As a business and repair shop owner, as well as being your heroic Captain Car Count, there are bound to be times of much travel and time spent away from the shop or office. Even though I plan to be out of my office with seminars, and meetings, I am confident that my business will continue to roll on without a lick of trouble. I try to preach this to many businesses in my repair shop owner training.

repair shop owner leisure time

Like me, auto repair shop owners should find comfort in time spent away with their shop because it ultimately means their auto repair marketing is going well, their profitability is up, and more time can be spent with their families. Here are the top ten ways that I’ve made it possible for me to do stay away from my business (and how you can too).

The 10 Ways To Get Away From Your Auto Repair Shop

  1. I have clearly defined goals of where I want to be, who I want to be with, and how much money and time it will take to live the lifestyle that I desire. Everything starts with your goals. Without them, you’d be wandering aimlessly through your life, being pulled in every direction and never really getting anywhere. (Yeah, I know you’ve heard this ‘goals stuff’ from me before, but have you actually done it yet? If so, have you written them down and read them every single day?)
  2. I’ve surrounded myself with the right people (and trained them) to handle any and all tasks. Remember, your business team is only as strong as it’s weakest member. Only hire the best.
  3. I then gave them the authority to make smart decisions and take the necessary actions to get the job done right. I only get involved in the big stuff.
  4. I’ve eliminated almost every time-sucking and unprofitable project that was on my plate.
  5. Outsource as much as possible to other professionals that can do the job better, quicker, and cheaper that I can do it myself. Many of those time-sucking (but necessary) projects from above get sent to my outsource team.
  6. I only personally work on what I do best. Coaching, writing, strategizing, & repair shop marketing.
  7. I don’t sweat the small stuff. As auto repair shop owners, you already know that there is plenty of stuff to get involved in every day that will eat you up emotionally and needlessly waste your time.
  8. I ruthlessly guard my time. There are only 24 hours in a day and I intend to use them wisely. This is such a vitally important subject to everyone in an auto repair business that I plan on writing an entire weekly message about this. Stay tuned.
  9. I enjoy what I do so much that what many would call ‘real work’ really isn’t work for me at all. What I didn’t mention earlier is that I also outsource the stuff that I just plain hate to do. While away from the office for these 33 days, I’ll still work on my business for an hour or so per day. I’ll write these weekly messages, read a few more business books (while poolside ☺), check the updates on the various projects that I have going on, etc. But what I won’t do is check emails, call the office, or do anything that looks, feels, or smells like ‘work’.
  10. I just don’t talk about doing everything on the above list. I actually DO IT ALL! This is very important. If you want to be able to have the freedom to walk away from your shop for a few weeks at a time, you can’t just think or say that you’re going to change what you’ve been doing that’s been keeping you tied to your shop – you must put everything into action.

Any questions or feedback on my list or owner training? How are you getting time away from your auto repair shop? How are you spending that time? Leave a comment below.