Someone once told me that the secret to success in business, at least insofar as interpersonal relationships are concerned, was to know a lot of secrets. Evidently, there are more than a few people in this industry who feel the same way.
Me? Well, I’m a little slow. It took me a while to figure it out, and then it was only after a good friend took the time to explain it to me. In the end, however, I finally got “it,” and I suppose that’s all that matters. This standard isn’t so much about the use of privileged information for personal gain as it is about discretion, class and the value of being found worthy of trust. In a way, it’s about dividing the secrets you find yourself entrusted with into two broad categories: one having to do with individual confidences – secrets shared with you by and about individuals or small groups – and the other having to do with things you have witnessed or experienced and have chosen or been asked not to share.
We are judged successful, found to be worthy of trust, when we are able to refrain from sharing what we have seen, heard, learned or experienced with even those individuals closest to us. Becoming the repository for such secrets is one of the highest compliments we can hope to receive. But, in the end, it brings with it great responsibility. The more secrets you know and successfully keep, the more secrets you are likely to be entrusted with and that really isn’t such a bad thing.Secrets are a form of communication, and, to be meaningful, communication should include an exchange of information. Information is power in a culture like ours, and the reservoir of information – important information – you may find yourself immersed in, can and generally will result in a host of rewards. This can start with gratitude and a sense of personal satisfaction and end in more tangible and substantial forms of compensation.Striving to be worthy of this kind of trust is important.Striving to be worthy of this kind of trust is important: It is its own reward in many cases. It speaks to issues of personal integrity, character, reputation and respect. Consequently, breaking this kind of a trust isn’t something I take lightly. That is, however, exactly what I plan to do. You see there are special circumstances that demand what was and has been up until now a well-kept secret be finally exposed for exactly what it really is.This secret began with a dinner invitation and a stressful and harried 60-mile journey down the San Diego Freeway in the heart of Friday night rush-hour traffic. If you haven’t ever been on a major arterial highway through the center of a metropolitan area like Los Angeles after six in the evening, trust me, it makes a busy and stressful Friday at the shop seem relaxing.Nevertheless, I accepted the invitation knowing full well just how difficult it would be. In the end, it was a risk I was willing to take despite the grief and aggravation that can accompany leaving the shop early in order to be someplace else at just about the same time you would normally start to shut things down. The purpose of the dinner was to recognize 30 individual ASE technicians for achieving the highest ASE test scores in their specific area of expertise. The awards were announced at ASE’s 2002 Fall Board Meeting, and each award recipient was sponsored by a company, group or association with a significant presence in either the service or collision industries. These sponsors included some of the largest and most well-known corporations in our industry or any other for that matter.
Twenty-eight of the 30 award winners were present at dinner that Friday night. The whole evening was focused on their individual achievement, and that’s where this whole question of knowing a lot of secrets bubbled to the surface of my consciousness. You see, I pride myself on not missing much, at least not much of what goes on in our industry. And, yet, I really don’t recall ever hearing about this or any of the previous ASE Technician Awards Dinners. Certainly, it is possible that I was ‘absent’ the day the awards were announced, or that I missed their mention in the trade press. But, I’m not sure that’s the case at all. It’s almost as if this particular industry event has been kept ‘quiet’ on purpose. And, that’s what I found myself wondering about for the balance of the evening and the long ride home. After all, the companies represented at the dinner are a virtual ‘Who’s Who’ of who’s who in our industry, and when you add up the aggregate total of their advertising, marketing and public relations budgets, I’m sure you would find that list and the dollar amount at the bottom even more impressive. So, why keep something with the potential positive ‘buzz’ this could have been a secret? After struggling with the question for too long I called a good friend at ASE. It seems the event isn’t really a secret at all. In fact it has been a ‘tradition’ at ASE for the better part of 20 years. However, the very scope of the awards is so great – encompassing original equipment manufacturers, an industry information service provider, a technical service hotline provider, paint and glass manufacturers, a program group, heavy-duty truck manufacturers, a brake manufacturer, a national automotive service franchise, a tool company, a body shop magazine and a spring company – issuing a press release with any chance of success is almost impossible. There are just too many different segments of the market covered for a ‘one-size fits all’ press release to have any chance of penetration, even though ASE sends one out with each new class of award winners. After struggling with the question for too long, I called a good friend at ASE.Even the press releases sent out by individual sponsors don’t seem to have much of an impact: like drops of rain falling on an ocean of clutter and noise, they become part of an overwhelming wave of information that crashes over most industry trade publications just before deadline every month. Consequently, most of the recognition the winners will receive is limited to intramural publications within the recipient’s company, group or organization and/or an article in the local newspaper, coupled with an all-expense paid trip to the site of that year’s ASE Board of Directors meeting. There is, perhaps, another more compelling reason ASE and the awards sponsors may seem unwilling to act more aggressively when it comes to an event like this one and the publicity that should rightfully