What If Rent to Own Training Is Really About Trust with Nick Robinson

Training sounds simple until you watch a new hire freeze the first time the phone rings or a customer brings a messy, real-life problem to the counter. Nick Robinson from RNR Tire Express joins me to get honest about what actually builds confident teams in rent-to-own: a people-first culture, patient repetition, and leaders who are willing to stay in the gap until someone is truly ready.

We dig into what franchise training looks like from both angles, from my role as a franchise training specialist to Nick’s boots-on-the-ground operations approach and his work building vendor relationships. Along the way we talk about mentorship, why culture is the real engine of performance, and how “pour into people” becomes a practical training strategy, not just a nice phrase. If you care about customer service in RTO, onboarding new staff, or building a team that can handle pressure without turning into robots, this conversation is built for you.

We also get tactical about tools that work: role play that mirrors real scenarios, slowing down the pace so people do not burn out, and running “proofs” so training is more than box-checking. We talk about why collections is really account management, why one-offs are guaranteed, and why it takes months, not days, to truly understand rent-to-own terms, processes, and judgment calls. We close by sharing failures we learned from, because those lessons often train better than any script.

Subscribe, share this with a leader who trains others, and leave a review if it helps you build a stronger RTO team. What is the hardest part of training where you work?

Transcript

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Welcome And Why Training Matters

Pete Shau 0:10

Hello and welcome to the RTO Show Podcast. This is your host, Pete Shao, and I have somebody that I've been trying to get on a show for a little while because listen, I work with this guy all the time. So we talk about uh we want to talk today about some training. But first, I want you guys to do me a favor make sure you subscribe, go to the website www.thertoshow podcast.com, go on there, subscribe to the show, and subscribe to the newsletter. They're two different things, and I promise you, you're not gonna want to miss out on either one. Right now, with Nick Robinson from R Tire Express, uh, somebody that I work with all the time. I think I think it's been a great thing that we were able to sit down and talk because we literally have been doing something that I want to talk about today. That's training. Yeah. And and listen, guys, I know I hear a lot of you guys will send me a message or hey Pete, what do you think is the best way to do this? And uh, you know, we've talked about it before, but I want to talk about it again because we do things a little bit differently.

SPEAKER_03 1:04

Yeah.

Pete Shau 1:05

Um, and and you know, when we get into it, I really enjoy it. But first, yeah, Nick, yeah, how's everything going, man?

SPEAKER_04 1:12

Man, loving it, loving it. So, yeah, like you said, man, we're uh we work together all the time. Uh big fan of of what you're doing here. I think it's fantastic. And uh I think we had kind of discussed, like, man, maybe we should do a piece on training. Like, let's talk about RTO, the importance of training.

Pete Shau 1:27

Let's do that.

SPEAKER_04 1:27

Yeah, let's talk about like how important it is that we're out there and uh you know, getting these guys off on the right foot. And and I don't know, have you talked a lot about kind of like the basics of what we do, like as far as like new franchisees coming in? Um training. Yeah, so I mean we're like ground up building foundations out here.

Pete Shau 1:44

So yeah, so there's there's a whole thing about what's happening right now because we have been in part with we've been put in charge of something phenomenal that I think is is really great. But before we get started, let's start with I am a franchise training specialist. So there is a lot that comes with that. I do a little bit of a different role than Nick does. Yeah. Nick, what do you do?

SPEAKER_04 2:05

Yeah, so I'm more um, I was brought on more for operations. I'm a boots on the ground guy. Um, you know, anybody that knows me, Pete, knows he's worked with me long enough now that uh you understand like my specialty is not gonna be uh content creation. I'm not gonna be the most tech savvy guy out here creating spreadsheets and whatnot. Um, I'm gonna be the guy that's working with the guys uh in the store, uh front door to backdoor, making sure they're trained up with sales or shop uh shop work, management, operational flow. Uh that's more my thing. And I was just uh, you know, early on, I was blessed in my career with uh some great mentors, David Harrison being one of them, that uh really poured into me and just uh taught me the importance of creating a good culture within a building and creating a good culture within a team. And I think that, you know, that's something that we try and instill whenever we're working with these guys. So that's more my thing. I'm more of a hands-on people person, uh day-to-day operational trainer.

