How to Build a Team That Doesn't Need You Every Minute | Brandon Steckler - Ep 17

0:00And then you can't go back there and fix everything for them either. So you don't do that anymore. You know something, I'd be lying if I say I didn't. And I have to get away from it because I'm becoming a crutch. Yep. Been there, done that. Actually, Rick called me, you're mommying them too much. And I did that a lot. I am.

0:15And you know what? It's my tendency to go there because that's the only way I feel like I'm helping. But at the same time, I will get phone calls that say the check engine light's on. What do I do? Now, come on, guys. Let's try a little bit. Because you've allowed them to call and ask you that question. It's my fault. I know that that was me before they were using my brain to do their work.

0:32And so now I'll say, well, what do you think you should do? Welcome to Downshift with my sis, Tanika Haynes. We all know as shop owners, sometimes you got to slow down in order to speed up. And that's what this podcast is all about. It's time to downshift. You know, I really had no idea who you were until you guys started dating, because you are Amber's baby daddy to me.

1:01That sounds so funny. That's Amber's baby daddy. It is, though. That's who I am. That's who you are. But that's funny because you get to really introduce yourself. We talked a couple of times and I see you, I know you teach and you're awesome, awesome, awesome technician and educator. But other than Amber's baby daddy and WorldPac and Steckler, who in the heck are you?

1:24Where'd you come from? So, I was actually, I'm not too far from here. I was born in Princeton, New Jersey. I grew up in the Hightstown area. You probably don't know where that is. I have no idea. I spent most of my life right over here in Reading, Pennsylvania. I made a lot of friends here. I moved all over the country in search of a, I call it a place to call home, as far as work.

1:43I grew up in a dealership atmosphere and it just got monotonous. I mean, I learned a lot at the dealership level, but I got bored. Okay. And some people would say I was crazy because it's in this industry, it's easy to make money when there's plenty of work. And you're doing the same things over and over again, it's like assembly line work, you know.

2:03But I just, I wasn't mentally stimulated, so I ventured out into the independent side of the industry and got my rear end handed to me. Well, I mean, what cars were you working on at the dealership? Toyota? So I started my career off with, uh, GM. I went to a GM ASE school, Automotive Service Educational Program. It gave me some really good structure.

2:23It taught me how to stay focused on, on learning newer technologies and and how to leverage service information and use the right tools and follow procedure. But I really didn't feel it prepared me for the real world. And here's what I mean by that. It had nothing to do with the GM program. It was great. Mm-hmm. But to leave with all these certifications and I still couldn't fix a sandwich, you know?

2:45And that's the truth. It was pretty humbling and embarrassing. So it just took time, but, when I, when I had an opportunity at a Honda dealership, I carried over those learning capabilities, like the ability to learn rapidly, over to Honda. And I progressed really, really quick, right? In less than a year, I was master certified with Honda. So it went really well for me.

3:09But that same rapid rate of growth is what hindered my progress in the, in the independent side, because I came out with all this confidence But man, like when that Honda wasn't in my bay and it was a Volvo or a Saab, I was absolutely clueless. Took all the air out of your balloon, huh? That's exactly it. The wind in my sails just, pshew.

3:30And to the point where you felt like maybe I shouldn't be doing this. I hightailed it back to the dealership and one of my friends, Dan, said to me, he pointed, he's like, "Absolutely not, get out." He had some other words for me. I don't wanna say them here. Get your ass outta here. Yeah, he's like, "No, you belong out there." You got a mind for it.

3:48It's like anything else, you just got to learn. And he was right. It took that kick in the pants to get back out and try again. Well, I'm glad he did that for you. Me too. Honestly, it reshaped the way my career was headed. I watched my dad do that to people a couple of times. Like, while I was talking about it, Curly and Nick, they're amazing.

4:08And Nick is crazy awesome Toyota certified technician. I mean, they want him to teach for Toyota. He's like, nah, I'll just stay in the Bay. But he fired both of them, especially Curly. Now, Curly has his own shop, but because he thought you're limiting yourself. Go out there. Get out. Go do some stuff. That's great. Get out. So then you moved to independent.

