We are just a week away from this years Driving Sales Executive Summit in Las Vegas at the Bellagio on October 12-14th, 2014. This conference is widely known as a progressive meeting of some of the greatest minds and thought leaders in the Automotive Industry. 

If you are making the trip to Vegas this year, then you have taken the first step to improve your business and move the needle. You will be surrounded by greatness from all areas in business.

Here are a few tips to make sure you get the most out of your 3 day adventure. 

1. Have a plan: Conferences move fast, and there is too much information for any one person to consume. You need to go into this event with a plan laid out on what you are wanting to accomplish. During the breakout sessions, you will have to choose between some incredible speakers and topics. Don't wait until the last minute to choose which one you want to see. 
2. Choose topics wisely: We all have areas of strengths and weaknesses. If there is a breakout session on a topic that you consider a weakness of yours, then I would highly recommend sitting in on that session. Driving Sales brings in a large breadth of speakers and industry experts from all areas of the automotive industry. Use them to expand your horizons.
3. Meet new people: The beauty of Social Media is that so many of us across the country are able to make new friends in this industry from miles away. Make sure you meet AT LEAST 5 new people during your visit. There are so many great minds and not all of them will be speaking. Engage in conversation with some of your peers and you are guaranteed to walk away with knowledge.
4. Take notes: Lots of notes. You will experience a little information overload in the 3 days you are at DSES. Make sure you document as much of your trip as possible. Also, you can follow and use the hashtag #DSES, as many of your peers will be live tweeting quotes and information. 

This conference is a great opportunity for you to enhance your skill set and knowledge of todays fast paced automotive marketplace. Don't waste your 3 days. We are very fortunate that Jared Hamilton and the Driving Sales team put on this great event each year. Make the most of it. Your career will thank you later.

Have a great trip, and say hello if you see me! 

We are just a week away from this years Driving Sales Executive Summit in Las Vegas at the Bellagio on October 12-14th, 2014. This conference is widely known as a progressive meeting of some of the greatest minds and thought leaders in the Automotive Industry. 

If you are making the trip to Vegas this year, then you have taken the first step to improve your business and move the needle. You will be surrounded by greatness from all areas in business.

Here are a few tips to make sure you get the most out of your 3 day adventure. 

1. Have a plan: Conferences move fast, and there is too much information for any one person to consume. You need to go into this event with a plan laid out on what you are wanting to accomplish. During the breakout sessions, you will have to choose between some incredible speakers and topics. Don't wait until the last minute to choose which one you want to see. 
2. Choose topics wisely: We all have areas of strengths and weaknesses. If there is a breakout session on a topic that you consider a weakness of yours, then I would highly recommend sitting in on that session. Driving Sales brings in a large breadth of speakers and industry experts from all areas of the automotive industry. Use them to expand your horizons.
3. Meet new people: The beauty of Social Media is that so many of us across the country are able to make new friends in this industry from miles away. Make sure you meet AT LEAST 5 new people during your visit. There are so many great minds and not all of them will be speaking. Engage in conversation with some of your peers and you are guaranteed to walk away with knowledge.
4. Take notes: Lots of notes. You will experience a little information overload in the 3 days you are at DSES. Make sure you document as much of your trip as possible. Also, you can follow and use the hashtag #DSES, as many of your peers will be live tweeting quotes and information. 

This conference is a great opportunity for you to enhance your skill set and knowledge of todays fast paced automotive marketplace. Don't waste your 3 days. We are very fortunate that Jared Hamilton and the Driving Sales team put on this great event each year. Make the most of it. Your career will thank you later.

Have a great trip, and say hello if you see me! 

Each and every day of our lives we all wake up with different ideas of what the day ahead holds for us. We all have different schedules and motivation. Some get up, go to work, and strive to become more successful, make more money, get promoted, or some just get through the following 8 hours (maybe more like 12) and go home and complete our normal routine until the next day. 

Regardless of what your daily routine is the one thing that does not change from the CEO all the way to the new hire is you have to strive every day to earn and keep RESPECT.

Too many times we get caught up in the things that are important to us, we sometimes forget what may visibly be important to our peers, family, bosses, subordinates, or customers.

As a leader it is crucial to have the respect of your employees. If they don't respect you, then there is no way in the world you are going to get their full potential at work.  Why would you?  You haven't earned it, and you don't deserve it for sure.  On the other hand, if you do have their respect then you are set up to succeed.  I want you to think about the favorite boss you have ever had.  I bet you would run through a brick wall to impress him/her.  If they ask something of you, I'm sure it wasn't questioned, you just got it done.  On the other hand, think of a boss that you didn't respect.  They could have the best idea in the world, but the whole time your reporting to them you can't get it out of your head the fact that you have no trust in them.  

Stephen Covey talks about the emotional bank account in the book "7 Habits of Highly Effective People". Are you making more deposits than withdraws from you peers emotional bank accounts?  If not then you may not have the respect that you want.

The same goes for employee relationships with their boss or superior.  You have to earn the respect you desire.  You may be one of the best at what you do, but if you come in late, are a bad influence on other employees, only do the minimum of what is expected, or always make excuses, then you have some work to do to earn that respect.  

