Maximum Octane

We all want to grow our businesses, influence our internal customers and help them develop, grow, and become better professionals. But how many of us are prepared to delegate and trust our team members' decisions?  Today, I'm joined by the fantastic LeAnne Williamson. She is an Executive Coach, Advanced Certified Profit First Professional, Certified Engagement Coach, DEI Certified, and Consul...

Many shop owners make conscious and sincere efforts to keep their internal customers happy or satisfied, yet their retention rates keep dropping. Pizza parties and scratch-offs might get employees happy, but to get engaged employees who feel appreciated and valued, managers and shop owners need to do a bit more than that.  In today's episode, I welcome Don Rheem to explain how neuroscience an...

Having a family atmosphere in your shop makes everything smoother; it creates a great work environment and strengthens relationships, trust, and efficiency. It sounds simple, yet it is not so easy to get.   In this episode, we chat with Greg Marks, Owner, Technician, and Advisor at Marks Automotive in Jasper, Alabama. Greg's shop is known not only for its top-notch quality service but al...

The world can be a hateful place, yet luckily, there are people out there showing us that you don't have to be upset or hostile all the time. Meet Lee Anderson, Service Manager at Integrity Auto Care in South Beloit, Illinois, and the protagonist of a unique, inspiring, and touching story.  In today's special episode, we delve into an unknown side of adoption, how Lee and his wife Brittany na...

The holidays are, for most people, a reason to gather with their loved ones and celebrate. But for many people, Christmas and New Year's eve are two of the most triggering weeks of the year.  In today's episode, Mike Warren visits us to talk about the side of the holidays no one wants to discuss: a lot of people suffer during this time of the year. Mike is an Executive Coach at ATI, and an ac...

What kind of business do you want to have one year from now?  In this episode, the amazing Don Walter visits us to share some of his vast experience in the automotive industry and invites us to take a minute and think about our next year's goals. Don has done everything, been everywhere, and seen everything in the industry. Now he is a Certified Executive Coach and Profit First Professional a...

Why are successful shop owners in the automotive industry treated differently from successful entrepreneurs or business owners? In today's special episode, I'm joined by Gilda Dyckman, owner of Cars Muffler & Automotive; Denise Stanley, owner of Quality Automotive; Chris Cozad, President at Alternative Auto Care; and Frank Leutz, Marketing Director at Desert Car Care and host of the Wrench Nat...

Today's episode is special in the whole extension of the word because Gilda Dyckman joins us to tell the story of her identical twins, Troy and Brent.  The twins, now 22, were blessed with an autism diagnosis, and since they arrived in Gilda and her husband's lives, they did nothing but bring joy, good laughs, and tons of teachings about love, empathy, patience, and compassion.  Gilda ha...

How familiar are you with your personal auto policy?  This week, on the second and last part of the two-part series on insurance, Richard Sharman joins us again to talk about everything you must (or at least should) know about your auto policy. From how it looks and what it's written on it to State limits coverage and exclusions, Richard unravels every detail you must be aware of to avoid get...

Most shop owners and virtually anyone who gets insurance are reluctant to go through policies' thousands of small print pages; they kind of "just trust."  In today's episode, we are educated by Richard Sharman on all things insurance. Richard is an Executive Coach at ATI with over 40 years of experience in the auto collision industry and insurance claims professions. He explains what to look...

When investing in our business, we should look at three main components: improve our marketing, how the company looks, and most importantly, how it operates. Almost every shop owner ignores a crucial part of that third component: developing internal customers.  Today, Chuck Lafferty visits us to share his thoughts on the importance of developing our team members, why it is crucial, and the be...

When new customers visit a shop, the unwritten rule is to give them the best treatment possible, providing that potential new client with a WOW experience. If the experience is satisfying enough, the new customer will undoubtedly recommend that shop to friends and close ones. Still, what about the second, third, or fourth time that same customer visits the shop?  In today's episode, Charlene...