4:27When did you start teaching? Well, actually, tell me more about your mentor. So everybody who knows me knows everything I've ever done was because of Jim Morton. And I've got to give it to my parents. My parents gave me the drive to do things, just always try harder. I mean, that's what I've always done. But shortly after leaving the dealership or getting into the independent side of the industry, I met Jim Morton at an event, a real, real tiny after-work event, you know, pizza and soda.

4:59Mm-hmm. And there might've been 10 or 15 of us in there. And his claim to fame was, what was the name of the class? The ABCs and Ds of ignition. Mm-hmm. "Give me a car, any car, and in 15 minutes or less, I'll have the ignition system fault figured out." And I thought that was a pretty big claim to make. I'm interested now.

5:19And I couldn't believe the amount of knowledge this man had. But what struck me most about it was his confidence, right? It wasn't that he could do all this stuff, it was that he had no doubt he could do it. So I approached him after that event and, excuse me, I asked if I could, "Get some private training from him." And he giggled like, "Yeah, right."

5:39He's heard it 1,000 times. People show up once and then they change their mind. And he said, "Yeah, $100 an hour." And I said, "Ouch, but okay." So we went to his house later that week and I was there till, I don't know, probably 11 o'clock at night. I met his wife and I turned like this, my book bag knocked all her pictures off the wall.

5:57There was glass everywhere. I was so embarrassed. But at the end, he put his hand out like this. I gave him a high five. He's like, "No, you owe me." $600. Yeah. And I paid him and he cashed the check, son of a gun. But after that, those days with exchanging money were over. He found himself an apprentice and— We already know what to do.

6:19We've been to the trainings, paid for the coaching, learned the right way to inspect cars, build estimates, and talk to our customers. That's not the problem. The problem is consistency because some days it only works when the right person is working. And when they're not, it's a whole different shop. So now you're stuck in that cycle. You need a strong team to run a great shop, but you need a great shop to attract a strong team.

6:40Make it make sense. That's why I rock with Detect Auto. Detect Auto streamlines your service processes with automations that save time, increase maintenance sales, and improve productivity without changing your whole system. It plugs in, guides your team through inspections, recommendations, and even customer communication. Now, that's not just based on memory or mood. That's how a shop runs. And let me tell you, I've been using it for over a year now.

7:09My ARO is up 63%. That's not new knowledge. That's just consistency. If you're tired of your shop depending on who showed up today, go check out Detect Auto. Book a demo. He's always told me, he goes, if you ever lose the fire in your belly, I'm gonna drop you like a hot potato. Do you understand? I said, yeah, yeah, I'm not gonna do that.

7:27I wanna, I wanna do this and I wanna help other people do it because I was miserable at the dealership. I couldn't see doing it another 40 years. And believe me when I say where I worked was great. I loved the guys, I loved the shop, I loved all my customers, but mentally I was just bored. It was lots of work, lots of sweat, lots of grease, and I wasn't getting anything out of it.

7:50No challenge. No, it didn't seem challenging anymore, so. Okay, so, and then I know that the student is now the teacher, but you're taking it to a different level and you're dealing with some, some knuckleheads that are giving you a hard time. I'm trying. You know something, I had a tremendous opportunity. That same mentor, Jim, dragged me in front of the classroom.

8:09He said, I can't talk, my throat hurts, you're going to have to teach this class. Was he telling the truth? He was not telling the truth, and I knew it. But I said, his mentor did it to him 20 years beforehand. But he said, "Listen, like, regardless of the fact whether you think you know what you're doing or not, you've heard this class 20, 30, 40 times by now.

8:27You're just gonna go through it. Even if you don't know what you're doing, you're gonna be able to teach it. I just wanna get you up in front of the class." Those people in front of you don't know that you don't know. No, and the best part was they were all my peers anyway. Okay. So they were cheering me on as much as— So I was a little nervous, you know, I was kinda sweaty.