Pete Shau 3:04

So

Roles In Franchise Training

Pete Shau 3:05

there was something else that you added to the list of things that you do now, right? Because you were doing these great training sessions, operations. Literally, Nick would be the person who goes out to a location and says, Hey, what do you need? Yeah, how do we make this right? What do you know? So let me fill in the gaps. But then there was something else you started doing.

SPEAKER_04 3:21

Yeah, yeah. So they brought me on as a uh a vendor liaison or a vendor relations uh position, which I absolutely love. Um, and kind of the basics of that is we're trying to really build out um stronger partnerships across the country. We've dealt, we deal with a a ton of really strong, uh great vendors across the country. And so I think that we've uh you know really wanted to expand on that and and again build a stronger foundation for RR, Tire Express across the country, and uh have somebody that can kind of know a little bit about it, knows how to build orders, knows how to uh talk about promotions and rebates and whatnot. So they've put me into that spot where I can actually kind of come in, build those relationships, um, and then and then connect people across the country. Like, so it's not just about me like being in the middle of it, it's more about me creating opportunity for relationships across the country. And I absolutely love it. I think it's a great spot and um something that I've really enjoyed taking on.

Pete Shau 4:19

So well, Nick does it very well. I don't know how I would do it the vendor liaison role, because you know what, being from the RTO world, it is so different on the tire and wheel side. And it's I love getting tire and wheel guys on because we service the same customer from two completely different scopes. I mean, just completely different scopes. And as we are training, I have to like I have sometimes I'm just humbled by some of the knowledge that goes into tire and wheels. Some there are things, dude, I just don't know, man. You know what in somebody takes time 265, 50, 17, and I'm like, that's a zip code somewhere, right? So yeah, the way I look at it is, you know, but the universal language is something that I love, and that's why I love about talking about rent to own in this show, is because training is universal. And some of the time, sometimes you get a call and you would think it's a slam dunk, and it's not.

SPEAKER_03 5:08

Yeah.

Pete Shau 5:09

Uh, it could be for so many different reasons. It could be not comprehending, it could be not learning in the way that they understand how to learn. Um, it could be that they're taking on this new role and it's it's it's just not normally what they do, or somebody who's kind of in a leadership position now because they've done a wonderful job, and now that they're in a leadership position, they don't know how to manage people.

SPEAKER_04 5:27

Yeah, that's that's a big one. I would say that's a big one. I mean, I think that um knowing the business, and you know, like I know, in the RTO world, there's so many different terms and and different acronyms across the board that you you really, I mean, you just have to be hands-on for some time. It's just uh hearing it over and over again and having it broke down to you. And uh, so it's just a unique business, like you said. Our RTO in itself is a unique business that I think once you're in, you love. Um, and uh, but then the tire and wheel business is the same thing. I mean, there's a lot of learning curves in that in that business. And I would say that's a big one for us is uh bowl patterns, offsets. I mean, different things that come with wheels and uh product knowledge is huge. Um, so yeah, I mean I think it's I think it's great, and I think but there is a lot that goes into the training portion of this business. So let's get into it.

Pete Shau 6:17

Well, you know what? Before we do that, you mentioned a name. Yeah, David Harrison. I haven't had the chance and the opportunity to know him more than a little bit. We did converse uh while we were making the Ernie Llewellyn video, which you know, God rest his soul, amazing guy in the industry on both sides of the fence. Uh, and you know, David Harrison was somebody who he had a had a really kind word to say about Ernie. I think that they they had a lot that happened in the past, and you know, it was nice to see, you know, outside of everything, competition and different things that they did, that there's a camaraderie in RTO that just it's not anywhere else. I love it.

SPEAKER_04 6:52

I love it. Yeah, so yeah, go ahead.

Pete Shau 6:54

Yeah, wait, what what what is it? I mean, you you mentioned David, you mentioned David. I just want you to know, he mentions you all the time and great aspect. So my gosh. As we go into training, what has David taught you about this business and about oh and my rental owner overall?

