Tustin Ulrich is the General Sales Manager at Roper Kia. In this episode, we discuss his inspiring journey of self-improvement, leadership, and maintaining balance in a demanding industry.
Tustin’s personal journey is equally compelling—he has successfully managed a significant weight loss, focused on personal growth, and developed a mindset that prioritizes grace and intention.
What We Discuss in This Episode
Before we begin, I want you to self-reflect on these 3 questions...
- How often do you take the time to reflect on your personal and professional life with genuine intention?
- What small daily habits can we adopt to start seeing significant changes in our overall growth?
- How can leaders in demanding industries cultivate a culture that prioritizes both personal well-being and professional success?
In this episode, we discuss just that: Tustin shares his strategies for managing his responsibilities as a general sales manager, entrepreneur, investor, and dedicated family man. He emphasizes the importance of living intentionally and cultivating a forward-thinking mindset. This mindset, he explains, has been crucial in helping him manage the various aspects of his life without feeling overwhelmed.
Tustin’s journey is a powerful reminder that success isn’t just about professional achievements but also about personal growth, intentional living, and leading with grace. Tune in to this insightful conversation to gain valuable perspectives that can help you navigate your own challenges with a renewed sense of purpose.
Thanks, Tustin Ulrich!
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Listen to the full episode for insights and context from Tustin Ulrich!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 2 (00:00):
This episode is brought to you by FlexDealer,
the car business, does not meanyou have to miss all of your
kids' basketball games.
I don't think you should missany of your kids' basketball
games, so I define that as aroot pillar in my life, like
family can be first and youdon't have to sacrifice success
to do so.
It just means when you're here,you got to go to work and you
(00:22):
have to be extremely intentionalwith the time that you're here.
You got to go to work and youhave to be extremely intentional
with the time that you're here,hey gang, on this episode of
the dealer playbook podcast.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
sitting down with my pal Tustin, we're talking about
how to maneuver life'schallenges and growth with grace
.
Stay tuned.
The car business is rapidlychanging and modern car dealers
are meeting the demand.
I'm Michael Cirillo, andtogether we'll explore the best
strategies, ideas and tools tocreate a thriving life in and
(00:50):
out of the business.
This is the Dealer Playbook.
Hey Tustin, thanks so much forjoining me on the Dealer
Playbook podcast.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Thanks, man, happy to be here.
Thanks for the invite.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
This has been a while in the making.
Yeah, man, happy to be here.
Thanks for the invite.
This has been a while in themaking, yeah, yeah, and so I'm
excited to make it happen.
Obviously, you and I arepartners.
You're the general manager ofRoper Kia.
You're an entrepreneur andinvestor.
You're somebody that I look upto.
You're doing so many incrediblethings In addition to a weight
loss journey that I want to talkabout and growth in your
(01:24):
personal life and your mindset,and maybe a future book.
My question is Roper Kia, roperRange Line fun for the people?
I see your face multiple timesa day on social media.
You're invested in some coolbusinesses.
You are in real estate.
You're a dad, a great dad, fromwhat I have learned, and I can
(01:50):
see how the heck do you maneuverall of that with the grace that
you do it.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Yeah, it's.
When you list it like that, itseems like a lot.
You know, I'd say that mymindset has always been one
where I don't like being stuck.
So I like thinking ahead, Ilike moving ahead and I've
always been in that frame ofmind.
I think the difference in theselast three years, as I focus on
growth and focus on myself andreally honing in some of those
skills, is one understandingwe're not perfect.
(02:25):
You know I there's no way toachieve perfection.
So I think it's it's vital thatwe understand that we have to
have grace for ourselves first Ithink that's a very important
word and then being superintentional.
I mean, I just you can't getcaught up in TikTok for two
hours a day because there's justnot time to do so.
There's too many lives thatneed to be impacted, too many
people that can be helped, and Itake that with as big of a flag
(02:50):
as I can and yell it as loud asI can, and then be super
intentional in every moment thatI am at.
Speaker 1 (02:57):
I love the word intention.
I was at an event a couple ofyears ago.
Our mutual friend, liza Borshes, said that her organization
adopts a new word that kind ofbecomes their theme for the year
, but that as individuals, theyalso pick a word, and that
really got me thinking.
And at that time intention wasthe word that I picked.
(03:18):
And then the year swapped and Ithought, no, I don't feel like
I want or need a new word.
So when you're talking aboutintention, it really strikes me
Also what you said about TikTokand how easy and addictive it
can be to not even realize howmuch time you're losing on those
(03:40):
platforms versus investing backin yourself and in the things
that you want to accomplish.
I mean, have you always beenminded like this or is this
something that developedorganically over time?
Speaker 2 (03:53):
Minded as in like go get crap done, or minded as
focusing on the growth.
Speaker 1 (03:57):
Yeah, Focus on growth intention, not wasting time.
Speaker 2 (04:01):
No, I would say I was a big waster of time and it was
because I lacked intention.
I, you know a little background.
I was raised by my aunt anduncle.
I was seven, they were 19 and21.
They took me into their home 10months into their marriage and
I am forever grateful for that,and you know.
But before that I bounced fromhouse to house to house to house
as I didn't live with my realmom and dad from, you know, 10
(04:24):
months until seven, and you knowit.
It created a mantra for me whereit's like, no matter what, I'm
going to be a better dad thanwhat my dad was to me, not my
uncle that raised me, not thatlife, but the guy that's my
biological dad.
And then I compare that also totype of father.
He was a type of husband he was.
They were never married, so hewasn't a husband, but you can
(04:46):
digress to understand what kindof situation that was.
And so for the longest time 15,16 years I would take my
deficiencies when I looked atthem in the mirror and I would
say, yeah, but I'm better thanthat.
I'm providing a betterlifestyle than my dad ever
provided for me, because hedidn't provide one at all.
(05:06):
It's easy to provide somethingbetter than that.
I'm providing a betterlifestyle than my dad ever
provided for me, because hedidn't provide one at all.
It's easy to provide somethingbetter than zero.
I'm a better dad than my dadwas, because I've been present
and my dad wasn't.
So you know, when you holdyourself up to that comparison
game, it can be pretty bad.
Now I was still achievingsuccess.
I still became the generalmanager of the store that I
started at when I was 19 yearsold and worked from the bottom
of that store to the top of thatstore, was leading that store
(05:29):
to success and to anybody on theoutside in.
I was the most successfulperson in my family and able to
help people out and get back tomy church and do all of these
things.
And the world is looking at mesaying, hey, good job.