accompany it: a noble, selfless and elegantly simple reason. It is hard, almost impossible, for any company to publicize their involvement in an award like this without the media shifting the focus of the message to the sponsoring company, group or association and away from the individual receiving the award. And, since this dinner and the events surrounding it are all about the individual technicians and what they have accomplished, no one involved at any level seemed willing or even interested in doing that.As each individual honoree left their table to be recognized for their achievement and to receive their individual award, I was overwhelmed by the selflessness, humility and power of their words. In many cases, this was the first time any of them had ever been recognized by a group of their peers, let alone in front of such a divergent cross-section of industry leaders and executives. Despite the fact that many of these individuals had never left the security of their homes or workplaces, never been on an airplane before or asked to say a few words in front of two or three hundred industry luminaries, they were elegantly humble and articulate in their appreciation. I found myself strangely proud to be a part of the same industry, strangely pleased to be there as these individuals were singled out for their accomplishments. I was proud of the companies who made it possible for these industry professionals to participate in the award ceremony by underwriting their travel costs and proud to be an ASE technician because of their sponsorship of the awards process itself. And while I feel I was fortunate to have been asked to attend this particular event, I am saddened by the fact that there are so few in or out of the industry who have any idea that anything like this is going on at all.In the end, this awards dinner didn’t turn out to be much of a secret after all, at least not in the sense it was intended to remain hidden or concealed from the industry or the motoring public we all serve. Neither were all the awards dinners that preceded it. They were all just somehow lost in the shuffle of industry events: the noise and the clutter of everyday life.
I think my friend Tony said it best when he suggested that all we can do as an industry is spend a little more time talking about the men and women who achieve these and other honors within our industry, at all times highlighting everything that is positive and good about who we are and what we do. If we can do that, if we can shine the spotlight on our best, maybe we’ll be able to keep the general public from focusing on our worst.
I’m glad I accepted this invitation for another reason as well, and that is the sense of pride I feel every time I think about those 28 winners and what they bring to work with them, what they bring to our profession every day. And, I’m glad I went so that I could share all this with you.In the end, there aren’t many secrets that are likely to remain secret for very long. Certainly, not in an industry like ours, and maybe that’s not such a bad thing either. Especially, when one of the industry’s best-kept secrets shouldn’t be kept secret at all.
Me? Well, I’m a little slow. It took me a while to figure it out, and then it was only after a good friend took the time to explain it to me. In the end, however, I finally got “it,” and I suppose that’s all that matters. This standard isn’t so much about the use of privileged information for personal gain as it is about discretion, class and the value of being found worthy of trust. In a way, it’s about dividing the secrets you find yourself entrusted with into two broad categories: one having to do with individual confidences – secrets shared with you by and about individuals or small groups – and the other having to do with things you have witnessed or experienced and have chosen or been asked not to share.
We are judged successful, found to be worthy of trust, when we are able to refrain from sharing what we have seen, heard, learned or experienced with even those individuals closest to us. Becoming the repository for such secrets is one of the highest compliments we can hope to receive. But, in the end, it brings with it great responsibility. The more secrets you know and successfully keep, the more secrets you are likely to be entrusted with and that really isn’t such a bad thing.Secrets are a form of communication, and, to be meaningful, communication should include an exchange of information. Information is power in a culture like ours, and the reservoir of information – important information – you may find yourself immersed in, can and generally will result in a host of rewards. This can start with gratitude and a sense of personal satisfaction and end in more tangible and substantial forms of compensation.Striving to be worthy of this kind of trust is important.Striving to be worthy of this kind of trust is important: It is its own reward in many cases. It speaks to issues of personal integrity, character, reputation and respect. Consequently, breaking this kind of a trust isn’t something I take lightly. That is, however, exactly what I plan to do. You see there are special circumstances that demand what was and has been up until now a well-kept secret be finally exposed for exactly what it really is.This secret began with a dinner invitation and a stressful and harried 60-mile journey down the San Diego Freeway in the heart of Friday night rush-hour traffic. If you haven’t ever been on a major arterial highway through the center of a metropolitan area like Los Angeles after six in the evening, trust me, it makes a busy and stressful Friday at the shop seem relaxing.Nevertheless, I accepted the invitation knowing full well just how difficult it would be. In the end, it was a risk I was willing to take despite the grief and aggravation that can accompany leaving the shop early in order to be someplace else at just about the same time you would normally start to shut things down. The purpose of the dinner was to recognize 30 individual ASE technicians for achieving the highest ASE test scores in their specific area of expertise. The awards were announced at ASE’s 2002 Fall Board Meeting, and each award recipient was sponsored by a company, group or association with a significant presence in either the service or collision industries. These sponsors included some of the largest and most well-known corporations in our industry or any other for that matter.
