in a year's time and be up on a you know in a classroom teaching No, no, I mean never in my wildest dreams and that's pretty cool for them to reach out to you Amazing because they are there on the top of their game.
Oh, yeah Right there.
I mean that I I
I preach this all the time on my social media, and I've been using them for a year now, and they've done fantastic.
Their entire team's fantastic, they're fantastic.
They paid for Brittany's website last year, because she had won a scholarship, I'm pretty sure, and so they paid for her website.
They built the entire thing and did that all for free.
That, to me, that was what made me want to sign up with them, because I'm like, that right there's a perfect example right there.
Putting your money where your mouth is, helping another business owner,
Um, and you know that I was like, Oh, this is a no brainer for me that that shows me what type of people they are.
They truly want people to succeed in their business.
And I'm not, I'm not the nicest person online.
People know that like, but at the end of the day,
Like I just said on my story, I said, Hey, I may have been mean to you.
Come say hi to me.
It's okay.
It's not personal.
I promise.
I don't lie.
I'm nice person overall.
Like we're going to get in disagreements.
We're not going to agree on it.
It's okay.
Like at the end of the day, we probably want the same thing.
The amount of people that come up to me that I have only maybe spoke with and want to hug me.
It feels so overwhelming, right?
Because I'm a hugger anyway, so it's like, I don't, I'm not uncomfortable by that, right?
I told David Roman I'm gonna hug him before I go home and he's like, you can see him, he's getting tense.
He's like, I don't like people to touch me.
It's not about you, it's about me.
Yeah, let me give him a hug.
That's right, kiss that bald head of yours.
But, you know, so it's to be able to touch the people that a way I've been touched and what this has brought me, the friendship that you and I have, right?
Oh yeah.
And it all starts with,
I give so much glory to Brian because this all started out with Brian and I talking every day.
Yeah.
And I would go on these like where I'd be on a road test in the morning first thing and I'd be ranting these four minute, five minute, you know, text messenger rants all vocal because I'm driving.
You wouldn't believe what I'm.
And then he would he would he would come back with one.
And it just became so that was our morning routine.
And then we just more and more people we just started adding to the group.
And, and we know some of us have had some things happen in our lives and, and they reach out to us.
Brian was a person that I had so talked to for years.
I never met him in person till last year.
Last year was a big year for me.
Yeah.
Because all of these people, I finally got to actually come up and it's like, I'm not shaking your hand.
Yes, I'm meeting you for the first time, but you feel like family.
Yeah.
Right.
And, and it's so powerful.
You know, so yeah, we have some tough conversations and sometimes we're not nice online and we certainly don't agree on everything.
But that brotherhood, that family that we've developed through these conversations, young Noah is struggling, right?
Noah is feeling, and Noah messages me, he messages me and he'll call on Friday night and he's like, last week he's like,
I'm beginning to feel like the jaded mechanic.
I'm at the shop, and they've made some changes to the shop, and I'm not making hours.
And he's like, what would you do?
And I'm like, I'd be right in there tomorrow morning, and I'm gonna say this, that, and the other thing, and I'm gonna take that confidence that I have in myself, and if you're not going to value me, somebody else will.
100% and especially if you're willing to learn and your work and you're willing to work.
It's so rare such a talent to have all of that and for a company not to Take full advantage of that.
That's their loss, but he he is in a when he tells you the story of what's happening It's so eerily similar to the dealer.
I left 10 years ago the shop foreman
It's got more pull and more clout and more control than the service manager.
So he goes to the service manager and says, I'm told that I can't go to training, that there's no openings, but yet I log in and it shows that the seats aren't even full.
So the shop foreman is dictating when I can go to training.
And he's a guy that like, the training would be the best investments you're going to put into anyone in the shop.
That's your kid for that.
I say kid, he's not a kid, but you know what I mean?
Young man.
Younger than us, for sure.
And I'm just like, brother, I feel where you've been.
I've been there.
I know what you're going through.
And I can tell you that every time I have ever felt like it was enough was enough and I left, I went to something better.
And you are leaps and bounds ahead of where I was at your age.
So if you think that you're limited, you're crazy.
No, it's that fear thing, right?
Like you're it you're you don't want to be uncomfortable.
You don't know what is on the other side It's hard to always make that decision and what Joyce Meyer always says do it afraid like, you know Sometimes you just have to do it afraid.
I mean I started the shop afraid I still have months now that I'm afraid I still have slow days like a shop owner messaged me or
on our way here, and he was like, hey man, like he sent me his numbers his first month, and he had a killer first month, and then he's super slow now.
He was booked out multiple weeks, and I said, hey, it's okay.
I said, I still have days where I don't have any appointments, and I've been doing this for three and a half years.
I said, it's all right.
Here's what I would recommend you do.
Here's, you know, and he sent me like a little Facebook ad post thing that he made, and I'm like, I would make some changes, and you know, do this, and adjust this, and I said, you know,
I basically just hopefully helped him walk him through it because in the beginning of the business, you're terrified.
Yes.
And so you start to make decisions that you normally wouldn't make because you are scared.
And so you just have to be careful is all.
Well, you guys, I want to thank Marissa.
Thank you, Chris.
I love you, buddy.
I am so happy to have you here, man.
And, um,
again I'm so proud of you.
I'm gonna continue to brag about you and I know that you don't handle it you know but and it doesn't make sense but you deserve it.
So I want to thank you for coming on.
I mean this is a cool dynamic and you deserve
all as much of the credit as I give to him it is very much a team thing and it's been it's been interesting to have you here and be able to share that because I had that suspicion and he had always said she's my she's she's the other half you know she it's it's as much hers
But he puts himself out there, right?
And he makes himself such a presence that, and you kind of hide in the back.
A little bit, a little bit.
And so I wanted to be able to shine a light on you of how this dynamic works.
Well, I appreciate that.
Because to give the example that it can work.
Yeah, it can.
You know what I mean?
Yeah.
But it's not just going to happen.
No.
Yeah, you got to put in the work and the effort and for sure 100% goes without saying the shop and my success and success I use loosely.
We wouldn't be where we're at now without her without a shadow of a doubt.
We've always said it's God's business.
We're just managing it.
That's right.
And, you know, we just work together.
And again, we're far from perfect.
We're learning a lot.
So, you know, we're not sitting here trying to be, you know.
We're still students.
We're just talking from experience and mistakes and lots and lots of mistakes.
You never stop learning in a semester.
No doubt.
With that, I want to say thank you very much.
We'll talk to you again, everybody.
Thank you.
Bye-bye.
Hey, if you could do me a favor real quick and like comment on and share this episode, I'd really appreciate it.
And please, most importantly, set the podcast to automatically download every Tuesday morning.
As always, I'd like to thank our amazing guests for their perspectives and expertise.
And I hope that you'll please join us again next week on this journey of change.
Thank you to my partners in the ASA group and to the Changing the Industry podcast.
Remember what I always say, in this industry, you get what you pay for.
Here's hoping everyone finds their missing 10 millimeter and we'll see you all again next time.