Grease The Wheels Podcast

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Episode 158: Legal Matter Sep 01, 2021

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On this week's episode of Grease the Wheels, we get into some of the laws and legal things to keep in mind when it comes to our occupation, and we don’t even get to OSHA! Uncle Jimmy finds some of the laws and guidelines for the State of Texas when it comes to auto repair from a consumer's perspective. The too long didn’t read for this entire episode is, “get everything in writing” as well as the helpful tidbit that repair orders are in fact legal documents! This is the helpful law episode to help make sure everyone is doing their jobs' the right way and make sure that you can get paid in the eventuality that you have to take a customer to court. Because there is always someone who doesn't want to pay, and if you have everything in writing it is going to be really hard for them to squirm out of it in a lot of cases.

Also Uncle Jimmy describes the simple joy of beating the life out of a rental car.

This episode is distributed by The Wrenching Network. Whether you're a technician, a mechanic, or someone who just loves the car scene, The Wrenching Network is a place that you have to check out. They have all sorts of great content, gear, and snacks to keep you turning wrenches in whatever capacity you do it. Also if you see us over there, make sure you say hi and leave a comment with what you think about the episode!

Episode 157: Who Are You? Aug 25, 2021

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On this week’s Grease the Wheels we get out of self-reflective introspective mode and go straight for the jugular: asking the pointed question “who are you?” to everyone else in the building!
We know what we are there for, but a lot of these other bit part players can have nebulous or extremely vague job duties which lead them to have a variety of motivations (or lack thereof). Obviously, the owner or the board of directors is there to make the place as profitable as possible. What is cool about this is that depending on the scale of the company you work for there are various levels of access. Obviously if you work for a mom and pop and need some TP, you can typically just ask the boss directly. If you work in a company with more levels of management than techs in the shop, that request for TP might have to go through 8 or 9 different departments before you get it. When you get into the vague mid-upper levels of management is where you run into the job titles where you get less concrete answers to “who are you?” and more specifically the follow up question “what do you do?” When it comes to the sales department, more often than not they only interact with us when they need something from us, so the question “who are you?” all of a sudden hits them a little bit close to the vest and becomes “what do you want?” Looking at you sales department.

At the end of the day, who you are comes down to what problems you solve and the manner in which you solve them.

Episode 156: Go to the Mirror Aug 18, 2021

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In this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, we get introspective with asking ourselves some questions when it comes to our own happiness. Yea, we’re wading into the murky waters of mental health! We found a site called “Positive Psychology” for self reflective questions to ask yourself, and decided it was perfect fodder for a podcast. When you look in the mirror what do you see? Many of us see the major roles that we play in our lives in culmination with what we do for a living. You need to give yourself credit for what you do well, and what you are still learning how to do, because the cars are getting harder and harder to fix all of the time. We ask a lot of really big questions and Uncle Jimmy fills in the blanks. After this episode, you might look at your shop a bit differently and if you need to make a change. Grease the wheels.

Also Uncle Jimmy enters the mind of a dog and completely forgets that two specific people hating each other in 1801 literally changed the course of American History.

Episode 155: Amazing Journey Aug 11, 2021

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On this weeks episode of Grease the Wheels, we detail the amazing journey of being an automotive technician in true Uncle Jimmy fashion. From being a mechanically adept or interested youngster with a POS car, to making the leap into tech school and eventually becoming a skilled journeyman, to eventually exiting the industry either on a gurney or through a rage quit - there is only one constant. Everyone’s occupational journey is different. Sometimes there are different challenges and different levels of skill coming in, but a good attitude and knack for solving problems can improve your trajectory and make you go a long way in this industry. However, the goal as a technician should always be a higher rate of pay and if you are not being offered regular raises it may be time to leave the building. Of course, this depends on how valuable you are as a technician, because there are some instances where managers are genuinely glad to see you go and the shop actually improves. However, you should strive not to be that guy on the amazing journey and continually make yourself more valuable in the form of better training, knowing more systems, and being able to turn more hours.

Also Uncle Jimmy breaks down the American educational system.

Episode 154: The Seeker Aug 04, 2021

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On this week’s Grease the Wheels, we talk about the massive technician shortage and some of the brilliant fixed ops plans to fix it. We talk at length about an article we found on LinkedIn where they address all but one of the major causes for why shops are having problems keeping technicians. The one they missed though pretty much invalidates the rest of the article, but there are some fairly good points when it comes to how to keep technicians such as giving them a path of advancement, giving them the tools they need to do the job, and keeping good work coming in the door. These are things that all shops want, but need to make an operational objective in order to keep the best talent and keep pushing out work that will perpetuate the cycle of success. Most importantly though with the incredible shortage of technicians, as a predominately technician based podcast, ladies and gentlemen- be out there looking! You never know what you are going to find or what someone might pay you to do what you’re doing now. It might be in a part of the country that you have always wanted to live, or it could just be across town but the need for good help is so dire you could get yourself a massive raise. Change is definitely coming, so get those resumes tuned up and be able to capitalize on it when it comes.

Also Uncle Jimmy gives some tips and tricks for seeing through the occupational smokescreen.