8:41Yeah. But it went well, and it— you wouldn't believe how much you— you retain, and you don't even know you know it until you're put on the spot and it just comes out. It just keeps coming out. I'm like, "Wow, where did I get that from?" Right. You know? But that's what got me into the teaching realm. People have come up to me and said, in many different ways, that all this stuff you're talking about, I've heard before, but it makes sense now the way you explain it.

9:09So, I think if I have any claim to fame, it's not that I know anything, that other people don't know. I'm no smarter than them. I just know differently and I explain. Yeah, I guess that's it. Because the way I understand, I told you I went to school and I got great grades, but I couldn't fix anything, right? I had to virtually revisit everything I've ever learned and more or less take my own mental notes so it made sense for me.

9:31And that's just how I explain it. I use a lot of analogies. I take things that we're already comfortable with and try to attach it to things we're trying to learn. Mm-hmm. And then that little happy medium is where all the magic comes together. Okay. So I had the opportunity to, uh, teach all over the country at different shops. And one of what was my clients approached me and he said, listen, I have an opportunity I'd love to talk to you about.

9:55He wants me to come on board full-time. And this is now my partner James. And, uh, I've been challenged with trying to take our, our team, our group of technicians to the next level. Mm-hmm. And I'll, I'll just say spit shine and polish procedures. Almost like the military inducts, you know, trainees into boot camp and kind of wipes the slate clean and starts over.

10:17That's what I'm trying to do. Right. And that's what you're trying— that's what you're doing. What would Rick say? You're doing, you're not trying. Yeah. You know, I am doing, and it's— it's— I'll admit it's a bit humbling because I had all the confidence in the world. I do have all the confidence in the world that I can help these— this team, right?

10:35These guys and these girls do better than what we're doing. And, uh, but it's not coming as swiftly— and as easily as I expected it to be. And it's great because I've got all these personalities. I've got one guy who's diagnosed, like, I would say sociopath. He has an inability to feel. You know, your dog dies, he'll pat you on the shoulder because he knows he has to.

10:57There, there. Right. But you can see it in his eyes when you talk. And then I've got my other guys. One's pretty autistic, but absolutely brilliant. He's only been working on cars 6 months. He's, he's taking powertrains out of newer Mercedes-Benz and going in valve trains on BMWs. I'm like, what are you doing to this kid? You're gonna give him shell shock, you know what I mean?

11:19But he's doing fantastic. Oh my goodness. That's like, what's that TV show with the autistic doctor? Oh my, I can't remember the name of it. I think it's The Good Doctor. The Good Doctor. Yeah. Yeah. He's very exactly the same and he's brilliant. He's, he's trained as an engineer, so he has all the, the knowledge that most techs shy away from, but no practical experience.

11:39So when he and I talk, I talk to him on a different level. Yeah. And he's one of my favorite guys. Actually, I say that about all of them. I love them all for different reasons. And some of them are a real pain in the ass, I gotta tell you. They're in a rush, and they know they're in a rush, and everything they've ever broken or done, I've done a million times.

11:56So, you're not gonna fool me. "Oh, you know, it also needed this." Stop. I know where you goofed up. He broke it. But I feel almost like a dad sometimes to teenagers. And I don't mean that in a disrespectful way. No, that's a good feeling though. It is. It's rewarding. You see how you're doing it. Like, when they have successes, I get emotional about it.

12:12Right. I'm smiling from ear to ear when I'm telling them, great job, keep up the great work. Yeah. But when you see that response from them, like they're ticked off and they're frustrated, I don't have time for this crap, and then they figure it out and you can show them data, supportive data that showed the car was broken and now it's fixed, and suddenly they go, now I know what you're talking about, this is really rewarding, I love this stuff now.

12:37Yeah, till the next one. Yeah, then they're angry again. But that's what Jim felt for you, I'm sure. Yeah. Or feels to watch you out here right now. And I'm going back in my mind, I think, God, it's been 15 years now with him. I don't know how I made it this far. 15 years with him. I'm remembering all the things, coming up through my learning curve with him that I'm now experiencing from his perspective.

