Maximum Octane

No one is in business to lose money; however, we've been taught that profit is the bottom line, and before thinking of it, we must take care of the expenses, the debts, salaries, and so forth. Therefore, following that old-school thinking, what comes first will get more attention, dedication, and time, and what comes last won't. Our guest, Ron Saharyan believes the exact opposite; profit must always come first. 

Ron Saharyan, aka Obi Ron Kenobi, is the co-founder and managing director of Profit First Professionals, an international network of accountants, bookkeepers, and financial experts specializing in helping companies increase their earnings using the Profit First method. 

In this episode, Ron shares the backstage of how he and Mike Michalowicz decided to create the Profit First University and the Profit First method in Mike's basement after a short conversation. We discuss some details of Profit First's replicable model and the company's global expansion to over 30 countries. We also delve into the importance of taking accountability for our spending, the problem with debit cards, and how much money we should allocate to the five fundamental bank accounts. 

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• About what is the Profit First method (3:47)
• The backstory of Profit First University's creation (10:05)
• The limiting beliefs about waiting for the right time to put a system in place to help us deal with our finances (14:52)
• About Ron's hard times during his childhood and how he got inspired by them (21:03)
• The importance of learning to manage our spending (27:28)

Resources:

• Profit First University website
• Book: Mike Michalowicz - Profit First: Transform Your Business from a Cash-Eating Monster to a Money-Making Machine

Connect with Ron:

• LinkedIn
• Twitter

Let's connect:

• LinkedIn
• Facebook
• Email: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For many entrepreneurs, putting a system together seems too complicated, a ton of effort, and a series of time-consuming routines when, actually, systems are natural freedom producers. To explain the multiple benefits of having sustainable, reliable, and replicable systems in our business is the amazing Wendy K. Walters with us. 

Wendy is a Motivational Speaker, Dream Builder, Author, Ghost Writer, and Master Coach. Wendy is also an editor and publisher expert; she has helped over 150 first-time authors publish their first books, many of them becoming serial authors. 

In this episode, we delve into the benefits of systems creation and how they can save us tons of time and make our companies more effective and reliable. We talk about the benefits of writing about our expertise; or, in her words: "nothing helps us define who we are as wrapping language around our expertise and communicating it to others."

Wendy also shares her thoughts on the best way to create an identity for our business, the advantages of consistent 1% improvements, and more.

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• Wendy explains the benefits of writing and publishing as a means to empower our brand and authority (4:03)
• The best ways to create effective, reliable, and replicable systems (7:31)
• Why it is crucial to define how we want to be recognized as a company, who we want to be, what do we stand for as a company (10:32)
• Why most entrepreneurs are so resistant to creating systems (15:58)
• The importance and potential of 1% improvements (20:23)

Resources:

• Wendy K. Walters website
• Wendy K. Walters's books

Connect with Wendy:

• LinkedIn
• Instagram
• Facebook
• Twitter

Let's connect:

• LinkedIn
• Facebook
• Email: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Accumulating stuff we barely use is something almost all of us are guilty of. It has become a national issue, thousands of storage facilities around the country are full, and all of them have a waiting list. 

The stuff we refuse to throw away or sell occupies a physical space in our homes or offices, consuming our time and energy. That is why decluttering has multiple benefits, and our guest, Randy Dean, visits us to share his most efficient decluttering techniques. 

Randy Dean, The E-mail Sanity Expert®, is a professional speaker and expert on time & e-mail management, effective organization, and technology use. He is the owner of Randall Dean Consulting & Training LLC. Randy was featured in the Washington Times, Detroit News, The Globe and Mail, and Business Week Online, among many others. He is a member of the National Speakers Association (NSA) and the Florida and Michigan Society of Association Executives.

In this episode, Randy talks about the harmful effects of accumulating on our sleeping quality and overall wellness and how we can determine whether an item we keep is useful and valuable for us or not. Randy invites us to reassess our relationship with the stuff we accumulate and realize that the real value of things depends on how much we use them. Randy also shares impeccable advice on dealing with the lost papers over our desks at the workspace. 