SPEAKER_04 7:08

Yeah, so I mean, again, it comes back to people. Uh, the the bit the probably the most important thing that he taught me was just making sure that you take care of people. The rest of the business is just learning it from repetition. It's getting in and getting it done. Um, and but the biggest thing is like, you know, when someone pours into you and gives you opportunity, it's our job then and our responsibility to go and return that favor, to go pay it forward, to go pour into the new people that are coming into the business. Because we want to carry this on, right? We want to carry that legacy on of culture. And uh, and I think RR probably does it better than anybody across the country. That's just something that we've really specialized in, and I think we've done it from the top to the bottom. Um, and David Harrison's one of the best that have ever done it. And that's probably across any business out there. Uh, but he is a firm believer that you pour into people, you invest in people, and then um, you know, the rest just it comes. I mean, the rest of it comes with time, uh, but it's all about the people, it's all about taking care of your people. Your people take care of the customer, your customer takes care of the community. I mean, we're we're doing a whole DX3 thing right now, but I mean that's the truth, and that's how it's taught, and that's what he instilled in me, and I'm a firm believer in it. Uh, so my thing now is like I've been poured into, so who can I find that I can invest in? And I think that that is probably the most important thing.

Pete Shau 8:31

Okay, give give me give me a Davidism. Something that David taught you that came straight from him that you're like, yeah, you know what? That came from Harrison.

SPEAKER_04 8:40

Goodness, man. There's so many of them. You're gonna put me on the spot here. Um, you know, I I don't know. I can't think of anything just real specific. Um, you know, um David and I uh also, you know, you know, yeah, a lot of us know David's story. I mean, uh, single mother, Miss Virginia, uh, we do the Virginia special. Um, you know, he started with the Mother's Day giveaway, giving cars away to single moms or or to deserving moms, not necessarily single moms, but um, you know, so I think having a soft spot for people, I don't know that I have a Davidism, man. Um, you know, like I said, you're kind of putting me on the spot there, but he's done, he says so many great things. Uh, if you spend any time talking with the guy, uh, I tell him every time I get on the phone with him, he'll say something, uh, you know, and he's like, well, I kind of went on about that. And it's just I always take away from a conversation with David. He's always gonna have something good, something rich, something you can walk away from. And then hopefully you can put that to use out in our world, uh doing what we do.

Pete Shau 9:42

So is that why you became why you came back to Arnard to be a trainer?

SPEAKER_04 9:45

Uh you know, I love it. So I actually, and and I've kind of had a conversation with you about this outside of this. Um, I love serving people. Like, and I know that's like it's so cliche because we serve not service, uh, you know, changed lives, changing lives, but I'm I'm a true walking testimony of that story. Um, I was I was given a shot when I was counted out, uh, had no really good education, didn't go to college, uh, didn't have any kind of real strong ambition when I was young. But I had a David Harrison, I had a guy that was in this business that was mentored himself, um, that poured into me. And then so that gave me the opportunity to kind of start believing in myself. Uh, he believed in me, so he he he changed my mindset. Like, I can do this, I can do this, I can get out and I can be somebody. And uh, you know, so uh he it it changed my mindset to the point where I was a real selfish individual when I was young, um, to the point where I genuinely love serving people. I have a heart for people that struggle. I have a heart

Culture And Paying It Forward

SPEAKER_04 10:50

for people that um have uh maybe a situation at home or um you know have gone through the gone through the ringer. Um that I just I I have a soft spot for people, man. I just that's my thing. And so when I see like an owner that struggles or or we deal with a with maybe an ownership that's struggling or a manager that's struggling or something like that, it's like, what can I do to help this person out? Like I hate seeing people struggle and fail. Like I don't want to see you fail. So what do I have that I can contribute to that person? And I love it. I mean, I absolutely love it. If I never changed and never did anything different with myself, I would be perfectly fine doing exactly what I do, man.