Twenty-eight of the 30 award winners were present at dinner that Friday night. The whole evening was focused on their individual achievement, and that’s where this whole question of knowing a lot of secrets bubbled to the surface of my consciousness. You see, I pride myself on not missing much, at least not much of what goes on in our industry. And, yet, I really don’t recall ever hearing about this or any of the previous ASE Technician Awards Dinners. Certainly, it is possible that I was ‘absent’ the day the awards were announced, or that I missed their mention in the trade press. But, I’m not sure that’s the case at all. It’s almost as if this particular industry event has been kept ‘quiet’ on purpose. And, that’s what I found myself wondering about for the balance of the evening and the long ride home. After all, the companies represented at the dinner are a virtual ‘Who’s Who’ of who’s who in our industry, and when you add up the aggregate total of their advertising, marketing and public relations budgets, I’m sure you would find that list and the dollar amount at the bottom even more impressive. So, why keep something with the potential positive ‘buzz’ this could have been a secret? After struggling with the question for too long I called a good friend at ASE. It seems the event isn’t really a secret at all. In fact it has been a ‘tradition’ at ASE for the better part of 20 years. However, the very scope of the awards is so great – encompassing original equipment manufacturers, an industry information service provider, a technical service hotline provider, paint and glass manufacturers, a program group, heavy-duty truck manufacturers, a brake manufacturer, a national automotive service franchise, a tool company, a body shop magazine and a spring company – issuing a press release with any chance of success is almost impossible. There are just too many different segments of the market covered for a ‘one-size fits all’ press release to have any chance of penetration, even though ASE sends one out with each new class of award winners. After struggling with the question for too long, I called a good friend at ASE.Even the press releases sent out by individual sponsors don’t seem to have much of an impact: like drops of rain falling on an ocean of clutter and noise, they become part of an overwhelming wave of information that crashes over most industry trade publications just before deadline every month. Consequently, most of the recognition the winners will receive is limited to intramural publications within the recipient’s company, group or organization and/or an article in the local newspaper, coupled with an all-expense paid trip to the site of that year’s ASE Board of Directors meeting. There is, perhaps, another more compelling reason ASE and the awards sponsors may seem unwilling to act more aggressively when it comes to an event like this one and the publicity that should rightfully accompany it: a noble, selfless and elegantly simple reason. It is hard, almost impossible, for any company to publicize their involvement in an award like this without the media shifting the focus of the message to the sponsoring company, group or association and away from the individual receiving the award. And, since this dinner and the events surrounding it are all about the individual technicians and what they have accomplished, no one involved at any level seemed willing or even interested in doing that.As each individual honoree left their table to be recognized for their achievement and to receive their individual award, I was overwhelmed by the selflessness, humility and power of their words. In many cases, this was the first time any of them had ever been recognized by a group of their peers, let alone in front of such a divergent cross-section of industry leaders and executives. Despite the fact that many of these individuals had never left the security of their homes or workplaces, never been on an airplane before or asked to say a few words in front of two or three hundred industry luminaries, they were elegantly humble and articulate in their appreciation. I found myself strangely proud to be a part of the same industry, strangely pleased to be there as these individuals were singled out for their accomplishments. I was proud of the companies who made it possible for these industry professionals to participate in the award ceremony by underwriting their travel costs and proud to be an ASE technician because of their sponsorship of the awards process itself. And while I feel I was fortunate to have been asked to attend this particular event, I am saddened by the fact that there are so few in or out of the industry who have any idea that anything like this is going on at all.In the end, this awards dinner didn’t turn out to be much of a secret after all, at least not in the sense it was intended to remain hidden or concealed from the industry or the motoring public we all serve. Neither were all the awards dinners that preceded it. They were all just somehow lost in the shuffle of industry events: the noise and the clutter of everyday life.
I think my friend Tony said it best when he suggested that all we can do as an industry is spend a little more time talking about the men and women who achieve these and other honors within our industry, at all times highlighting everything that is positive and good about who we are and what we do. If we can do that, if we can shine the spotlight on our best, maybe we’ll be able to keep the general public from focusing on our worst.
I’m glad I accepted this invitation for another reason as well, and that is the sense of pride I feel every time I think about those 28 winners and what they bring to work with them, what they bring to our profession every day. And, I’m glad I went so that I could share all this with you.In the end, there aren’t many secrets that are likely to remain secret for very long. Certainly, not in an industry like ours, and maybe that’s not such a bad thing either. Especially, when one of the industry’s best-kept secrets shouldn’t be kept secret at all.