And I was looking inward andsaying this I'm a mess.
I weighed 450 pounds, I did nottake care of myself, I didn't
(05:50):
exercise, I wasn't reading, Ihad a good battle cry like
culture over everything.
But I didn't really know whythat was, and so you know it was
really four years ago.
I turned that inward and said,hey, if I'm actually going to
achieve anything productive orlasting in this world.
I probably need to startfocusing on some of myself.
(06:13):
So I really started down thatpath of self-growth.
Speaker 1 (06:18):
That requires what I think many people shy away from,
which is taking a real honestlook at yourself.
Yeah, absolutely, and I meankind of similar for me, looking
in the mirror and not likingwhat I saw.
You know that's uncomfortable,yeah.
And do you think, though, that,people, is it easier, you think
(06:42):
, to just stay uncomfortablethan it is to do something about
it?
Speaker 2 (06:47):
no, but I think it's an acquired mindset.
I mean, it's much easier to be450 pounds right, but you know,
in that moment of getting to 450pounds, you know my food was an
expression of the emotion I wasfeeling on the inside and,
despite the success of thedealership, despite the income,
(07:09):
despite the beautiful wife andthe kids at home and the nice
vehicle and all of these thingsthat the world wraps ourselves
up in, despite all of thosethings, my, my lash out was to
just go eat.
You know, lunch was at theMexican restaurant because it
was cheap and it was fast and itwas three baskets of chips and
all the salsa you could.
You know, it's all thesehorrible, negative things that
(07:30):
were that were a lash out of anexpression of who I really was
on the inside.
It's pick your poison like.
You can either live a reallyuncomfortable life, weighing 450
pounds, never riding a rollercoaster with your kids and only
being able to wear fourdifferent shirts, because that's
all you can find at the store,or you can pick your heart of
doing the work to become abetter version of yourself.
(07:51):
The ripple effects of that areastounding.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
How do you find the impact on stress load?
Because I know the car businessis not for the faint of heart,
right?
It's Jay-Z in that.
New York songs Like, if you canmake it here, you can make it
anywhere.
And I'm like, dude, new York'sgot nothing on the car business.
That's funny.
Um, how?
What have you noticed in thetime since that you've really
(08:18):
been focused on this?
That you've been cutting andgetting healthier and all of
that?
The impact of maneuvering thecar business, maintaining grace
in a cutthroat industry.
How do you do that?
Speaker 2 (08:30):
Well, I think the industry needs grace.
I think you know that's when Isay culture over everything, and
that was my battle cry thefirst couple of years.
It was because the mentor thatand I talked to him this morning
.
I still have a ton of respectfor the guy, but it was he
laughed about you can't throwcoffee cups at people's heads
anymore.
And he says that because hethrew a coffee cup at somebody's
(08:50):
head.
And that's what people relate tothe car business as is
cutthroat and conniving anddishonest, disingenuous.
And why is that?
Like we have to do everythingwe can to disprove that.
The car business does not meanyou have to miss all of your
kids' basketball games.
I don't think you should missany of your kids' basketball
games.
So it's taking that and you knowI define that as a root pillar
(09:14):
in my life Like family can befirst, and you don't have to
sacrifice success to do so.
It just means when you're here,you got to go to work and you
don't get that.
Well, I'm going to keepreferencing, scrolling, TikTok,
but any social media platform ofyour choosing, like you, have
to be extremely intentional withthe time that you're here, and
(09:35):
so I've always tried to bounceevery decision, every
frustration, off of that, off offamily first, even when it's
uncomfortable, even when it'suncomfortable, even when it's
frustrating, to the point ofwhen the production's not there
and you have to have hardconversations.
But I like being an outlier, Ilike being different, I like
being known for what I am knownfor, because in turn, I can say
(09:56):
five years later it's resultedin cultivating a pool of talent
inside of my dealership that issecond to none, and so the world
needs change.
I was just excited to be a partof that.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
It's a paradigm shift , I think, for many, because
it's like, all of the things youdo don't are not like being a
general manager of a store.
All of the money, all of thosethings.
What I'm picking up is thosearen't things that define you.
Speaker 2 (10:23):
No, I don't.
I don't think so at all.
I mean, I've always said that Ipeople ask what I do.
I'm like I grow people.
We sell cars as a byproduct ofthat, but it's.
It is about focusing oncreating better humans, not for
the result of selling cars, Likeif I can invest three years in
(10:43):
somebody and they can go becomea better human at whatever, I've
had a positive impact on theirlife and the rest is going to
wash out If you're doing enough.
I just believe that if you'redoing enough good, it's always
going to shake out in your favor.
Speaker 1 (10:59):
In order to do good, you have to be in a good place.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
I would say you have to lead the charge, you have to
be in an improving place.
Let's start with one thing.
Right now my management staffis.
I very politely instruct themto read 10 pages a day and we're
all in a group thread so Ipicked the book.
Everybody's at the same spot,at the same time.
You read your 10 pages a dayand then you text your takeaway
(11:24):
to the group thread and thegroup thread has a lot of banter
in it and they give each othera hard time.
I post my sweat pictures inthere every day because I
September 23rd of last year tosweat every day for a year.
So you know that that groupthread does a lot of different
things.
But you know, in our very firstbook that we read, our
completion rate was like 40,some percent, and then on the
(11:47):
second book it was like 60.
On the third book it was like85.
And so it's understanding thatit's my job as a leader to do it
first.
And if I do it first and Icontinue to do it and it becomes
a habit and it's unignorable,then people are naturally going
to come along and do the samething.
So if I'm, if I see that youknow Bill has some issues and he
(12:10):
needs to work on them.
Well, it's really hard to holdthe mirror up to Bill when Bill
can look at me and say, yeah,but you do this, this, this and
this, whereas if you'reconstantly focusing on
self-growth and that's you know,chasing gratitude and goals and
grace and growth and the weightloss and the sweat and they see
the momentum, it's hard toignore that tide.
(12:31):
And so at some point that tidebecomes the mirror.
Whether you want to hold it upor not, they're just naturally
going to come to you and say,hey, I need to work on X, what
would you recommend?
And you, those conversationsjust happen naturally.
Speaker 1 (12:49):
Hey, does your marketing agency suck?
Listen, before we hop back intothis episode, I know you know
me as the host of the DealerPlaybook, but did you also know
that I'm the CEO of FlexDealer,an agency that's helping dealers
capture better quality leadsfrom local SEO and
hyper-targeted ads that convert?
So if you want to sell morecars and finally have a partner
that's in it with you, thatdoesn't suck visit flexdealercom
(13:12):
.