13:01So yeah, same thing being a parent. Yeah, no wonder he's bald. You ran that man crazy. Like you said, it's like raisin. You're raising your kid Tex, and then you are starting to sound like your father, Jim. Yep. Just like sometimes I can hear my dad come out of my mouth when I'm running the shop. We can laugh about it now. He's like, "Yeah, you remember you thought I was crazy?"

13:20I was like, "Yeah, I thought you were crazy, Dad, but I get it." Oh my goodness. But what is running the shop? It's like having a bunch of teenage cats that know how to fix cars. It is. You can't hurt them. Absolutely. Phenomenal technicians. They're all very talented, and it's getting these sons of guns to slow down a little bit. Well, we talked about it.

13:42You know what you have to do. I do, I do. And it's, it's so hard because I want to be friends with these guys and these girls. I got a great young lady that just started with us. She's brilliant, she's very talented, and the best part is she's so open to learning. Yeah, she knows she doesn't know much, and she doesn't have a chip on her shoulder.

13:59And I'm just so excited for her because I'm trying to think where I would be right now if I had the opportunity and the attitude she has now. I think she's 21, maybe 21. And she's going to do great. That's why I like having a young staff. I know some people can't stand a young staff. I like my young staff. They get on my flippin' nerves.

14:21But I'm just sitting there like, OK, my eyes twitching, my eyes twitching. And then when they have a win, whether it's in the shop or in their personal life, and they want to share that win with me. "Miss Tanika, this is what I did." Or one particular tech, "Miss Tanika, I did this under the book time and I didn't get mad." What?

14:37That is a lot coming from him. So, but I learned that with leadership. And so even though you know all the technical side, technical jargon, all the things, you can do anything upside down, blindfolded. Now your new task is to learn to lead. And boy, am I terrible. I'm trying so hard. You? I was terrible too, but I just had to start drinking the Kool-Aid like, "I ain't got to lead them."

14:59All I gotta do is pay them on Friday or Thursday, whatever it is now, and they need to do their job. No, you have to lead them. Nope, I don't. They have to do their job. So, no, leadership is the key. I still roll my eyes about that because it is harder than people think, but it's so rewarding. Because you're already doing it, you just have to dial it in.

15:19And that's the thing, isn't it? Dialing it in. Because right now, everyone that knows me, I'll self-admit, I'm winging it right now. I'm doing what I think is best for my team. Which will always be best for our customers because I've been there and done that. Sometimes in their minds it doesn't align. They want to get paid again or they don't want to work on the comeback now.

15:41But hey, listen, if we don't work on that comeback now, they'll never come back. None of them will come back. We got to handle this. So how are you navigating leadership? My approach right now is to take our mistakes, I've got to say, and I say I turn the L's, the losses, into learning situations. And, and that's the way I've been trying to lead, uh, and it's not easily digestible for some of them because it's like, I don't have time for this, you know what I mean?

16:09Um, but it's the best I know how to do right now. And what I'm trying to do is establish what I call SOPs, standard operating procedures, to— I take direct oversights and mistakes that we've experienced in the shop And I will revisit it on my time and how can we do it better? And I'll put it on paper, pen to paper and file it.

16:29And these become new standards. I believe everything you're saying right now, I think this conversation is going to be important to shop owners that were techs that became shop owners because that is what you're doing. You're a tech, now you're teaching and you're leading. So you just said a lot. We're at the standard operating procedures, which you thought you'd never say because you never thought you'd be the office guy.

16:52No. So we got to figure out how to turn the "let's take him to the office" guy that's leading, and then you can't go up back there and fix everything for them either. So, you don't do that anymore. You know something? I'd be lying if I say I didn't. And I have to get away from it because I'm becoming a crutch. Yep, been there, done that.

17:09Actually, Rick called me, "You're mommying them too much." And I did that a lot. I am. And you know what? It's my tendency to go there because that's the only way I feel like I'm helping. Does that make sense? I feel like if I'm not doing that, I'm not doing my job. But at the same time, I will get phone calls that say, "The check engine light's on, what do I do?"