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

About how accumulating things affect our health (5:39)

Randy's invitation to evaluate our relationship with the stuff we own(7:23)

If you don't use something twice a year, you should rent it, not own it (10:19)

How do we determine the value of the objects we accumulate (12:32)

The pick and roll. The less stuff we own, the less time we spend dealing with it (20:51)

How to organize the loose papers in our offices (24:18)

Resources:

Book: Randy Dean - Taming The Email Beast

Book: Stephen Covey - First Things First

Book: Stephen Covey - The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Connect with Randy:

website

Youtube

LinkedIn

Facebook

Let's connect:

LinkedIn

Facebook

Email: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

One of the toughest lessons our guest, Frank Leutz, learned from his first experiences as a business owner is to have a clear idea of what kind of business we want to build. He overworked himself to exhaustion, spending over 20 hours every day at a packed garage that looked more like a car dealership than a repair shop. During that time, Frank lost the first five years of his daughter, and on top of it, he wasn't making a substantial amount of money that would, at least, try and justify such a sacrifice. 

Frank Leutz is an Automotive Expert. He is a Talent at Wrench Nation TV, where he hosts his own podcast. Frank is also the Marketing Director at Desert Car Care of Chandler, Phoenix Chapter President of the Automotive Service Association, an Author, and Speaker. 

In this episode, we dive into Frank's origins as a musician, including his experiences playing at the Carnegie Hall and his participation in the Operation End Sweep with the US Navy, consisting of removing naval mines from Haiphong harbor and other coastal inland waterways in North Vietnam. 

Frank shares several golden nuggets from his own experiences as a business owner and his perspective after spending over 25 years in the automotive repair industry. We talk about the importance of planning, guidance, and coaching to run a successful shop, how empowering and liberating it is to learn how to delegate in our business, and how crucial it is to learn how to price our services according to where we want to be in the industry. 

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• How it was growing up in NY and how it helped Frank mold his character and determination (3:47)
• Frank talks about his first steps and experiences as a musician (5:38)
• The "M-E" in time is essential. Frank talks about time management (10:19)
• About Frank's tough first years in business, overworking himself and forgetting to have a life (13:45)
• How can we design our shop to support our internal customers and provide an excellent service to our clients (25:01)

Resources:

• Wrench Nation podcast
• Desert Car Care of Chandler website
• Automotive Service Association website

Connect with Frank:

• LinkedIn

Let's connect:

• LinkedIn
• Facebook
• Email: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Becoming a more home-based society during the pandemic didn't eliminate the threats to our and our employees' safety. The threats simply followed us home. To our guest, Terry Choate Jr, taking care of our external and internal customers is the best way to enhance our organization's security. 

Terry Choate Jr is the CEO, Co-founder, and President of Blue-U Defense. This company provides Fortune 2000 corporations with active shooter, unwanted intruder and workplace violence training, planning and policy assistance, and Executive Protection services. Terry is a thought leader passionate about offering real security solutions for the prevention and survival of incidents of violence; he is a former law enforcement officer and SWAT Team Commander. 

In this episode, we delve into the importance of business owners spending time and resources to ensure their internal and external customers' safety. Terry kindly shared his expertise in home-based security and reputation harm. We also talk about the importance of keeping ourselves informed, the benefits of having a happy workforce, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) obligations every business owner should be aware of.  

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• We must fact check every piece of information we receive, even the ones we get from professionals and thought leaders (5:16)
• The bad guys always find a way to vulnerate our safety. What should be aware of in the home-based society we live in (8:36)
• The cons of avoiding news channels and being utterly uninformed (15:59)
• About what most companies ignore from OSHA (20:05)
• What should every business owner do to ensure their staff and their customers' safety (26:17)

Resources: 

• Blue-U Defense website
• Blue-U Defense Facebook
• Blue-U Defense Twitter

Connect with Terry:

• LinkedIn

Let's connect:

• LinkedIn
• Facebook
• Email: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We already know that many variables are working against shop owners in the battle of getting qualified internal customers and retaining them.

The first step to solving this problem, just as with every issue, is focusing on what we control. To our guest, Jay Goninen, that would be asking ourselves if the job we offer, the working conditions, and the environment at our company is attractive, and if they aren't, work on what we need to work to fix that. 

Jay Goninen, a fellow podcaster, co-founder, and president of WrenchWay. Jay started working in the automotive industry at 9 in his father's shop. He then became a technician and eventually evolved into management roles. Having been in the industry his entire life, Jay quickly identified the next massive issue the automotive sector will have to deal with: the growing technician shortage.