Let's hop back into thisepisode.
What I think is so cool aboutit is I have this visual a pitch
dark room.
I mean, you can't see not anounce of light in this room and
it's dark.
You can't see your hand infront of your face and what
happens is when you're in thatdark of a room, the smallest
(13:35):
amount of light stands out.
In contrast, and the way I seeit is, we have this big industry
and many perceive it as thisdark void, and you and I are
aligned in.
We want to remove that stigma.
And to your point about if Ishoot up a light from where I
(13:58):
stand, standing in my own anddoing what I do, what happens is
it gives others who might be inthe dark void a reference point
to draw close to.
And to your point.
It's hard to ignore results.
We naturally gravitate towardshope and light and grace and
humility.
(14:21):
Think there's leaders on bothsides of the industry, whether
it's the supplier side, which Isit on, or the dealership side,
which you sit on there's leaderswho would rather pay to solve
their problems for them.
Versus what I'm picking up,what you're doing, which is,
(14:47):
versus what I'm picking up, whatyou're doing, which is no, I'm
leading the charge, I'm going tobe the light, I'm going to be
the example, and I just feellike you can't overcompensate
for that.
You have to put in the work.
You have to not be afraid toput in the work.
What do you say to otherleaders out there who are maybe
in that position, wondering whatthey can do?
What would you recommend?
How do they?
What would you recommend?
How do they self-assess?
(15:08):
What should they be looking at?
Speaker 2 (15:10):
Oh man, that's good.
I think we make it all toocomplicated, if I'm being honest
.
So I'll never forget a sermonthat I heard a church.
This is a few years ago and thereference point was people say
I'm going to, they start outevery, I'm going to read the
Bible in a year and everybodystarts on January 1st, I think.
To do that you have to readthree chapters a day and five
chapters on Sunday.
And the pastor is like it's nodifferent than somebody saying
(15:33):
I'm going to work out six days aweek.
So they go to their sportinggoods store and they buy all the
workout outfits, and they buythe water bottle and the shoes,
and they're excited.
And they come home and onMonday new outfit, new shoes
they go to the gym.
They're excited.
Tuesday, wednesday, thursday,friday all the same things.
Well, the second Monday guesswhat?
No more new outfits.
And that motivation wanes.
And then that's when it's atrue test of discipline and they
(15:55):
might that Monday go again, andthen Tuesday and Wednesday go
again.
But then on Thursday somethinghappens.
They don't go.
There's no more motivationinvolved.
He's like why do we make goalsso big and say I'm going to do
this massive thing?
Like I can look back on thework I've done in the last four
years and say that it has been amassive paradigm shift in my
(16:15):
life, but it started out withone simple task I wrote down 10
things I was grateful for everysingle day, and I've done that
every day since, and it soundssilly, and sometimes it's not
even about the practice ofwriting down gratitude, like I
think my viewpoint on the worldis just so much different than
most because I come from aposition of gratitude, like I
(16:39):
look at things as an opportunity, and a lot of people don't.
A lot of people want to vieweverything as a negative and a
lot of people don't.
A lot of people want to vieweverything as a negative.
However, and my book club iscurrently reading Atomic Habits
by James Clear it's a great book.
We just read the chapteryesterday that talks about you
have to show up.
You can't optimize somethingthat doesn't exist, and so how
(17:02):
are you going to make somethingbetter?
But, as a visionary and I'm avisionary like you want to see
this big, grandioso picture ofperfection at the end, and then
you want to work on it.
I do want to work on it, tweakon it, make sure it's perfect.
This decision is going to beamazing.
This is going to be the thingthat changes us.
Blah, blah, blah, blah blah.
And then what you realize isthat there is no perfect
decision.
(17:22):
There is no perfect decision.
There is no perfect person,there's no perfect path.
There are imperfect people inan imperfect world, in an
imperfect environment, alltrying to create something
better together.
And as long as your hearts arealigned and you're willing to
show up every single day, that'swhere the discipline part comes
in.
You have to be willing to showup, then you can tweak and get
(17:43):
better, then you can grow andget better.
So it started with writing down10 things I was grateful for.
If you want to change theculture in whatever environment
you're, in, whatever industryyou're in, start with one thing,
small, that takes less than 10minutes a day, and commit to do
it, no matter what, and Ichallenge you to just carry that
(18:04):
through.
And if you do that, the impactswill build, the habits will
stack, you'll grow, they'll grow.
Speaker 1 (18:10):
I love it.
I mean, I've talked about itover the years.
What resonates with me, whatyou're saying, tustin, is, you
know, looking at the dark spotsin my life, what snapped me out
of it fundamentally and first,was gratitude, that a very
similar gratitude practice towhat you mentioned, and so that
resonates deeply with me.
And then you know, over theyears, right, just just not
(18:33):
ignoring my faith and realizingthat all of the good things that
I've got going for me whetherit's gratitude or grace or you
know any of those sorts ofthings patience, perseverance
I'm like these are allprinciples Christ taught.
Yeah, absolutely, you can't.
The line couldn't get morestraight for me, and I don't
(18:55):
want to say that People thatdon't believe are doomed and
will never get it, but I justbelieve truth is truth and, and
for me, I believe that he's thesource of truth, and that
definitely has an impact, Ithink, on the way that I lead
and try and run my business, andI can certainly feel that I can
feel that same thing for you.
It's, it seems like that is avery important aspect of how you
(19:19):
operate very important aspectof how you operate.
Speaker 2 (19:23):
Yeah, without a shadow of a doubt, I don't know
where I'd be without it.
I say all the time that thefour G's that I practice every
day the gratitude, goals, growthand grace are the foundation of
my life.
But my devotional habit that wedo every day is what keeps me
rooted in my life, and I thinkit's important to have both of
those pieces if you want to growanything lasting.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
I find it interesting , you know, because the stakes
are so high in our space, and Iwant to give props and kudos to
you because I mean, gosh, I'vebeen in this industry now 23
years.
This will be my 23rd year and Ihaven't really known other
(20:03):
industries.
I've had little spurts here andthere in other spaces, but
really since I was 17 years old,this is it.
My kudos is I haven't metanyone other than you yet who
has so well articulated thebigger picture that there is a
bigger purpose and that, andthat grounded that you're, that
(20:24):
groundedness that you're talkingabout, I think is is so amazing
.
So thank you for being a greatexample.
Um, um, I think it's tremendousthose are I.
Speaker 2 (20:38):
I appreciate those words very much.
You know a lot of incrediblehumans, so thank you for that.