17:28Now, come on, guys, let's try a little bit better. Because you've allowed them to call and ask you that question. It's my fault. I know that that was me before they were using my brain to do their work. And so, now, I'll say, "Well, what do you think you should do?" That's what almost with anything. Kim Walker was saying that she was in her counselor— I'm like, "Counselor?

17:47She's not crazy." I can't even think of the word, but if you flip it back on, what do you think you should do in that situation? Check engine light's on. Are you serious right now? And they're serious because you have answered that question before. And yes, that's what I mean by it's my fault. And you know what's funny you mentioned that is because I know better.

18:02Even when other newer— It's easier. It is. When other newer instructors reach out to me and say, "Do you have any advice for me? I've only been teaching 2 weeks and I want to get better." I'd say, "Just keep it simple." where you have the opportunity to answer a question, ask a question instead and let them answer because they already know the answer.

18:21I don't know why I can't remember to do that when I'm in the shop in my new role. Listen, when that baby gets about— what time? When do kids learn to tie their shoe? I don't know. I don't either. But it's going to be so hard to teach your daughter to tie her shoe that you're going to be like, I'm just going to get her Velcro.

18:40Or I'm just going to tie it. But if you do that, she'll never learn to tie her shoe. I know. That's the simplest way I can put it. So like shop owners, we could sit there and baby them all day, but then we just have a glorified job. And you're not really a teacher or a leader if you continue to do that.

18:57But you know better. But then you're just going to have to align yourself, your classes you're going to take at these things. You have to go into the ownership classes now. Yeah. And you know something? I'm hoping one day to be able to write a class on being a whatever you're gonna call my role, here's what not to do. Yeah. That's what I would call it.

19:15Yeah, the journey that you should not take to get here. Yeah, I think you should take ownership and leadership classes when you visit the expos. I know you get burnt out from teaching, but if you're not teaching, you know, put your butt in a seat. I really do have to start taking some leadership classes. I've started watching a few videos that I'm privy to, and it's opened my eyes to a lot.

19:36Yeah. Now, it's implementing them. And I realize that's where my downfall is going to be. I'll do that. I'll do that. I'll do that. I'll do that. Get up and do it. No, but you just got to do one thing at a time. Focus on one course until successful. Focus, focus, focus. Listen to me telling you what to do. This is what you need to do.

19:52Auntie Tanika. Yes, Auntie Tanika. Because that's what I need to do. And usually, when I'm saying this stuff, I'd say on my lipstick report, I'm talking to myself. So, like this past month, my book is over and over and over again is, "Buy Back Your Time." 'Cause I'm starting to micromanage a little bit more. It's like, nope, let's listen, get into my head, get into my head the same way that you learn your favorite song, whatever.

20:13What is your favorite song? You know something? I listen to so much over such a wide range of genres, everything from— I was talking to Ken about that. Yeah, me too. Billie Holiday through the most terrible rap you've ever heard in your life to— Someone said in a class, I don't know what class it was, said, what's your favorite word? And in my head, "Too short."

20:33And I was like, "Oh my goodness, I'm terrible." I'm just sitting in the class and he's like, "What's your favorite word?" And he was talking about something. I believe it was Jim Kokonas. And I was like, "Mm-hmm." I heard "too short." I was like, "I'm such a bad person." But anyway, the same way you learned your favorite song that you know every lyric and whatever, you just gonna have to do that with Audible and become a— A student again.

21:00I'm a terrible reader. I love to read. No, audible. Just getting in the mindset, though. Yeah, audible. Even that. Really? I'll put it on and I'll listen to it. And you squirrel. And I'm great when I'm driving. I don't know what it is. You'd think because you're focused driving. I love listening to audible when I'm driving. Yeah, that's what I'm driving or on the plane or getting ready in the morning.

21:19Well, that's the thing. If I'm on a bus or on a plane, for some reason, I can't focus. But when I'm driving, I do. It's the weirdest thing. Well, whatever works for you, you just got to do it. Yeah, I got to make it happen. And then you're going to raise new techs. Well, imagine being the shop owner with those techs that you have.

