AutoFix AdvisorCast

Michael Doherty [00:00:00]:
This is the Autofix Advisor Cast, Powered by WorldPac. Hey, Service Advisor Nation, thank you for tuning in to another episode of the Autofix Advisor Cast with your host, Michael Dougherty. Service Advisor Nation. This is episode 50. Yeah, 50 episodes. I can't believe it. That is 50 times that we have sat down together to grow, to get better, and to push this incredible industry forward. Whether you've been with me since episode one or you just tuned in for the first time, truly, I want to say thank you.

Michael Doherty [00:00:40]:
Thank you for listening. So, a couple things I'd like to talk about today. Why direction is more important than speed. Why focusing on the controllables will change everything. And why failure isn't the end, its fuel. So, Service Advisor Nation, let's get into it. So direction beats speed. Think about it.

Michael Doherty [00:01:07]:
You can be running 100 miles an hour, but if you're running in the wrong direction, you're getting lost faster. So in the shop, it's not about rushing every call, hammering out the estimates, slamming through the ros like you're a game show timer. It's about being intentional. It's about heading in the right direction toward building trust, creating relationships, and cultivating long term loyalty. Tony Robbins says most people overestimate what they can do in a year and underestimate what they can do in 10 years. So even if you know today feels messy for you, even if you're still kind of figuring it out, don't stress about speed. Just check your direction. Because if you're consistent and you're heading the right way, you'll get there.

Michael Doherty [00:02:05]:
Yes. Yes, you will. Focusing on what matters now, there's plenty you can control in this business and there's plenty that we can't control. But for the things that we can control, number one as service advisors, our attitude, it sets the tone for the entire shop. If we walk in with negativity, it spreads like an oil leak. If we walk in positive, that spreads too. Not only to our shop, to our co workers, but to our clients. And Zig Ziglar said it best.

Michael Doherty [00:02:39]:
Your attitude, not your aptitude, determines your altitude. I love that. Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude. So again, your attitude, right when we walk in that front door, however we're getting in that building in the morning, as a service advisor, bring positivity, bring enthusiasm, bring excitement, bring, you know, your mindset. And is that mindset growth or fixed? Is that mindset you're looking at problems or you're looking at opportunities? Right. So again, your attitude and your mindset very, very important. And also, you know, things that we can control among our attitude and our mindset are how we manage our time, right? Phones are ringing, walk ins are showing up, texts need us all at once. And we can't control the chaos, but we can control our priorities, right? Discipline equals freedom.

Michael Doherty [00:03:49]:
And also something that we can control is how we respond to feedback. Feedback isn't always fun, but it is fuel also our commitment to company values. That's something that we can control, right? Don't just talk about them, live them at the front counter. Customers notice that if a customer is visiting your website and you've got core values on there as a business, as a company, you know, you want to make sure that you're demonstrating those core values in front of that customer, on the phone with that customer, on the phone with that prospect all throughout the, you know, transaction that you have with them and building that relationship. And also something that's in our control, how we communicate with our customers, with our coworkers, with ourself. Self talk is so important as a service advisor because there's so many outside variables that are chomping us down, grinding us down. And again, you know, getting in that headspace of man, am I just not good at this? Am I not good at this today? Am I not good at this tomorrow? Do I want to do this anymore? Don't let the outside soak in. In my career, I've heard a little bit of everything from everybody, you know, clients, co workers, myself.

Michael Doherty [00:05:12]:
But ultimately, you know, you're setting the stage, you're setting the tone of how you want to be. And self talk is so important. And again, those things to touch on that we can control. And again, I'll just kind of run back real through real quick. So our attitude, our mindset, how we manage our time, how we respond to feedback, are we living our company values and how we communicate, right? All those things really can level up your game and change your daily routine. And but again, the self talk, inner self talk is really important. And you know, also, you know, talking about failing forward, nobody loves to hear it, but let's face it, failure is the best teacher that you'll ever have. Every advisor has had those moments quoting an estimate wrong for getting a promised time on a vehicle, forgetting to communicate to your client or your coworker, which is usually a technician watching the customer maybe walk away upset, right? And it hurts.

Michael Doherty [00:06:20]:
But here's the difference between average advisors and elite ones. Elite advisors fail forward. And there's a great quote by a gentleman Named John Maxwell. It says fail early, fail often, but always fail forward early. What was the lesson in that failure moment? How did we, how do, how do we dissect? How do we take that moment of not triumph and sift through it to find the opportunity to find how to better ourself? And that also plays into self talk, right? If we tell ourselves, man, I just really shit bombed that or I don't think I did a great job with that, or I could have did better. Yeah, those are all things that you could have did. But don't beat yourself up. You will fail.

