When Bobby Knight got fired from Indiana University, the news media interviewed some of the students. One of them stated that most people didn’t realize the positive impact he often made on the student body. One of the students told of the time Bobby Knight stopped into one of her classes and gave the class an impromptu speech that included the following statement: “In life you do what you have to do before you can do what you want to do.”
How profound that statement is. To be successful in any business you often have to do things you don’t necessarily enjoy doing in order to be successful. That might include certain daily disciplines and processes you don’t actually enjoy doing. Sometimes it means replacing people who are incompetent and who are not able to make the necessary changes to be successful in a changing market.
Bobby Knight also said “The will to succeed is important, but what’s more important is the will to prepare.” In business today that is the number one issue, “the will to prepare.” We live in a society of instant gratification. We all want it now. We want to shoot from the hip and make it happen right now. The automobile business like any business today is much more complex than it was 20, 15, 10 or even 5 years ago. Yet, many are lost in outdated time capsules.
The days of running to the auction, stocking up on inventory and making money on it are over. It takes lots of preparing and attention to detail to make it happen. Gut check is a thing of the past. Today it’s called “Data Check.” If you are not on top of the data available to you through vAuto you are like a comptroller still trying to produce a financial statement on a hand written spread sheet. This is a formula for mistakes and ultimate disaster.
Doing the things you don’t want to do starts at the top of the dealership’s management team. “It’s the speed of the boss speed of the crew concept.” You have to set the example. You cannot depend on it “happening” because you said so or you designed a pay plan to make it happen. It happens by the example you set.
Bobby Knight also said: “Everybody hears, but few listen.” Many of you hear me, but only a few will really listen and fewer still will have the “will to prepare.” Let the preparation begin. That’s all I’m gonna say,
Tommy Gibbs