In this episode, we talk about the staff shortage the automotive industry faces in general, particularly the technician shortage. Jay talks about his work at WrenchWay, his vast experience in the industry, and why he decided to start a business focused on connecting qualified technicians with the shops that need them. We also talk about the importance of show owners sticking to their original plan and vision even when their shops are fully staffed to avoid hiring in panic. 

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• About why Jay decided to start WrenchWay (4:05)
• Jay talks about how we can attract and retain internal customers (7:23)
• The incredible amount of new variants to the equation that promotes internal customers' massive work rotation (13:52)
• We must be sure we are offering a competitive option (16:40)
• About the things we should remove from our ads offering job positions (21:46)
• The power of communication and setting clear expectations for what can we offer as a company (29:11)

Resources:

• WrenchWay website
• WrenchWay Instagram
• WrenchWay YouTube
• WrenchWay Twitter
• WrenchWay Facebook
• WrenchWay TikTok
• Beyond the Wrench with Jay Goninen podcast

Connect with Jay:

• LinkedIn

Let's connect:

• LinkedIn
• Facebook
• Email: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The international conflict between Russia and Ukraine presented itself as the perfect opportunity for small business leaders to execute one of our favorite activities: creating a smokescreen in front of us to distract ourselves from taking care of our businesses. Although the conflict is real, and our business might be affected by it long-term, we can't do anything about it now. So, why do we insist on creating these scenarios, and how can we stop them from living rent-free in our heads?

Today, I have the perfect guest to help me answer these questions and help us dissipate these smokescreens, Andrew Neitlich. Andrew is a Cultural Anthropologist who graduated from Harvard University and got his MBA from Harvard Business School. He is also the Founder and Director of the Center of Executive Coaching, my mentor, and a dear friend. 

In this episode, we get right through the middle of why it is so common between leaders and entrepreneurs to get distracted and concentrate their time and energy on things they can’t control. Using his unique style, cutting the BS, and going straight to the point, Andrew shares some golden nuggets of why smokescreens are so common among entrepreneurs and leaders of small businesses and offers a couple of practical solutions. We also talk about culture, learning to discern between what's urgent and what's important, the ability to find opportunities in crisis, and more. 

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• Focusing on the things we can control that have an immediate effect on our success (7:41)
• We must get good at recognizing the things that really matter to us and our business (11:21)
• The three main elements of a leader's dashboard (12:27)
• As a leader, we get what we tolerate (17:15)
• The courage and stoicism required to start and maintain a successful business nowadays (23:30)

Resources:

• Center For Executive Coaching website

Connect with Andrew:

• LinkedIn

Let's connect:

• LinkedIn
• Facebook
• Email: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

To succeed in the entrepreneurial journey, we need more than determination, consistency, commitment, and grind; it is also crucial to put a plan in place, surround ourselves with experienced experts, and get guidance. 

Our guest, Adam Kushner, found a great way to reverse engineer the entrepreneurial process, inspired by his experiences in endurance sports. He suggests we start by identifying and acknowledging our weaknesses and turning them into strengths. Accepting what we aren't good at and getting help in the areas we need help to improve makes the path toward the goal clearer and more achievable.  

Adam Kushner is the Owner of Business Actualization, a company that helps Auto Repair shops increase their digital presence and get more new clients through custom digital marketing strategies. Adam is also an endurance sports enthusiast, who participated in several IRONMAN competitions, and 50 miles running races, qualified a couple of times for National championships and won several regional events. 

We had a fantastic conversation about the resemblance between endurance sports competitions and entrepreneurship. We delve into the importance of coaching and expert guidance to accomplish goals, how crucial it is to identify and accept our weaknesses and get help to improve on them, and how we can benefit from being surrounded by the right people. We also talk about the actual automotive industry's scenario, where coaching companies or mastermind groups are easy to find, as opposed to how it was 20 years ago, an extremely competitive space reigned by individualism.