Speaker 1 (20:43):
And I mean it you.
I think you know I don't.
I'm not a smoke blower either.
You know that the Italian in meprohibits smoke blowing.
Yeah, what's what's next foryou?
What's what's your vision?
I mean the industry.
The industry went fromunexplainable highs to a reset,
(21:04):
so to speak, that we're in andthere's.
I mean our industry gravitatestowards buzz topics and EVs and
alternate fuels and OEMregulations, and what are they
going to force us to sell nextand what do we have to do?
And in this high stakes gamestakes game, I mean, what are
you most focused on moving intothe next six to 12 months?
Speaker 2 (21:25):
yeah, it's great.
You're right, the target isalways moving, but the target's
always going to move.
I am um, I love playing games,so I love playing strategy games
with my kids and it's alwaysfun.
They if they want, if they finda game they love, and then they
want to buy an expansion packof that game.
They know the rule they have tobeat me.
(21:45):
So right now, the big thing inmy world is pickleball.
My kids love pickleball.
We are in our driveway everynight playing pickleball and
it's awesome and it gets usmoving and it's great.
They know that they've allpicked the pickleball paddle of
their choice and they have twodecisions to make they can
either buy it with their ownmoney or they can beat that and
(22:06):
earn it.
And so you know it's.
I say that to tell you that inthe next six to 12 months I
think the game is going to beconstantly changing and you know
the amount of risk that you'rewilling to stomach and work
through is going to be a bigdictator of, I think, where you
go.
We've been focusing onpre-owned cars for the last
(22:27):
three years and grown thatdepartment to record numbers for
us because we didn't want to benew car dependent and you know
the market's going to continueto shift again as new car
inventory comes back in surplusand manufacturers have to get
back in the game.
New car inventory comes back insurplus and manufacturers have
to get back in the game.
But I I truly believe that if Icontinue to focus on our
(22:50):
employees, that, regardless ofwhat pieces are on the game
board or what game we areplaying, we will win.
And you know they're yeah,they're risky decisions.
I mean, I'll never forget, I'llnever forget, when COVID broke
out, I was on spring break tripwith my family in Colorado.
That meant me spending half ofmy time on Zoom calls with my
team handling things at thestore.
We're driving home fromColorado because we're a family
(23:10):
of six and flying isastronomical.
We're driving home fromColorado and I called the owner
of my store and I said, hey, Igot a crazy idea.
He's like yeah, hit me.
I'm like I'm going to go spendlike $2 million on used cars.
He's like nobody knows if we'regoing to be able to sell cars
in two weeks.
I'm like I know, but that meansthey're panic selling and that
means it's an opportunity andthere's no way they go to zero.
(23:32):
He's like whatever you think.
So we did.
We went and spent the, set usup for success and we you know
that propelled us to a levelthat none of us probably seen
coming.
Then it worked out well.
I think whatever risk you'rewilling to tolerate in the next
six to 12 months is going todictate a lot of your success
business wise.
But the execution of that planis going to depend on who you
(23:53):
have in your stable and you knowit's not the great resignation.
But I would say a downside ofthe automotive industry is
everybody knows everybody, sothey think it's easier to go
find greener grass on the otherside of the fence.
There's a lot of ship jumpinggoing on right now.
I'm very grateful that's notthe case for our dealership.
Our dealership is steadfast.
We haven't lost anybody that'sjust gone to take a job
(24:16):
somewhere else just because theythink they can make an extra
dollar.
At the end of the day, weunderstand the mission that's in
front of us and the visionthat's in front of us.
We actually just went throughan entire shakeup in our
dealership, changing our hoursand our structure and how our
day started, and all of thesethings because if we're going to
improve and grow to the nextlevel.
It is what is required.
Speaker 1 (24:35):
I love it.
How much risk can you handle?
How much risk can you stomach?
You know it's.
It's funny because it's a lotof people love the sound of
these words and hate the waythey feel an application like
risk might mean not taking apaycheck.
Like, imagine you're, you know,imagine the dealer when you're
like hey, I know we might beclosed and not be able to sell a
(24:59):
single thing, but can we justgo into the bank account and
spend two mil on used?
He's like okay, pork and meat,pork and beans for dinner.
Yeah, you know, and most peoplearen't willing to get that raw
and gritty and uncomfortable.
Um, when push comes to shove,although what I would stress is
(25:20):
but it's available to everyone,it's just a choice whether or
not you're going to go for it ornot.
Speaker 2 (25:27):
Yep, well, I mean I posted on that about social
media.
Yesterday I was able toexperience a reward trip that
we've been chasing for two yearswith my business partner for a
real estate goal and I laugh atour first purchase of real
estate together.
I woke up that morning and didmy gratitude book like I always
did.
I opened up Facebook.
There was a listing for a housethat was going live in the town
(25:49):
that I live in.
I'm like this makes all thesense in the world.
So by 10 am we were looking atit.
By noon we had an offer.
By 1 pm it was accepted and webought a house.
Now the amount of lessons thatcame from that were huge.
It took 15 months to get thatproperty renovated because we
had no idea what we were doingnor the time to do it.
It was.
It was a lot, but we took thestep, you know, and and then we
(26:14):
stuck it out and we didn't giveup and and now we've grown that
real estate portfolio quite abit.
You know we bootstrapped thatby ourselves and did it as a
side thing and it's been fun.
I mean, you got to be willingto take a step and take risk.
I do joke.
Now we have a full-time propertymanager.
She's incredible and her and Iwere looking at a house together
(26:35):
and she started she took abunch of pictures and I thought
she was just taking them for herown records and then she sends
it to the group thread with meand my wife and my business
partner and his wife and I'mlike what are you doing?
She's like oh, I just sent thatpicture so you know what we're
looking at.
I'm like that's not how thisworks.
Like I find a house and then Itell them there's a contract in
your email.
You need to go sign it so wecan buy this house together,
(26:57):
which is how we bought the lastfew.
We laughed about it, but I domean that that's happened
several times and it's becauseI'm I'm willing to go take that
risk.
Like I right, you don't getwhat you don't go get.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
I love it.
It's yeah, put, put, put themoney where your mouth is.
Yeah, I love it.
Man, um, I feel like I there'sso many things.
I'm going to have to have youback on the show if you're
willing to do it, becausethere's more things I want to
pick your brain on, but for now,I just want to turn it over to
you one last time.
How can those listening andwatching connect with you?
Speaker 2 (27:24):
Yeah, you can find me on social media.