Pete Shau 11:29

You are you're one of a few, man. There's a few people out there that feel that way. Uh that makes you unique, man, brother. That's why I appreciate you. When you come across some of the things that are that, let's say you come across situations where somebody's struggling and we are in the retraining situation. We're actually we're in the training and retraining. Yeah. What is what do you say would be some of the first things that you come across as a normal problem for somebody who just doesn't get it? Something that, you know, they're coming across, and we're talking about people who've already been trained, who are out there, yeah, and now we're coming across a situation again because for whatever reason, uh, they're having a trouble with it now. What do you usually see that first reasoning as to why they have that trouble?

SPEAKER_04 12:09

Like what would are would you say like um like what's the most common problem that I see? Correct. I really think it's a people problem. I really do. I think 95% of the time when I see an issue in a location, um, it's because we're not pouring into our people or we're not giving these people the tools that they need to be successful. And I think that you know as well as I know in this business, uh, you can get complacent. It becomes just a a just a day-to-day thing. We get in the routine of getting the paperwork done, doing this, doing that, uh, going through the processes, but then we take away from why we do what we do. Like we're here, and our model is here for people that need our service. We're not here to um just be salesmen or be collectors or be a manager or be, I mean, that's not what we're here for. We're here to serve the people that don't get served, right? Like the people that need our pro my mother worked her tail off. She was a nurse, uh, worked extremely hard, made a good living, but we struggled. It was paycheck to paycheck. So I get that lifestyle, and that's what we're here for. We're here designed for those folks. And I think that it's just really crucial that we keep that in our mind and make sure that our people understand that when they walk into a building in the morning. Like put all the other things aside, like we're here to serve. Who can we help today? What are we doing with our lives? You know, we're not just here to make a buck, we're here to change lives. And like if we keep that in our mind every day, then we'll be successful. And I think we lose sight of that. So I think that is probably the biggest issue that I see. I think we lose sight of why we do what we do. The purpose.

Pete Shau 13:41

Yeah, the purpose. The purpose is so important. Yeah, you know, some of the things that I've come across that, you know, sometimes I feel like I've done this for so long. Sometimes I forget the basics that I should be, I should have known, right? Like Pete, you've done this a hundred times. Why did you forget that? How did you forget that? Um, and sometimes I think we get into this, like this notebook schoolyard mentality where you come in, right? And I'm gonna show you on a computer this is all you're doing. I'm gonna show you some videos and some interactions, right? This is what you say, this is how you react, this is what's going on, this is what this means. And then after all that, you know, you take some notes, you do a little test, and then you go, hey man, all right, buddy, go do your job. I think you know everything you need to know. And then we kind of send them on their way. And I'm not saying that listen, this isn't you, it's not you. But I'm gonna tell you right now, there's somebody out there watching who understands exactly what I'm saying because I've done it too. Yeah, and I've said, you know what? You've passed us with flying colors. I think you're gonna be all right. Yeah. And then I've got something else to do because I I feel like it's pressing. Yeah, it might be or it might not be, but I feel like it's pressing. I feel like I need to get over there. And then somebody goes, Okay. And when the rubber hits the road, right? It's like uh, you know, it's like Mike Tyson

When Training Breaks In Real Life

Pete Shau 14:50

who says, you know, everybody's got a plan, somebody gets punched in the mouth. It's like they go out there and it's it's this sound of, you know, and so they they're they're at the counter and it's like okay, I I I know what to do, but doing it, yeah, getting it done, going through the steps, literally talking to somebody, literally picking up the phone and say, Thank thank thank you for calling R and R tires. It's like, wait a minute, what happened? Like, like over there in our classroom, you did amazing. Yeah. And now real world application isn't there.

SPEAKER_04 15:19

But you know, like if you think about it, like if you just came in every day and you're and your point of focus was take care of people, you'll work through the processes. Like, I think, and that's the thing, we lose sight of that. Like, if we're just people and we take care of people, we will find our way through the process. People appreciate someone that's gonna work hard for them, be urgent and taking care of them. We're not gonna cut corners, we're gonna, we're gonna work with integrity. Um, I think people appreciate that. I think customers appreciate that. So, like just making that the basic foundation of what we do, I think is crucial. I think it's the key to doing, you know, uh success in our business. And I think we just lose track of it, man. I think that you're a hundred percent right. We start putting pressure on ourselves where it's like, oh man, I gotta get this exactly right. I gotta make sure that I'm following this process exactly right. Where there is a place for that. I think that we put too much focus on that. I think we've got to take a little bit off that and say, hey, what are we doing? Why are we doing this? We'll work our way through this process. That's repetition. I mean, it's like anything else. I mean, you don't know how to count to 10 until you've counted to 10 uh a few times as a young buck, you know. So I mean, it's just you gotta go through the that process, but keeping track of why we do what we do, I think is the key to the kingdom.