Some Questions I Ask:

• You competed in a pretty darn big competition. Could you talk a bit about that? (6:08)
• Let alone to get in the mindset of this is, how did you start preparing for this for the long haul? (8:17)
• Whether in business or our personal life, a coach gets you to set your sights on what's possible and what you can do. Can you talk about that a little bit? (12:24)

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• Adam talks about his passage through the culinary industry (2:27)
• The parallelism between entrepreneurship and endurance sports (9:49)
• The drive and self-discipline needed to compete in endurance sports, and how it can be translated into business (12:05)
• The importance of leaving the ego aside and accepting our weaknesses (16:48)
• Adam's most significant takeaways from participating in highly demanding competitions (24:06)

Resources:

• Business Actualization website

Connect with Adam:

• LinkedIn
• Instagram

Let's connect:

• LinkedIn
• Facebook
• Email: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There is a subtle yet extraordinary difference between owning something and being responsible for it. An employee will take care of something they own a thousand times better than something they are held accountable for. This works for material things like a gas pump or a tire rack and intangible things like customer service. The amazing discovery was made by Steven King, owner of King's Smokehouse, a barbeque restaurant in Hunt, Texas, just two hours drive from San Antonio.  

Today, I'm joined by Mike Michalowicz, considered one of the most innovative business minds of our time. Mike is a Podcast Host, Speaker, and Author of several business books, like "Profit first," "Fix this next," "Get different," "Clockwork," "Surge," "The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur," and "The Pumpkin Plan." His book "The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur" was named a business cult classic by BusinessWeek. Mike's work has been translated into 10 languages. 

Mike shared King's Smokehouse's story and the evolution Steven, its owner, saw throughout the years, thanks to the perks of giving his team ownership over certain things. We had a fantastic conversation about the power of ownership and how it can completely change an employee's production and commitment to his job and the company. We also talk about the best way to deal with perceived weaknesses of our business and how to reposition them as strengths. 

Tune in to episode 17 of Maximum Octane. Take a second to think about the advantages of offering your team ownership, creating a whole new level of belonging and commitment with your company. 

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• Joel's fountain. How giving ownership started at King's (7:10)
• Small things first, and then the rest. How to properly offer ownership to our teams (11:03)
• The differences between being responsible for something, and ownership (13:30)
• Another Brady Bunch reference. How to turn a disadvantage into a strength (16:33)

Resources:

• Mike Michalowicz website
• Mike Up In Your Business podcast
• Mike Michalowicz's books

Connect with Mike:

• LinkedIn
• Instagram

Let's connect:

• LinkedIn
• Facebook
• Email: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Service Advisors are the bridge between external customers and service technicians. They transfer customers' doubts and concerns to the technicians and determine the repair timeline. For the most part, Service Advisors have the last word on which internal customers should be sent home when they are not helping achieve the levels of excellence required.  

Our guest, Brittany Schindler, GM at Rod's Japanese Auto Care, realized there was another way to ensure their Service Advisors do what they need to do for external customers to say yes, and work with technicians as a team to be the best shop in town: training. She has over 10 years of experience in the industry and is the recipient of the AAPEX 2021 Service Advisor of the Year Award. 

In this episode, we talk about the workforce's growing tendency of switching jobs every 5 years, the new paradigm where the competition is not between companies but between industries, and how shop owners are dealing with it. Brittany shared her thoughts on the importance of leadership training for every internal customer, not only for leaders, and how she ensures employees use it to grow and improve their contribution to the company. We also talk about Service Advisor's role, Brittany's strategies to enhance their performance, and more.  

Tune in to episode 16 of Maximum Octane, and grasp a different perspective from Service Advisors' role, relevance, and proper training. 

Some Questions I Ask:

• You are huge on training. It's one of the most important things we can do for internal customers, and it also benefits external customers. What are some of the things that you do with training? And why is it so important to you? (7:54)
• When you send anybody in your company for training to ensure they got something out of it, what are the things? (11:24)
• You train everybody to be a leader. Could you talk a bit about that? (14:23)

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• Brittany comments on industries competing between them to attract internal customers (4:37)
• About Brittany's love for training and its positive impact on every internal customer performance (7:36)
• Why Brittany treats every internal customer as a leader (14:05)
• About why Brittany decided to build a giant toolbox for the company's Service Advisors (19:01)
• The importance of scripts and role-playing in training (28:15)

Resources:

• Rod's Japanese Auto Care website
• Rod's Japanese Auto Care Facebook
• Rod's Japanese Auto Care Instagram

Let's connect:

• LinkedIn
• Facebook
• Email: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.