21:35How many is it right now? Right now, I think we're sitting at 11. 11. One of our guys just left us last week. He wasn't comfortable. And I understand it's not for everybody. And you're the shop owner that hired one of these guys without them going through the secular experience. Yeah, this is— I think that's how we feel like we're losing the industry because we don't know how to adjust.

21:59We don't know how to train or coach them the way that they need to be coached. And it's hard because there's a lot of young people that did not have a Jim Morton or an auntie or a grandma that slapped them in the back of the head or parents. Like you said, your parents gave you a lot of grit and grind and you were raised up to be who you're becoming because you're becoming that person every day, right?

22:21You're not there yet. You don't even know where you're going to end up. Until you croak, then you're like, oh, he won. But anyway, so those 20-something-year-old kids that got a trophy for everything, didn't have PE, so they had to sit in the classroom all day, or they were labeled something that they were not, and someone told them that ADHD was bad and it wasn't, they just didn't get redirected to what their real skills were, those people are in the workforce now.

22:50And nobody knows how to handle them without medication. Yeah, that's the thing we're so excited about because we're realizing how brilliant some of their minds are. And like you said about labeling them, that person was never designed to hold wrenches and get dirty. They're meant to sit in front of a computer or push a pencil around and figure out these math equations.

23:10Those opportunities are with us and it can be so much more rewarding. So our goal with this endeavor we've taken on is to induct these people from all walks of life across the country that just have a great attitude. That's all we want is a great attitude and an opportunity to show them how rewarding this career could be and an opportunity to train with us as newer technicians doing all things the right way, the best way we know how, and avoid the pitfalls we've encountered.

23:40And you use the word raising, raising people in the industry. We want these young people to come in and be happy doing their job and pay them a very, very strong fair salary, so much so they wouldn't think of wanting to go somewhere else for more money. Right. Don't put them in a loop, bae. Give them $20 an hour and work the hell out of them.

23:58And my idea is to take my young girl, Kaylee. I want to show her I've got this huge inspection process that I want implemented on every vehicle. And it's going to be her job primarily and preliminarily to do these inspections day in and day out. Uh, but it's going to teach her safety, it's going to teach her communication skills, it's going to teach her to be observant and to document properly.

24:24And when the time comes, she will then be performing those repairs as we get a newer person in here. And we're gonna— I'm gonna raise her up in this industry to the— I know by her attitude alone, uh, and her willingness to learn, if she keeps this up, she will be leading one of our shops. I just know it. Yeah. And that's up to her if she doesn't want to, but I could see her in that position.

24:45But even if she doesn't want to do that, you have put in her things that she can take to other industries if she decides, I'm not going to stick with this. Or she might end up being a service advisor. She might not want to rent forever. But it will be you raising them. And it takes a village. And along somewhere in the late '90s, early 2000s, we lost the village.

25:10Because nobody could tell other people's kids what to do. They didn't listen to anybody. And then a bunch of feeling, foofy, foofy stuff started to come into play that actually crippled kids more than it gave them advantage. Like, people know that I say feelings don't fix cars. They don't. Unfortunately, feelings do not fix cars. Cars are math. It's 1 1 2. But we have to learn how to coach these kids that were not properly raised.

25:37Not saying that their parents did it, on purpose. Mama was probably working 2 jobs. Dad might have been working 2 or 3 jobs. They just didn't know any better. But we just cannot say that there are no technicians available or we can't find anybody to work anymore or these kids are lazy. No, these kids are lost. That's exactly it, my opinion as well.

26:01These kids are lost. I think it's our responsibility as— I don't know if you want to use the word elders or the ones that have been there. Aunties and uncles is what we're going to call ourselves. Uncle Brian and Aunt Tanika. Yep. To show them, it's not their responsibility to know better, but for us to at least show them there's opportunities. There's a better way.

26:21Mm-hmm. Yeah. If we don't tell them, then we're wrong. Now, if I tell you— let's think about the DVI. If I tell you what's wrong with your car and you don't do anything about it, or if you decide to do something about it next month or 3 months from now, I did my job. But if I don't tell you and I know better and something happens to you, I'm going to feel bad.