I think I'm the only tested onplanet Earth that I'm aware of,
so that is a weird tagline thatI get to say yeah, I'm on
Facebook.
Yeah, just get a hold of me,send me a private message.
Message, I'm happy to help inany way that I can.
I will not turn someone awaythat is looking to improve their
(27:45):
lives.
There's life's too short soamazing, man.
Speaker 1 (27:48):
Thanks so much for joining me on the dealer
playbook podcast.
You did, man.
Thanks for having me.
Hey, thanks for listening tothe dealer playbook podcast.
If you enjoyed tuning in,please subscribe, share and hit
that like button.
You can can also join us andthe DPB community on social
media.
Check back next week for a newDealer Playbook episode.
Thanks so much for joining.
This episode is brought to you by FlexDealer,
the car business, does not meanyou have to miss all of your
kids' basketball games.
I don't think you should missany of your kids' basketball
games, so I define that as aroot pillar in my life, like
family can be first and youdon't have to sacrifice success
to do so.
It just means when you're here,you got to go to work and you
(00:22):
have to be extremely intentionalwith the time that you're here.
You got to go to work and youhave to be extremely intentional
with the time that you're here,hey gang, on this episode of
the dealer playbook podcast.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
sitting down with my pal Tustin, we're talking about
how to maneuver life'schallenges and growth with grace
.
Stay tuned.
The car business is rapidlychanging and modern car dealers
are meeting the demand.
I'm Michael Cirillo, andtogether we'll explore the best
strategies, ideas and tools tocreate a thriving life in and
(00:50):
out of the business.
This is the Dealer Playbook.
Hey Tustin, thanks so much forjoining me on the Dealer
Playbook podcast.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Thanks, man, happy to be here.
Thanks for the invite.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
This has been a while in the making.
Yeah, man, happy to be here.
Thanks for the invite.
This has been a while in themaking, yeah, yeah, and so I'm
excited to make it happen.
Obviously, you and I arepartners.
You're the general manager ofRoper Kia.
You're an entrepreneur andinvestor.
You're somebody that I look upto.
You're doing so many incrediblethings In addition to a weight
loss journey that I want to talkabout and growth in your
(01:24):
personal life and your mindset,and maybe a future book.
My question is Roper Kia, roperRange Line fun for the people?
I see your face multiple timesa day on social media.
You're invested in some coolbusinesses.
You are in real estate.
You're a dad, a great dad, fromwhat I have learned, and I can
(01:50):
see how the heck do you maneuverall of that with the grace that
you do it.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Yeah, it's.
When you list it like that, itseems like a lot.
You know, I'd say that mymindset has always been one
where I don't like being stuck.
So I like thinking ahead, Ilike moving ahead and I've
always been in that frame ofmind.
I think the difference in theselast three years, as I focus on
growth and focus on myself andreally honing in some of those
skills, is one understandingwe're not perfect.
(02:25):
You know I there's no way toachieve perfection.
So I think it's it's vital thatwe understand that we have to
have grace for ourselves first Ithink that's a very important
word and then being superintentional.
I mean, I just you can't getcaught up in TikTok for two
hours a day because there's justnot time to do so.
There's too many lives thatneed to be impacted, too many
people that can be helped, and Itake that with as big of a flag
(02:50):
as I can and yell it as loud asI can, and then be super
intentional in every moment thatI am at.
Speaker 1 (02:57):
I love the word intention.
I was at an event a couple ofyears ago.
Our mutual friend, liza Borshes, said that her organization
adopts a new word that kind ofbecomes their theme for the year
, but that as individuals, theyalso pick a word, and that
really got me thinking.
And at that time intention wasthe word that I picked.
(03:18):
And then the year swapped and Ithought, no, I don't feel like
I want or need a new word.
So when you're talking aboutintention, it really strikes me
Also what you said about TikTokand how easy and addictive it
can be to not even realize howmuch time you're losing on those
(03:40):
platforms versus investing backin yourself and in the things
that you want to accomplish.
I mean, have you always beenminded like this or is this
something that developedorganically over time?
Speaker 2 (03:53):
Minded as in like go get crap done, or minded as
focusing on the growth.
Speaker 1 (03:57):
Yeah, Focus on growth intention, not wasting time.
Speaker 2 (04:01):
No, I would say I was a big waster of time and it was
because I lacked intention.
I, you know a little background.
I was raised by my aunt anduncle.
I was seven, they were 19 and21.
They took me into their home 10months into their marriage and
I am forever grateful for that,and you know.
But before that I bounced fromhouse to house to house to house
as I didn't live with my realmom and dad from, you know, 10
(04:24):
months until seven, and you knowit.
It created a mantra for me whereit's like, no matter what, I'm
going to be a better dad thanwhat my dad was to me, not my
uncle that raised me, not thatlife, but the guy that's my
biological dad.
And then I compare that also totype of father.
He was a type of husband he was.
They were never married, so hewasn't a husband, but you can
(04:46):
digress to understand what kindof situation that was.
And so for the longest time 15,16 years I would take my
deficiencies when I looked atthem in the mirror and I would
say, yeah, but I'm better thanthat.
I'm providing a betterlifestyle than my dad ever
provided for me, because hedidn't provide one at all.
(05:06):
It's easy to provide somethingbetter than that.
I'm providing a betterlifestyle than my dad ever
provided for me, because hedidn't provide one at all.
It's easy to provide somethingbetter than zero.
I'm a better dad than my dadwas, because I've been present
and my dad wasn't.
So you know, when you holdyourself up to that comparison
game, it can be pretty bad.
Now I was still achievingsuccess.
I still became the generalmanager of the store that I
started at when I was 19 yearsold and worked from the bottom
of that store to the top of thatstore, was leading that store
(05:29):
to success and to anybody on theoutside in.
I was the most successfulperson in my family and able to
help people out and get back tomy church and do all of these
things.
And the world is looking at mesaying, hey, good job.
And I was looking inward andsaying this I'm a mess.
I weighed 450 pounds, I did nottake care of myself, I didn't
(05:50):
exercise, I wasn't reading, Ihad a good battle cry like
culture over everything.
But I didn't really know whythat was, and so you know it was
really four years ago.
I turned that inward and said,hey, if I'm actually going to
achieve anything productive orlasting in this world.
I probably need to startfocusing on some of myself.
(06:13):
So I really started down thatpath of self-growth.
Speaker 1 (06:18):
That requires what I think many people shy away from,
which is taking a real honestlook at yourself.
Yeah, absolutely, and I meankind of similar for me, looking
in the mirror and not likingwhat I saw.
