If you Googled the phrase, “To throw under the bus,” an image of my six-year-old son Eric would appear! He’s infamous in the Twiggs household for throwing his older sister Erin under the bus! If I ask, “Eric, why haven’t you gone to sleep yet?” His reply, “Its Erin’s fault, she keeps talking to me!” “Eric,…
Feeling like the world has gone a little crazy? As an automotive repair shop owner, your #1 priority is keeping your team safe and busy. Your #2 priority is reassuring your customers that you are here to serve them. How you fulfill both of these is going to help determine whether you thrive in the…
I have an embarrassing confession to make. It all started after reading a Mayo Clinic study which concluded that sitting is the new smoking. I was motivated to get moving, so I set a goal to get in 10,000 steps per day. I purchased a fitness watch to help me track this meaningful milestone. Late…
As a shop owner, your focus is on making sure you have plenty of work coming in your doors to keep your technicians productive. If your phones are ringing but the bays are empty, you need to pay attention to what is happening in between. Your first contact with a prospective customer may be your…
Meet “Ben.” Ben is a shop owner who made several attempts to motivate his manager, “Sarah,” to complete her goal poster. He initially mentioned this during their Monday morning one-on-one meeting. First, he told her that seeing her goals would increase the likelihood of achieving her goals. Using his Les Brown voice, he said, “Sarah,…
My wife and I were having breakfast at a local chain restaurant. “William,” the waiter, was friendly, the service was timely, and the food was tasty. Towards the end of our visit, William handed me the bill and instructed me to go see “Two Star Mary” to settle up. When I arrived at the cashier counter,…
As a district manager, I hated when my regional manager would visit without notice. One day, I received a call from “Rick,” my regional manager. He said he was in town and wanted to visit shops with me! The bad news was that this was a complete surprise. The good news was that he allowed…
I have a confession to make. I’m NOT handy around the house. If you Googled the phrase, “Do It Yourself,” you would NOT find my picture anywhere on the internet! Fortunately, I have a handyman named “Harry” I can call. If I have a landscaping issue, I call Harry. When the bathroom needs to be retiled,…
The story is told of a billionaire businessman with two sons. He met with them one day and told them his fortune would be left to the first son who could create a successful business! Success was defined as generating one million dollars in annual net profit. The oldest son, “Sam” went straight into activity…
Are you holding your people accountable? When I was a district manager for a national automotive chain back in 2001, I would have answered this question with a definite “YES!” After all, I always “preached” the right things. During team meetings, I preached about the habit of filling out a courtesy check for every customer. I preached…