Michael Doherty [00:07:08]:
But failure is growth. And in this industry, it's going to happen. It's okay. And learning from it, growing from it, adapting is going to set you apart from everybody else that is doing this job. Gotta look for the opportunities, gotta look for the reasons why it will happen. One thing too that I think is really important to talk about for communication and relationships, right? So let's add in a layer we sometimes overlook. So the multiplier effect of communication and relationships, direction, focus, failing forward, all come together in one place, which is how we build relationships. Our words, our tone, how we follow up, these either multiply trust or multiply doubt to our customers and our co workers, right? A customer doesn't just remember if their car was fixed, they remember how you made them feel during the process.

Michael Doherty [00:08:23]:
Same thing with a co worker, same thing with a technician, right? Again, you know, I've always mentioned, you know, it doesn't have to be an argument, it's a conversation. Have a conversation about it and come to a happy medium. But that technicians can remember, man, that service advisor is just always pissed off at me and I don't want to go talk to him. Or hey, that service advisor, you know, they're actively listening to me and I know it's going to be a conversation and not an argument. And that's where really good culture comes in. Work culture, cohesion, right? Knowing that you can go talk to somebody and that you're not going to be, you know, for a better word, bitched out. So in any event, and so again, your words, your tone, your follow up, those can either multiply trust or multiply doubt. Again, with customers or coworkers.

Michael Doherty [00:09:16]:
And here's the kicker, right? We're talking about coworkers. Our internal relationships matter too, right? When, when we communicate well with our technicians, the whole workflow improves. When we build trust with our managers, they invest more in us. When we communicate better with ourself, again, that positive self talk, we build confidence. Instead of doubt and Tony Robbins, great motivational speaker. He says where focus goes, energy flows and that that could be no stronger than what we're talking about today. Service Advisor Nation. Again, where focus goes, energy flows and nowhere is that true truer than in our communication.

Michael Doherty [00:10:03]:
If we focus on the relationship, building our energy flows into building a business and customers that last. And that's ultimately what we're doing. Again, right from episode one, episode two, we're building and maintaining client relationships. So again, direction matters more than speed. Also focus on the controllables. Our attitude, our mindset, our time, feedback, values, communication. And again, failing forward, turn mistakes into fuel. Again, look for the opportunities and remember, communication multiplies everything that we do.

Michael Doherty [00:10:46]:
This process, I mean, as a service advisor, it. It's not about perfection, it's about progression. Customers don't expect us to be flawless. They expect us to take care of them. And when we show up every day with direction, focus, resilience and strong communication, we stop just being a service advisor. We become a trusted advisor. Service Advisor Nation. Thank you so much for tuning into another episode of the Autofix Advisor cast.

Michael Doherty [00:11:19]:
And we are coming up on the last quarter of the year. This is the last episode that I'm doing for September. So we got October, November, December in front of us and then boom. 2026, right? Holy crud. You know, think about the next three months. What can you change differently at the shop? You know, time to voice up. If you see something that's not right, if you see something that's broken and needs to be fixed, have a meeting, bring it up. Now's the time to get it fixed, get it fixed, get everything really efficient, get the team together, do like a, you know, team lunch, something, even if it's off site, just grab everybody together and get some ideas flowing for the next three months.

Michael Doherty [00:12:01]:
And if you've got problems at the business that you see need to be fixed, bring them up and get them work. You know, work on getting them fixed. You'll bring them up to your manager, bring them up to the owner, bring them up to again, people that care and want to help move the needle because those things have to get fixed, right? So bring them up, get them fixed in the next couple months and start off with a Slammin. 2026. But Service Advisor Nation, thank you again for tuning in and take care of yourselves, stay healthy, keep kicking butt, and we'll catch you next episode. All right, thank you so much. Hey, thanks for listening to the Autofix Advisor cast. If you're ready to take your shop to the next level.

Michael Doherty [00:12:46]:
Check out our sponsor, WorldPAC and the WorldPAC Training Institute WTI big thanks to them for their sponsorship. Follow the podcast on social media for more insights and subscribe so you never miss an episode. Oh, and tell your friends we want to help the industry grow and help advisors love their jobs again. See you on the next autofix Advisor Cast.