How about your home life?  Does your spouse respect you?  How about your children?  The emotional bank account is ever so important with family.  It has to be a compromise.  If you want your child to respect you when discipline is necessary then you better work to earn the respect at other times.  Make continued deposits into their emotional bank account and you will have the respect.  They will appreciate the love you put forth as apposed to resent the person they don't respect for punishing them.

I am blessed to have a family that I completely respect and work to earn their respect daily through my actions.  I am also blessed to work for, and with a team of people who I respect and also hope to continue to earn respect myself.

“Respect yourself and others will respect you.”  -  Confucius

Each and every day of our lives we all wake up with different ideas of what the day ahead holds for us. We all have different schedules and motivation. Some get up, go to work, and strive to become more successful, make more money, get promoted, or some just get through the following 8 hours (maybe more like 12) and go home and complete our normal routine until the next day. 

Regardless of what your daily routine is the one thing that does not change from the CEO all the way to the new hire is you have to strive every day to earn and keep RESPECT.

Too many times we get caught up in the things that are important to us, we sometimes forget what may visibly be important to our peers, family, bosses, subordinates, or customers.

As a leader it is crucial to have the respect of your employees. If they don't respect you, then there is no way in the world you are going to get their full potential at work.  Why would you?  You haven't earned it, and you don't deserve it for sure.  On the other hand, if you do have their respect then you are set up to succeed.  I want you to think about the favorite boss you have ever had.  I bet you would run through a brick wall to impress him/her.  If they ask something of you, I'm sure it wasn't questioned, you just got it done.  On the other hand, think of a boss that you didn't respect.  They could have the best idea in the world, but the whole time your reporting to them you can't get it out of your head the fact that you have no trust in them.  

Stephen Covey talks about the emotional bank account in the book "7 Habits of Highly Effective People". Are you making more deposits than withdraws from you peers emotional bank accounts?  If not then you may not have the respect that you want.

The same goes for employee relationships with their boss or superior.  You have to earn the respect you desire.  You may be one of the best at what you do, but if you come in late, are a bad influence on other employees, only do the minimum of what is expected, or always make excuses, then you have some work to do to earn that respect.  

How about your home life?  Does your spouse respect you?  How about your children?  The emotional bank account is ever so important with family.  It has to be a compromise.  If you want your child to respect you when discipline is necessary then you better work to earn the respect at other times.  Make continued deposits into their emotional bank account and you will have the respect.  They will appreciate the love you put forth as apposed to resent the person they don't respect for punishing them.

I am blessed to have a family that I completely respect and work to earn their respect daily through my actions.  I am also blessed to work for, and with a team of people who I respect and also hope to continue to earn respect myself.

“Respect yourself and others will respect you.”  -  Confucius

I was discussing this topic Monday in our Sales Meeting and it has really got me thinking.  

How is your workplace culture?

If it's good, can it be great?

In any workplace, habits; good or bad will determine the overall culture of your business.  

It starts with the employees and how they treat or take care of each other.  Is "teamwork" prominent in your workplace? I believe that a teamwork atmosphere is the start to a great culture.  The numerous positive reactions that come form teamwork will then transfer to the consumer.  This all comes from developing and maintaining the correct habits.  It may be something as simple as the way your voice sounds when your on the phone with a client.  Do you come across that you are busy and they are interrupting you, or do you sound like you are sincerely interested in helping them out.  I'm sure we all have good intentions and intend on helping them, but sometimes we fall into bad "habits" of taking the call for granted and having something else occupy our mind other than the customer's best interest.  I watch people all the time, in all different types of businesses and witness they same thing; people not paying attention to the details! So much, that when someone actually does it right, and gives you as the consumer the attention you deserve that it stands out like a sore thumb.  It's the "small things"!  It doesn't take that much more work to develop the simple habits that can create a positive culture, it just takes doing the small things and recognizing the habits that are keeping your company from having a "great culture". 

Simply put, do you do things every day that make the customers that visit your place of business feel special, and do those habits set you apart from any other business that your consumer is visiting?  If not, you have some changes to make. 

I was discussing this topic Monday in our Sales Meeting and it has really got me thinking.  

How is your workplace culture?

If it's good, can it be great?

In any workplace, habits; good or bad will determine the overall culture of your business.  

It starts with the employees and how they treat or take care of each other.  Is "teamwork" prominent in your workplace? I believe that a teamwork atmosphere is the start to a great culture.  The numerous positive reactions that come form teamwork will then transfer to the consumer.  This all comes from developing and maintaining the correct habits.  It may be something as simple as the way your voice sounds when your on the phone with a client.  Do you come across that you are busy and they are interrupting you, or do you sound like you are sincerely interested in helping them out.  I'm sure we all have good intentions and intend on helping them, but sometimes we fall into bad "habits" of taking the call for granted and having something else occupy our mind other than the customer's best interest.  I watch people all the time, in all different types of businesses and witness they same thing; people not paying attention to the details! So much, that when someone actually does it right, and gives you as the consumer the attention you deserve that it stands out like a sore thumb.  It's the "small things"!  It doesn't take that much more work to develop the simple habits that can create a positive culture, it just takes doing the small things and recognizing the habits that are keeping your company from having a "great culture". 

Simply put, do you do things every day that make the customers that visit your place of business feel special, and do those habits set you apart from any other business that your consumer is visiting?  If not, you have some changes to make.