Pete Shau 16:33

Well, I remember the first time that I drove uh my first car, yeah, right. I read the I read the book. I thought I was Mario Andretti. I was not, right? But you know, after after that crash course, and I don't literally mean that, but I mean after, you know, getting behind the wheel and getting to do it a few times, there was a couple things that I realized. Number one as a trainer, and number one uh two as a person, is that without role play, I think sometimes you can lose sight of certain things because it just it's the there's a difference between a classroom and real life. Let me ask you something. Are you getting everything out of your rent-to-owned business? If you're not an A Pro member, then the answer is probably no. Look, advocacy is April's bread and butter. This is why they were created and what they do best. But here's the thing April membership is about way more than advocacy. April connects you to the movers and the shakers of the industry, people who've been there, done that, and they can help you do it even better. APRO's monthly webinars give you expert insights and actionable takeaways. Got questions about complex regulations or sticky situations? No problem. April's legal hotline gives you direct access to experts who have got the answers. That's a peace of mind that you can't put a price on. And let's not forget the resources, news, updates, and tools that keep you ahead of the curve. Scholarships for your team? Check. Disaster relief when you need it most? Double check. Apro is your ultimate support system in the rent-to-owned world. Head over to rtohq.org and join the Apro family today. Because in this business, more isn't just better. It's essential. See you at the top with APRO. And sometimes just walking somebody through, what does that sound like? Okay, pick up the phone. Okay, I'm a customer. Walk me through this. Like, let's let's get from point A to point B. And the second thing is,

APRO Support And Member Benefits

Pete Shau 18:15

as an employee, it's okay to make mistakes. Yes. You know? I mean, unless you're giving away the farm, right? We're not trying to turn over the keys of the kingdom. But at the same time, it's okay to make a mistake. Yeah. It's it's okay to be like, you know what? I just give me a moment. Uh, you know, I'm new at this. Yeah. I'm learning to figure this out. And I'm that's kind of like on both sides of the coin, right? Sometimes I forget to tell people, hey man, breathe.

SPEAKER_03 18:36

Yeah.

Pete Shau 18:36

Breathe. It's okay. Yeah. You can make a mistake. You know what? You're not going to get it right the first time. Let's walk into this together. Show me what you got. You know what I mean? It's okay.

SPEAKER_04 18:44

Yeah. And I I mean, think about a time. I mean, when you first started, I'm sure somebody showed you some grace. You know, so I think as leaders, we have a lot. Yeah, exactly. Right. I mean, good night. I should have been let go of RR early on in my career, you know? Uh, but somebody poured into me again, somebody invested in me, somebody saw potential in me. And so they worked through those minor problems that I had. And I think as leaders in our company and leaders in our industry, um, that's the most important. Well, like, let's get these guys, let's invest in them, let's show them some grace, show them some mercy, um, but keep

Role Play And Permission To Err

SPEAKER_04 19:20

instilling in them, keep investing in them, keep pouring into them, keep teaching them, mentoring them, find somebody that you can really pour into because they're gonna do it to the next guy, man. If you find the right person, they're gonna go and pass that on, and that keeps it going, that keeps this business running, that keeps us all uh building that legacy, you know, at the end of the day.

Pete Shau 19:39

Give me the steps, give me the steps. If you're training a trainer in your book, is that different than training somebody who's not a trainer? In other words, if you're training a GM that has to train somebody else, right? Yeah, is that process different than going to a CSR and training them to be a CSR? I don't think so.