26:42So if you don't tell that young man or young lady, say, hey, you should pull your pants up. We're not going to— I mean, just going to leave it at that. We're not getting too technical. And they look at you like, you pull your damn pants up. It's like, I said it. And then they might think about it. You know what? I could pull my pants up when I walk into an office.

26:57It's like, yeah, you should try to do that, young man. Hey, hey boy, pull your pants up. You're not going to get any respect. But hey, young man, you know, you go to an interview, you should probably pull your pants up so nobody can see your underwear. Okay? Okay. Auntie loves you. Bye. And you might say, who the heck was that lady?

27:14Looking out for your best interest. Looking out for your best interest. And he may not hear what I had to say until 30 days later. But if I don't say anything, I'm not doing my job as village auntie. I love that. So I think a lot of shop owners need to humble themselves when it comes to younger people in the workforce. You might not like their hair, you might not like their music, and you probably think their car is the dumbest thing in the whole world.

27:41Like, what are you driving? My son's car is the stupidest car. It's a 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee. I know, I'm sorry. And he's got these big mud tires on it that scrape the fender wells every time he turns. It's got lights all in it. He's got purple decals all up. That's that boy's truck. I hate it. But I can find something else to fuss at Jordan about other than his truck and his hair.

28:10And we can find other things to talk to these kids about other than their hair and their music, because we had dumb hair. You know what? I'm not that old, but afros, Jheri curls, mullets, Aquanet. What do we have in the '80s and '90s? It was rough, bro. It was rough. So, we look weird to our parents, too, and our aunties. So, let them express themselves to a certain degree.

28:33Find out where we need to pour into them. Stop being so judgmental and just raise them one child at a time. Because if we don't, they're going to be the ones taking care of our old crippled butts. And we just need to help them. And you can find a good tech. And then at the end of the day, once you see these kids graduate from this program that you're producing and you see them in the world 10 to 20 years later, that's going to make you feel so good, better than any KPI or any repair that you've ever done.

29:03That thought is what stays in my mind. What keeps me going is I want people— I got a lot out of this industry. I feel like I was lucky. Not many people do. Some of them will tell you, don't ever get into this industry. Yeah, I get tired of hearing that. And I hate— I get it sometimes, but just stop it. And I can respect their experience, but did they even try?

29:20Did they try to do something other than stand in the same bay for 40 years, right? Or just do their 8 hours a day? Yeah. Um, you know, that would make me miserable too. That's why I left. I just want people to know— I mean, we're always looking for good techs. We're— and when I say good techs, I don't mean experience. I mean people that, that have the attitude to want to learn.

29:39And to want to be a team player. Excuse me. Yes, ma'am. What is the name of the program? I think we completely went past all of that. So the name of our shop is Future Auto Repair. It's the one with the, um, DeLorean? Yeah, in the front. It's a beautiful shop. It's a great place to be. It's a nice environment for the techs, for the entire team, and for our clients, our visitors.

30:01A great environment. And I love Being part of that team, I love working with all of them. The entire team is in fact a team, and that's strange. I haven't seen that before. I've seen a handful of team players in different groups. That comes with leadership. It does. Yeah. And sometimes I feel we're a bit lackadaisical. We're too close. We're too much friends.

30:27And that's okay. It's almost like a, like, uh, what am I trying to say, like a drill sergeant. Like, that guy does not want to be your friend. Yeah. But, but look what he's done after 13 weeks, you know. He's responsible for making you prepared. He saved your life, perhaps, in a— I, I want to help these people be prepared and, and to constantly— I want to teach them that they have to be self-learners and, and they have to want to progress all the time because it's not gonna stop ever.

31:00No. I'm okay with them leaving. I don't want them to. Yeah. But if it's not for them, I would totally understand because it can't be for everybody, you know, or we don't be doing it. But if they leave, like I said, they will leave with something, whether you can see it right away or not. They will leave with something. So, I mean, it might not show up immediately.