Episode 153: I Can See For Miles Jul 28, 2021

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On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy puts on his prophecy hat and talks about some of the things that we can see coming down the pike for the automotive industry. It is not a secret that the automotive industry is very slow to adapt with some things, the fact that they still employ salesmen when we have internet sales pretty sorted out is a testament to that. However, we also get into the nitty gritty when it comes to the propulsion systems of the future. Fact is, EV’s are not the the event horizon for personal transportation. Most likely it will be Hydrogen fuel cell or good old internal combustion, just with hydrogen as the fuel. When you burn hydrogen really the only thing you get as a byproduct is water and heat. We also go into why drinking water from your car might not be such a great idea, because they are still going to need to lubricate the engines with hydrocarbons, they do a really good job. Finally, we tease a future where technicians are in such short supply and need to know so many different things in order for some of these shops to stay open, that the compensation will have to go up in kind to meet the demands of the job. It is only a matter of time until someone figures it out, but the fact that less than 10% of Uncle Jimmy’s brand specific dealerships are not posting want ads for technicians says that they haven’t figured it out quite yet.

Also Uncle Jimmy talks about some of the things to do in a self-driving car, and skips the “putting predictions in poems” move.

Episode 152: Bargain Jul 21, 2021

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On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels, Uncle Jimmy falls asleep on the couch and wakes up at 4AM to record a podcast. Most technicians are a straight up bargain. From the amount of things that we have to know to what the shops that employ us charge, we know that there is a real disconnect between the rate at which we receive raises to the rate at which our jobs get more difficult. As a result many shops are stacked up with work weeks in advance, and they are constrained by the ability to get technicians. All technicians are bargains right out of tech school, they have bills to pay so they often take the first livable offer that they get. Oftentimes this leads to a high level of attrition among new technicians. However, shops that offer a clear path of advancement and opportunity to get more training often see a higher level of retention and technician advancement. They pay needs to keep up though, otherwise that development will go to profit someone else. We also talk about a day where all of the technicians of the world take a day off, because they definitely cant fire us all. Even if they do, there’s still a tech shortage.

Also Uncle Jimmy explains tax and fiscal policy in the most Grease the Wheels way humanly possible.

Episode 151: Don’t be a Dick! Jul 14, 2021

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On this week’s Grease the Wheels, we see how many times Uncle Jimmy can say the phrase, “don’t be a dick!” This is another one of those infamous, extra-spicy, “weekday night” episodes compounded with the fact that he is fresh off vacation. So When Uncle Jimmy gets back to the shop and it is a s***show, he goes off a bit and threatens corporal punishment for people who leave wheel machines looking like a war-zone! In a solid rant about shop cleanliness, we talk about how the trick to finding a lost tool is to actually be looking for something else. On the “don’t be a dick” hierarchy, few moves are more treacherous than breaking tools and not owning up to it, or even worse, trying to hide it! Speaking of breaking stuff, we also talk about how not to be a dick in a pick and pull, because that part that you just destroyed might have come in handy in the future. We even go into some semiotic analysis of the language you use causing people to think you’re a dick even if you’re not. Unless of course you’re a serial complainer in which case you probably are in fact a dick. The moral of the episode is, pretty obviously at this point, “don’t be a dick”, help people out when they need it because sometimes an extra set of hands makes a huge difference. So being willing and able to help is a major thing that will make people think that you are not a dick, even if you are to an extent.

Also Uncle Jimmy talks hazmat cocktails and still being salty about the February Ice Storm. Also we ask the really important question: How great would it be if you could tell customers to not be a dick?

Episode 150: The Kids Are Alright Jul 07, 2021

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On this week's Grease the Wheels we talk about the new guys that are attempting to put a dent in the 650,000 mechanic and technician job vacancies nationwide. We all have a million “new guy stories”, and let’s be clear we want to hear every single one of them! Obviously they are not set to replace us right now, but given time and space to develop some of these new guys are going to make very good technicians, if they don’t use their brains and GTFO of the industry! Realistically though in a macro view of the industry as a whole, we should be fostering the ones who have chosen this profession just so they can replace us when we want to retire! We don’t mind when they ask questions that will genuinely help them out seeking an intelligent answer, especially when the lights are on when you give them your response. We’re also not going to fault them for asking us for fasteners or extra parts that we might have lying around. Odds are if you take a proactive approach with your younger technicians, they will be better in the long run. One rare occasions, they show promise right out of the box and these are the techs that you need to keep and develop if you want your shop to continue to be successful. Of course however there are the ones who just don't get it, and sometimes no amount of tutoring is going to help them get it! So overall the kids are alright, but shops need to recognize the talent they are developing in house and aim to keep it!

Also Uncle Jimmy gives his dystopian opinion on cell phones all while sounding like the worlds most insane Zoom Call!

Episode 149: Won’t Get Fooled Again Jun 30, 2021

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On this week’s episode of Grease the Wheels we give you some of the right tools for, well, greasing the wheels! Right now people are looking for jobs in tons of different industries, but in our case the tables are tilted a bit more in our favor because of the technician shortage. No employer is going to advertise the things about their shop that sucks, so it is up to you to find it out. Sometimes you get to find it out the easy way by looking around at a shop full of broken equipment that is half falling down and the techs are pushing cars into the shop by hand. Sometimes it is a bit harder to spot, but rest assured every shop has things that make it an awesome place to work too. Traditionally interviews are mostly the person doing the hiring asking the questions of the people being hired, however the crippling technician shortage has actually made it so that technicians can be a bit pickier about where they are going to work. The goal at the end of the day is to work somewhere where you can be fulfilled, deal with the least amount of headaches. So listen to your Uncle Jimmy and don’t get fooled again. Ask the right questions, take a good look at the shop, and read the reviews of your potential future service department on google and you will be all right. Do not settle for less pay, and make sure that they have a schedule to regularly review raises. We also talk about using your sick time, because this is a very physical job, and sometimes you really need to just take an extra day to heal up.

Also Uncle Jimmy retells a story about a tech who greased the wheels in epic fashion for a very good reason! What are some of your employment red flags that you won’t get fooled again on?

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