You know that's uncomfortable,yeah.
And do you think, though, that,people, is it easier, you think
(06:42):
, to just stay uncomfortablethan it is to do something about
it?
Speaker 2 (06:47):
no, but I think it's an acquired mindset.
I mean, it's much easier to be450 pounds right, but you know,
in that moment of getting to 450pounds, you know my food was an
expression of the emotion I wasfeeling on the inside and,
despite the success of thedealership, despite the income,
(07:09):
despite the beautiful wife andthe kids at home and the nice
vehicle and all of these thingsthat the world wraps ourselves
up in, despite all of thosethings, my, my lash out was to
just go eat.
You know, lunch was at theMexican restaurant because it
was cheap and it was fast and itwas three baskets of chips and
all the salsa you could.
You know, it's all thesehorrible, negative things that
(07:30):
were that were a lash out of anexpression of who I really was
on the inside.
It's pick your poison like.
You can either live a reallyuncomfortable life, weighing 450
pounds, never riding a rollercoaster with your kids and only
being able to wear fourdifferent shirts, because that's
all you can find at the store,or you can pick your heart of
doing the work to become abetter version of yourself.
(07:51):
The ripple effects of that areastounding.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
How do you find the impact on stress load?
Because I know the car businessis not for the faint of heart,
right?
It's Jay-Z in that.
New York songs Like, if you canmake it here, you can make it
anywhere.
And I'm like, dude, new York'sgot nothing on the car business.
That's funny.
Um, how?
What have you noticed in thetime since that you've really
(08:18):
been focused on this?
That you've been cutting andgetting healthier and all of
that?
The impact of maneuvering thecar business, maintaining grace
in a cutthroat industry.
How do you do that?
Speaker 2 (08:30):
Well, I think the industry needs grace.
I think you know that's when Isay culture over everything, and
that was my battle cry thefirst couple of years.
It was because the mentor thatand I talked to him this morning
.
I still have a ton of respectfor the guy, but it was he
laughed about you can't throwcoffee cups at people's heads
anymore.
And he says that because hethrew a coffee cup at somebody's
(08:50):
head.
And that's what people relate tothe car business as is
cutthroat and conniving anddishonest, disingenuous.
And why is that?
Like we have to do everythingwe can to disprove that.
The car business does not meanyou have to miss all of your
kids' basketball games.
I don't think you should missany of your kids' basketball
games.
So it's taking that and you knowI define that as a root pillar
(09:14):
in my life Like family can befirst, and you don't have to
sacrifice success to do so.
It just means when you're here,you got to go to work and you
don't get that.
Well, I'm going to keepreferencing, scrolling, TikTok,
but any social media platform ofyour choosing, like you, have
to be extremely intentional withthe time that you're here, and
(09:35):
so I've always tried to bounceevery decision, every
frustration, off of that, off offamily first, even when it's
uncomfortable, even when it'suncomfortable, even when it's
frustrating, to the point ofwhen the production's not there
and you have to have hardconversations.
But I like being an outlier, Ilike being different, I like
being known for what I am knownfor, because in turn, I can say
(09:56):
five years later it's resultedin cultivating a pool of talent
inside of my dealership that issecond to none, and so the world
needs change.
I was just excited to be a partof that.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
It's a paradigm shift , I think, for many, because
it's like, all of the things youdo don't are not like being a
general manager of a store.
All of the money, all of thosethings.
What I'm picking up is thosearen't things that define you.
Speaker 2 (10:23):
No, I don't.
I don't think so at all.
I mean, I've always said that Ipeople ask what I do.
I'm like I grow people.
We sell cars as a byproduct ofthat, but it's.
It is about focusing oncreating better humans, not for
the result of selling cars, Likeif I can invest three years in
(10:43):
somebody and they can go becomea better human at whatever, I've
had a positive impact on theirlife and the rest is going to
wash out If you're doing enough.
I just believe that if you'redoing enough good, it's always
going to shake out in your favor.
Speaker 1 (10:59):
In order to do good, you have to be in a good place.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
I would say you have to lead the charge, you have to
be in an improving place.
Let's start with one thing.
Right now my management staffis.
I very politely instruct themto read 10 pages a day and we're
all in a group thread so Ipicked the book.
Everybody's at the same spot,at the same time.
You read your 10 pages a dayand then you text your takeaway
(11:24):
to the group thread and thegroup thread has a lot of banter
in it and they give each othera hard time.
I post my sweat pictures inthere every day because I
September 23rd of last year tosweat every day for a year.
So you know that that groupthread does a lot of different
things.
But you know, in our very firstbook that we read, our
completion rate was like 40,some percent, and then on the
(11:47):
second book it was like 60.
On the third book it was like85.
And so it's understanding thatit's my job as a leader to do it
first.
And if I do it first and Icontinue to do it and it becomes
a habit and it's unignorable,then people are naturally going
to come along and do the samething.
So if I'm, if I see that youknow Bill has some issues and he
(12:10):
needs to work on them.
Well, it's really hard to holdthe mirror up to Bill when Bill
can look at me and say, yeah,but you do this, this, this and
this, whereas if you'reconstantly focusing on
self-growth and that's you know,chasing gratitude and goals and
grace and growth and the weightloss and the sweat and they see
the momentum, it's hard toignore that tide.
(12:31):
And so at some point that tidebecomes the mirror.
Whether you want to hold it upor not, they're just naturally
going to come to you and say,hey, I need to work on X, what
would you recommend?
And you, those conversationsjust happen naturally.
Speaker 1 (12:49):
Hey, does your marketing agency suck?
Listen, before we hop back intothis episode, I know you know
me as the host of the DealerPlaybook, but did you also know
that I'm the CEO of FlexDealer,an agency that's helping dealers
capture better quality leadsfrom local SEO and
hyper-targeted ads that convert?
So if you want to sell morecars and finally have a partner
that's in it with you, thatdoesn't suck visit flexdealercom
(13:12):
.
Let's hop back into thisepisode.
What I think is so cool aboutit is I have this visual a pitch
dark room.
I mean, you can't see not anounce of light in this room and
it's dark.
You can't see your hand infront of your face and what
happens is when you're in thatdark of a room, the smallest
(13:35):
amount of light stands out.
In contrast, and the way I seeit is, we have this big industry
and many perceive it as thisdark void, and you and I are
aligned in.
We want to remove that stigma.
And to your point about if Ishoot up a light from where I
(13:58):
stand, standing in my own anddoing what I do, what happens is
it gives others who might be inthe dark void a reference point
to draw close to.
And to your point.