The life of an auto repair shop owner is so fast-paced, so full of thousands of things to think about, that even if they try to squeeze in a couple of hours a week for marketing, they never can.  Meet Dave Martin, second-generation owner of Martin's AUTO REPAIR, a shop that has been in business for the last 51 years. After many years of thinking about investing more time and money in marketin...

Today's episode proposal is slightly different as we still deal with Hurricane Ian's aftermath. The first sensation that comes to mind is gratitude for staying healthy and being so blessed. I've been lucky enough to stay safe, to have plenty of water and food, and to have my house barely touched by the Category 4 storm, with only minimal damage.  Still, as the city stands on its feet again, I...

Many shop owners' retirement plan is getting out of their business feet first. That is a plan, but it is not a good plan. Retirement is unavoidable, it may feel far away from now, but it'll come, and spoiler alert, it is not cheap.  In this episode, Jim Groves joins us to talk about the endgame, a sensitive subject that many business owners prefer to ignore or leave for later. Jim is a Sales...

As shop owners, the price we pay for coping with toxic employees is higher than we think. Meet Keith Katz and learn about his story of dealing with a toxic employee for almost a year, which affected his business and health and made him lose several valuable internal customers.  Keith has been part of the automotive industry since 1981 and a shop owner since 1998, when he founded Quality Servi...

Kenneth Martin joins us today to discuss a subject that is often treated as taboo by most shop owners and has the potential to literally take your business to the next level: metrics. Ken is a Process Mastery Instructor, Consultant, and Analyst at the Automotive Training Institute. He has over 35 years of experience in the industry and has owned a collision repair center for 17 years. He is also a...

We are thrilled to welcome the inspiring Mary Kelly to the show for the second time. In this opportunity, she uses her superpower of boiling complex issues into simple ideas to discuss the concept of service and how we should think of it, taking into consideration the global, social, domestic, and economic issues that affect our customers' lives.  Mary is an accomplished writer and co-author...

Joining us today are Cassandra Bergum, GM and Owner of Hi-Line Service & Hydraulics, and her daughter Autumn to talk about the importance of culture and nurturing personal relationships in the workspace.  After managing an oilfield trucking company for almost a decade, Cassandra relied on his mechanic's background from her time at the Army's National Guard to accept managing Hi-Line Servi...

In today's episode, Eric Twiggs unravels the best techniques to stop procrastinating and maximize every second of our day. Eric, aka The Accountability Coach, is a Certified Guerrilla Marketing Coach, Certified Life Coach, and a Certified Executive Coach. He is a top 10 finalist in Amazon's Elite Author award for his book "The discipline of now," he is a husband, father, an internationally renowne...

Joining us today is George Zeeks to crack the code of fruitful, productive, and satisfactory relationships in the workspace and at home.  George's coaching style blends his experience in the Army, where he saw himself in charge of groups of people, convincing or forcing them to do things they didn't want to, and several years of experience in the automotive industry. George is a Management Co...

Unpredictable things happen all the time, and there is nothing we can do about them; it's in their name, right? They cannot be predicted. However, a business that relies on serving people MUST have a plan B or a blueprint of what to do in case the unexpected happens. Clients, whether longtime customers or new ones, will understand if there is some issue that'll delay their appointment. The differe...

Between the hundreds of corporations constantly competing for our attention and the monumental efforts political parties make to distract us from what is happening, it's easy to get lost chasing our own tails, worried by things that have absolutely nothing to do with us. Today, Brian Hunnicutt joins us to share his epiphany about how we decide to spend our time and focus on the power we have to ch...

Even if it sounds crazy, the same marketing principle applies to multi-billion dollar companies and small businesses: advertising and marketing must be done consistently, regardless of the economic context and the business needs.  In today's episode, Chris Messer joins us to crack open some of the most valuable marketing and advertising secrets. He is the Vice President and Group Publisher of...

We can learn a lot about leadership, empowering internal customers, and becoming the CEO of our business from our guest, Jason Meyer, who transformed a 7200-square-foot shop into a successful business with 30 locations.  Jason is the Director of Corporate and Partnership Stores Tirecraft Ontario Inc. Although his father wanted him to become a CPA, Jason decided to follow his passion and went...