31:18It's gonna probably be like the bamboo. It's under the ground for years before they sprout up. So just keep pouring into these young people and continue to do what you're doing, which I know you will. But then I also want you to continue to pour into yourself so that you can learn to lead these people, come up with the whole blueprint and start sharing it with other shop owners so we all can do it.

31:41Thank you. And just raise everything that way. That's the best I think I could do with what I'm given. So I'm definitely going to try. And if you don't, I'm going to come find you. And that's what keeps me going. I don't want anybody to come find me. You don't want me to come find you. No, ma'am, I know better. Yes, all right.

31:57So are you teaching anymore today? I am. I have a brand new class I'm teaching this afternoon. I called it— I tried to give it a fancy name to make it attractive. I called it Electrical Wizard Works: Demystifying the Approach of the Successful Diagnostician. Okay, that's a lot of words. It is, and I do it like that on purpose. People always tell me to hack it in half.

32:16No. It's just the way I do things. The idea is I've got— I'll round it up. I've got about 30 years experience in the trenches. And believe me, not all of them were pretty. But part of those negative experiences is what helped shape me the way I head now. Exactly. So, if we could talk about for several hours what not to do and why, in essence, I want to save you guys 5 or 6 years of heartache.

32:37What took me 30 years to do shouldn't have. It should take me about 5. And that's my goal for my new team. I want to get them where I am at in 5 years or less. If I could do that at events like this, I'm going to. So, that's what this class is about. Do you get tired of running around with all the events?

32:50It does get tiring, but I never lose— it never gets to the point where I don't want to be there. Okay. You know, just like if you're running down the football field, you might be tired, but you're not gonna stop till you cross in that end zone. I know that's right. It's the same thing. I just— I get physically tired. And sometimes, I just need a break.

33:07I was in bed last night at 8:30. You? Chrissy was like, "I'm finna take my food to my room." and I will see you guys in the morning. Yes, ma'am. It was the best sleep in the world. But I love it. It's so rewarding, especially when people come up to you and they tell you things that you've changed the way they do things.

33:23I was going to ask you how you feel about being a superstar. Oh, man. Thank you for saying that. I don't feel like I'm some kind of superstar. I just feel like I'm giving back and I owe it to our industry because they were so good to me. You know what I mean? Gosh, we need so many more like you. Thank you.

33:41We do. No, I realize I have something I can share, and I just want to share it. That's all. And it works out well for me. I love it. I love it. Thank you. Well, I'm gonna let you go and rest. Yes, ma'am. Thank you so much. And you have a website? Like, your own website to follow you where you are teaching or whatever?

34:00No, I don't. I've been asked that several times, and I often thought about creating— Like a landing page? Yeah, like a landing page where just things, a calendar and such, and maybe put some of my training material on there. Believe it or not, I just I just haven't found the time to do it yet. And maybe in the future, I'd like to.

34:16I've got a class downloaded, I believe, like next Wednesday through WTI that we're going to look at. Great. Signed up for it, me and a girl that's going to sit there and judge you. Wonderful. I'm going to judge you, and the guys will be learning because I don't know what you're talking about. No. So yeah, think about that, a landing page, steckler.com.

34:34That's great. So we'll know where you're teaching, and then a little couple links to some good videos. That's a great idea. I think I'll do that. That's simple enough. I can do that. Yeah, you don't have to have a whole website. Just a landing page. Boom, you heard it. Wix. There you go. Yep, I won. Thank you so much for taking the time to sit with me today.

34:52Go get some rest, rest your voice, and get ready to take over the world. Yes, ma'am. Thank you so much. All right, appreciate the opportunity. Downshift with Tanika is where we slow down long enough to have real conversations, hosted by myself, second generation shop owner Tanika Haynes. This goes beyond your car count your KPIs. We want to talk about leadership, legacy, mindset, and the messy, beautiful journey of building something that lasts.

35:20You will hear stories from shop owners, technicians, and other industry leaders who are figuring it all out by themselves in real time. This is a space for growth, tough love, laughter, and leveling up.