It's hard to ignore results.
We naturally gravitate towardshope and light and grace and
humility.
(14:21):
Think there's leaders on bothsides of the industry, whether
it's the supplier side, which Isit on, or the dealership side,
which you sit on there's leaderswho would rather pay to solve
their problems for them.
Versus what I'm picking up,what you're doing, which is,
(14:47):
versus what I'm picking up, whatyou're doing, which is no, I'm
leading the charge, I'm going tobe the light, I'm going to be
the example, and I just feellike you can't overcompensate
for that.
You have to put in the work.
You have to not be afraid toput in the work.
What do you say to otherleaders out there who are maybe
in that position, wondering whatthey can do?
What would you recommend?
How do they?
What would you recommend?
How do they self-assess?
(15:08):
What should they be looking at?
Speaker 2 (15:10):
Oh man, that's good.
I think we make it all toocomplicated, if I'm being honest
.
So I'll never forget a sermonthat I heard a church.
This is a few years ago and thereference point was people say
I'm going to, they start outevery, I'm going to read the
Bible in a year and everybodystarts on January 1st, I think.
To do that you have to readthree chapters a day and five
chapters on Sunday.
And the pastor is like it's nodifferent than somebody saying
(15:33):
I'm going to work out six days aweek.
So they go to their sportinggoods store and they buy all the
workout outfits, and they buythe water bottle and the shoes,
and they're excited.
And they come home and onMonday new outfit, new shoes
they go to the gym.
They're excited.
Tuesday, wednesday, thursday,friday all the same things.
Well, the second Monday guesswhat?
No more new outfits.
And that motivation wanes.
And then that's when it's atrue test of discipline and they
(15:55):
might that Monday go again, andthen Tuesday and Wednesday go
again.
But then on Thursday somethinghappens.
They don't go.
There's no more motivationinvolved.
He's like why do we make goalsso big and say I'm going to do
this massive thing?
Like I can look back on thework I've done in the last four
years and say that it has been amassive paradigm shift in my
(16:15):
life, but it started out withone simple task I wrote down 10
things I was grateful for everysingle day, and I've done that
every day since, and it soundssilly, and sometimes it's not
even about the practice ofwriting down gratitude, like I
think my viewpoint on the worldis just so much different than
most because I come from aposition of gratitude, like I
(16:39):
look at things as an opportunity, and a lot of people don't.
A lot of people want to vieweverything as a negative and a
lot of people don't.
A lot of people want to vieweverything as a negative.
However, and my book club iscurrently reading Atomic Habits
by James Clear it's a great book.
We just read the chapteryesterday that talks about you
have to show up.
You can't optimize somethingthat doesn't exist, and so how
(17:02):
are you going to make somethingbetter?
But, as a visionary and I'm avisionary like you want to see
this big, grandioso picture ofperfection at the end, and then
you want to work on it.
I do want to work on it, tweakon it, make sure it's perfect.
This decision is going to beamazing.
This is going to be the thingthat changes us.
Blah, blah, blah, blah blah.
And then what you realize isthat there is no perfect
decision.
(17:22):
There is no perfect decision.
There is no perfect person,there's no perfect path.
There are imperfect people inan imperfect world, in an
imperfect environment, alltrying to create something
better together.
And as long as your hearts arealigned and you're willing to
show up every single day, that'swhere the discipline part comes
in.
You have to be willing to showup, then you can tweak and get
(17:43):
better, then you can grow andget better.
So it started with writing down10 things I was grateful for.
If you want to change theculture in whatever environment
you're, in, whatever industryyou're in, start with one thing,
small, that takes less than 10minutes a day, and commit to do
it, no matter what, and Ichallenge you to just carry that
(18:04):
through.
And if you do that, the impactswill build, the habits will
stack, you'll grow, they'll grow.
Speaker 1 (18:10):
I love it.
I mean, I've talked about itover the years.
What resonates with me, whatyou're saying, tustin, is, you
know, looking at the dark spotsin my life, what snapped me out
of it fundamentally and first,was gratitude, that a very
similar gratitude practice towhat you mentioned, and so that
resonates deeply with me.
And then you know, over theyears, right, just just not
(18:33):
ignoring my faith and realizingthat all of the good things that
I've got going for me whetherit's gratitude or grace or you
know any of those sorts ofthings patience, perseverance
I'm like these are allprinciples Christ taught.
Yeah, absolutely, you can't.
The line couldn't get morestraight for me, and I don't
(18:55):
want to say that People thatdon't believe are doomed and
will never get it, but I justbelieve truth is truth and, and
for me, I believe that he's thesource of truth, and that
definitely has an impact, Ithink, on the way that I lead
and try and run my business, andI can certainly feel that I can
feel that same thing for you.
It's, it seems like that is avery important aspect of how you
(19:19):
operate very important aspectof how you operate.
Speaker 2 (19:23):
Yeah, without a shadow of a doubt, I don't know
where I'd be without it.
I say all the time that thefour G's that I practice every
day the gratitude, goals, growthand grace are the foundation of
my life.
But my devotional habit that wedo every day is what keeps me
rooted in my life, and I thinkit's important to have both of
those pieces if you want to growanything lasting.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
I find it interesting , you know, because the stakes
are so high in our space, and Iwant to give props and kudos to
you because I mean, gosh, I'vebeen in this industry now 23
years.
This will be my 23rd year and Ihaven't really known other
(20:03):
industries.
I've had little spurts here andthere in other spaces, but
really since I was 17 years old,this is it.
My kudos is I haven't metanyone other than you yet who
has so well articulated thebigger picture that there is a
bigger purpose and that, andthat grounded that you're, that
(20:24):
groundedness that you're talkingabout, I think is is so amazing
.
So thank you for being a greatexample.
Um, um, I think it's tremendousthose are I.
Speaker 2 (20:38):
I appreciate those words very much.
You know a lot of incrediblehumans, so thank you for that.
Speaker 1 (20:43):
And I mean it you.
I think you know I don't.
I'm not a smoke blower either.
You know that the Italian in meprohibits smoke blowing.
Yeah, what's what's next foryou?
What's what's your vision?
I mean the industry.
The industry went fromunexplainable highs to a reset,
(21:04):
so to speak, that we're in andthere's.
I mean our industry gravitatestowards buzz topics and EVs and
alternate fuels and OEMregulations, and what are they
going to force us to sell nextand what do we have to do?
And in this high stakes gamestakes game, I mean, what are
you most focused on moving intothe next six to 12 months?
Speaker 2 (21:25):
yeah, it's great.
