Top 10 Reasons You Should Schedule a Workshop With Me:

1. You’ve had evaporation. Regardless of how good you are or how well disciplined you are, there’s going to be an evaporation of processes over a period of time. Bam! I can fix that!

2. You’ve had some turnover. Most people do. Turnover isn’t a sin. What’s a sin is not ensuring that the new guys and gals get it. If you don’t give them the right tools, they don’t have a chance. Bam! I can fix that!

3. The business is changing. Your team needs to understand the changes taking place and how to attack them. Bam! I can fix that!

4. Your team has gotten a little complacent, either because business has been pretty darn good or they have accepted
the status quo. They need to be re-energized and see the possibilities. Bam! I can fix that!

5. Your average grosses continue to decline. Mostly they decline because someone’s not paying attention to the little things. Bam! I can fix that!

6. You have aged inventory and wholesale losses. Aged inventory helps create #5. Aged inventory causes wholesale losses. Bam! I can fix that!

7. You have a team that struggles to get on the same page. You have old school thinking. You have new school thinking. You have no thinking. Bam! I can fix that!

8. The number of days it takes to get a car online and on the line is killing you. Bam! I can fix that!

9. You’re sick and tired of listening to the bickering, excuses and lack of forward movement. Bam! I can fix that!

10. You need a coach. You need someone to lean on. You need another set of eyes on the subject. Bam! I can fix that!

A quote worth remembering: “The purpose of training is to tighten up the slack, toughen the body, and polish the spirit.” Morihei Ueshiba

Is now the time? That’s all I’m gonna ask, Tommy Gibbs

One of my early goals as a new car dealer was that I wanted our dealership to be a place where everybody in town wanted to go to work.

We all know the saying, “Happy employees equals happy customers.” And, no doubt, the more happy customers we have, the happier our bottom-line.

A more hip term or fancier way of saying that is you want to build an “Irresistible Organization.”

To build an irresistible organization you must engage your team to the point that they own the culture. Only when the team owns the culture will you feel the super glue effect. It’s sticking and it’s not going to evaporate into the atmosphere.

Part of engaging your team includes creating an exciting work environment that’s fulfilling and meaningful, and where everyone feels a sense of purpose in their jobs.

Research has proven that people want:

1. To be relevant.
2. An opportunity to advance.
3. A stable & disciplined work environment.
4. Excellent teammates.
5. Training that’s relevant and helps them perform their jobs efficiently and effectively.

People want to be a part of something bigger than they are. The No. 1 thing employees cite as their strongest motivator at work is peer motivation that is, the drive to help their team succeed.

As a leader you should never lose sight of the fact that everybody wants to be on a winning team.

You improve the odds of your team succeeding when you improve your focus on the 5 bullet points listed above. That’s all I’m gonna say, Tommy Gibbs

I frequently hear CEOs of dealer groups talk about how hard it is to find GSMs & GMs for their stores. More often than not, the missing skill set for those that have failed them is they just aren’t very good leaders.

The moment they come on board, they have all these amazing things they want to change
and “make it better.” They do have skills, but they don’t have “leadership skills,” so from day one they tend to struggle.

A savvy CEO should be as much interested in how many people they have developed as they are in the number of units over the curb. If you focus on the numbers, you may get a little surge, but it’s not going to be consistent and it’s going to be a little short-term gain and a whole lot of long-term pain.

Far too often the strategy of new leadership is to unload in rapid fire a bunch of new ideas, bring some new rock stars in and drain the swamp. (ha, ha)

That strategy will generally create hate and discontent, and put you that much further behind.

Soon you’ll be looking for a new GSM or GM and repeating the process of hoping the new one works out.

The first question that should be asked of your potential rock star is how do they intend to rally the troops?

The most important part of that answer is, “How do they intend to rally the individuals?” You cannot rally the troops until you capture the hearts and minds of the individual team members.

If I were your new hire, here’s what I would do:

1. I’d meet with every team member one-on-one. During the course of these one-on-ones I would be asking questions, getting opinions, and asking every team member, “If this were your business, what would you do differently?”

The more I can learn about each team member’s family, hobbies, and their life’s journey, all the better. I’d get dialed in on the conversation by taking notes…lots and lots of notes.

2. I’d start every morning spending additional one-on-one time with as many people as I could come into contact with. These are casual conversations done on the fly. Building relationships is what is going to create profound change and a new direction.

3. Throughout the day I would look for opportunities to create “power moments.”

Moments to coach.
Moments that matter.
Moments to encourage.
Moments to pick people up.
Moments to push them forward.
Moments to guard the processes.

It’s a whole lot easier to implement change and solid strategies when you get the team on the same page.

My way is a better way, that’s all I’m gonna say, Tommy Gibbs

This business is never easy. One of the most interesting things about it is you don’t get to enjoy the wins for very long. It’s important to put the losses behind you as soon as possible. Not much different than any sports you might have played.

If you’re like me, you love the challenges it brings to the table each and every day. I always look forward to getting up in the morning and “getting after it.”

The number one thing I miss about being a car dealer is connecting with the team members and the energy I get from them each day.

Since I’ve been in the speaking, training and coaching business I primarily work alone. It can be challenging at times since I only have myself to rely on. But actually I like the idea of “staying after myself.”

It doesn’t matter if you work alone or work with 500 people, you still have to “stay after yourself.” It’s a fun challenge and something you can actually get better at.

“Staying after yourself” requires planning and discipline.

Some key elements to “staying after yourself” include reading, writing, listening and forcing yourself to attend Twenty Group meetings, conventions and workshops. Those things open the mind and help you see what the possibilities might be.

I’ve become a firm believer that writing is a bigger component to success than one might think. I don’t mean that you have to be an award winning author; writing your thoughts down each day helps to open your brain up to where you’ve been and where you can go.

Writing helps you “stay after yourself.” It will help you self-evaluate your actions, your behavior and how well you are accomplishing those “continuous goals” you should be writing down. You have to constantly evaluate, tweak and adjust your goals so you are always moving forward.

A big part of staying after yourself is to “stay after others.” I don’t mean that in a micro-managing sense, but as a way of encouraging others.

The more you encourage others, the more you are encouraging yourself. There is nothing you can do that is more important than helping others along the way.

The month and the year may almost be over, but “staying after yourself” is continuous and always rewarding. Happy New Year, that’s all I’m gonna say, Tommy Gibbs

In just three more days you’re going to be very, very busy. Next week has the potential to be one of the best selling weeks of the year. It will only be a really great week if you make it a great week. It’s not going to be a great week if you stay in your seat acting like a computer geek.

You can make it a great week by getting up and moving around. You should be like a bumblebee on a pollination mission. You’re here. You’re there. You’re everywhere.

You can’t just flap your little wings in place and think someone’s gonna sell a car.

You have to create the buzz. You have to go from being weak and meek in order to make it a great week.

I don’t like things to be all about you, but this is all about you. This week is all about you. It’s about you making things happen.

It’s about you contributing as much in a week as you sometimes do in a month. It’s not about you giving 100 or 110%. It’s about you giving 200%.

It’s not about asking others to do it. It’s about you doing it. You sometimes think you’re important. Well, you are important. You’re even more important than you think. At least this week you are.

You may have to sting a few people this week. That’s ok. Some of your team could probably use a sting or two. A little stinging pain for a whole lot of car selling gain.

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas, that’s all I’m gonna say, Tommy Gibbs