You're right, the target isalways moving, but the target's
always going to move.
I am um, I love playing games,so I love playing strategy games
with my kids and it's alwaysfun.
They if they want, if they finda game they love, and then they
want to buy an expansion packof that game.
They know the rule they have tobeat me.
(21:45):
So right now, the big thing inmy world is pickleball.
My kids love pickleball.
We are in our driveway everynight playing pickleball and
it's awesome and it gets usmoving and it's great.
They know that they've allpicked the pickleball paddle of
their choice and they have twodecisions to make they can
either buy it with their ownmoney or they can beat that and
(22:06):
earn it.
And so you know it's.
I say that to tell you that inthe next six to 12 months I
think the game is going to beconstantly changing and you know
the amount of risk that you'rewilling to stomach and work
through is going to be a bigdictator of, I think, where you
go.
We've been focusing onpre-owned cars for the last
(22:27):
three years and grown thatdepartment to record numbers for
us because we didn't want to benew car dependent and you know
the market's going to continueto shift again as new car
inventory comes back in surplusand manufacturers have to get
back in the game.
New car inventory comes back insurplus and manufacturers have
to get back in the game.
But I I truly believe that if Icontinue to focus on our
(22:50):
employees, that, regardless ofwhat pieces are on the game
board or what game we areplaying, we will win.
And you know they're yeah,they're risky decisions.
I mean, I'll never forget, I'llnever forget, when COVID broke
out, I was on spring break tripwith my family in Colorado.
That meant me spending half ofmy time on Zoom calls with my
team handling things at thestore.
We're driving home fromColorado because we're a family
(23:10):
of six and flying isastronomical.
We're driving home fromColorado and I called the owner
of my store and I said, hey, Igot a crazy idea.
He's like yeah, hit me.
I'm like I'm going to go spendlike $2 million on used cars.
He's like nobody knows if we'regoing to be able to sell cars
in two weeks.
I'm like I know, but that meansthey're panic selling and that
means it's an opportunity andthere's no way they go to zero.
(23:32):
He's like whatever you think.
So we did.
We went and spent the, set usup for success and we you know
that propelled us to a levelthat none of us probably seen
coming.
Then it worked out well.
I think whatever risk you'rewilling to tolerate in the next
six to 12 months is going todictate a lot of your success
business wise.
But the execution of that planis going to depend on who you
(23:53):
have in your stable and you knowit's not the great resignation.
But I would say a downside ofthe automotive industry is
everybody knows everybody, sothey think it's easier to go
find greener grass on the otherside of the fence.
There's a lot of ship jumpinggoing on right now.
I'm very grateful that's notthe case for our dealership.
Our dealership is steadfast.
We haven't lost anybody that'sjust gone to take a job
(24:16):
somewhere else just because theythink they can make an extra
dollar.
At the end of the day, weunderstand the mission that's in
front of us and the visionthat's in front of us.
We actually just went throughan entire shakeup in our
dealership, changing our hoursand our structure and how our
day started, and all of thesethings because if we're going to
improve and grow to the nextlevel.
It is what is required.
Speaker 1 (24:35):
I love it.
How much risk can you handle?
How much risk can you stomach?
You know it's.
It's funny because it's a lotof people love the sound of
these words and hate the waythey feel an application like
risk might mean not taking apaycheck.
Like, imagine you're, you know,imagine the dealer when you're
like hey, I know we might beclosed and not be able to sell a
(24:59):
single thing, but can we justgo into the bank account and
spend two mil on used?
He's like okay, pork and meat,pork and beans for dinner.
Yeah, you know, and most peoplearen't willing to get that raw
and gritty and uncomfortable.
Um, when push comes to shove,although what I would stress is
(25:20):
but it's available to everyone,it's just a choice whether or
not you're going to go for it ornot.
Speaker 2 (25:27):
Yep, well, I mean I posted on that about social
media.
Yesterday I was able toexperience a reward trip that
we've been chasing for two yearswith my business partner for a
real estate goal and I laugh atour first purchase of real
estate together.
I woke up that morning and didmy gratitude book like I always
did.
I opened up Facebook.
There was a listing for a housethat was going live in the town
(25:49):
that I live in.
I'm like this makes all thesense in the world.
So by 10 am we were looking atit.
By noon we had an offer.
By 1 pm it was accepted and webought a house.
Now the amount of lessons thatcame from that were huge.
It took 15 months to get thatproperty renovated because we
had no idea what we were doingnor the time to do it.
It was.
It was a lot, but we took thestep, you know, and and then we
(26:14):
stuck it out and we didn't giveup and and now we've grown that
real estate portfolio quite abit.
You know we bootstrapped thatby ourselves and did it as a
side thing and it's been fun.
I mean, you got to be willingto take a step and take risk.
I do joke.
Now we have a full-time propertymanager.
She's incredible and her and Iwere looking at a house together
(26:35):
and she started she took abunch of pictures and I thought
she was just taking them for herown records and then she sends
it to the group thread with meand my wife and my business
partner and his wife and I'mlike what are you doing?
She's like oh, I just sent thatpicture so you know what we're
looking at.
I'm like that's not how thisworks.
Like I find a house and then Itell them there's a contract in
your email.
You need to go sign it so wecan buy this house together,
(26:57):
which is how we bought the lastfew.
We laughed about it, but I domean that that's happened
several times and it's becauseI'm I'm willing to go take that
risk.
Like I right, you don't getwhat you don't go get.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
I love it.
It's yeah, put, put, put themoney where your mouth is.
Yeah, I love it.
Man, um, I feel like I there'sso many things.
I'm going to have to have youback on the show if you're
willing to do it, becausethere's more things I want to
pick your brain on, but for now,I just want to turn it over to
you one last time.
How can those listening andwatching connect with you?
Speaker 2 (27:24):
Yeah, you can find me on social media.
I think I'm the only tested onplanet Earth that I'm aware of,
so that is a weird tagline thatI get to say yeah, I'm on
Facebook.
Yeah, just get a hold of me,send me a private message.
Message, I'm happy to help inany way that I can.
I will not turn someone awaythat is looking to improve their
(27:45):
lives.
There's life's too short soamazing, man.
Speaker 1 (27:48):
Thanks so much for joining me on the dealer
playbook podcast.
You did, man.
Thanks for having me.
Hey, thanks for listening tothe dealer playbook podcast.
If you enjoyed tuning in,please subscribe, share and hit
that like button.
You can can also join us andthe DPB community on social
media.
Check back next week for a newDealer Playbook episode.
Thanks so much for joining.
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