SPEAKER_04 19:55

Like, you know, I don't know where where that would be different because I mean, aside from, you know, who the audience is that we're training them to um be in front of, aside from that, we're training them the same basics. If you're a CSR, you're we're training them, we're teaching them to pour into their people, into their into their customers and into the people that they're dealing with day to day. If we're pouring into management or area management or ownership, we're training them to pour into their team. And and it's no different. We're what we give them, they give their people, their people give the next people down the line. So again, it all comes back to people training them to show mercy, show grace, pour in, give everything you've got. The reverse pyramid is not just some cliche, you know, run-of-the-mill saying that everybody throws out. It is true, man. It's out there for a reason, you know, and it's truth. It works. Um, you know, everybody's always seen the picture of the leader that's you've got one guy sitting on a sled with a whip, you know, and then you've got one that's pulling the sled from in front. Like we're supposed to be that guy pulling the sled. Like we will do the extra leg work. We just want to pour into you and see you be successful. So, what's that look like? What do you need from me? What are your pain points? How can we help you get through those pain points? It's really just not, it's taking yourself out of the equation and really just saying, how can I make this person better than me? Like, you know, so it really to me doesn't matter if we're training an area manager or a CSR. I mean, it doesn't matter. I mean, we're still now the point of focus for that person would be different, but the method would not be any different to me, you know?

Pete Shau 21:32

So I well, I mean, I don't know how many area manners we're gonna get into. I know that we have a lot of other things. What do you feel about training a classroom versus a person?

SPEAKER_04 21:40

So again, I think I'm not that classroom guy. So I don't think I'm gonna be that classroom teacher. I didn't I didn't uh chase that career path for a reason, probably a good reason. Uh I I'm more of the guy that's gonna be in the building with you, working and showing you hands on, uh, just because that's that's more my style. I'm a guy that I'm gonna put really Real life application in my training methods. Um, and I'm gonna show you um why we do it, you know. So it's not about like just do this, you know, you get a lot of people, a lot of leaders, you know as well as I do, um, that just say, do this. And they don't really dig in and why. Well, you know, I'm a why guy. Why am I doing this? Like, what's the end result for this? Why do we do this process and what result are we trying to accomplish out of this process? And I think that that's probably why I like that method of training, because I think that that uh makes things easier for people to understand. I'm a simple guy, you know this. I keep it simple, stupid, man. That's my method. So uh it so yeah, I mean, like it, I think I'm more that guy. I'm the I'm the hands-on single application style trainer.

Pete Shau 22:45

You see, I don't mind, I don't mind a classroom.

SPEAKER_04 22:47

No, and I think you're a phenomenal classroom trainer, man. I really do. I think you obviously you talk to the masses, man. You're good at it.

Pete Shau 22:53

I don't I don't mind I don't mind the classroom so much. And I don't I don't know if it's a if it's a plus one on either side of that fence, whether it's you know, uh being the one-on-one or or more classroom, but I think I've had more classroom interaction. Yeah, in other words, more groups, you know, more groups, kind of a whiteboard, pull out something and say, hey, this is what we're gonna go over today. And I'm with you. Yeah, explain the why. Explain the why up front. Don't let there be this, I'm not really sure why I'm doing this. Yeah, you know, I love the the training with a step-by-step and as to why we do that step. And then calling out what what, you know, some people are like, okay, we're doing this because of this, but what's the alternative? I was like, well, you know, if they don't understand it, here are the other things that can come along with it. Yeah, you know, miss payments, not coming in on time, not communicating you when they can't come in, uh, you know, not knowing they can turn on that the the product, whatever that product might be, because they're in a big rut. You know what I mean? You know, what does it mean when there's no credit needed? Yeah, what does what does that even mean? Yeah. And you know, some people, I I think it came across it uh today and yesterday. And it was like, you think that people know. You think that they know because and and and I'm guilty of this too. I've been doing this for 20 something years. So now I you know there's certain things that I think as soon as you you clock in, click, you automatically know like certain things, and it's not true. No, it's it's not.

SPEAKER_04 24:06

I catch myself with with a new group, and I'll say, you know, something as simple as simple as offset. I mean, as simple as offset, something that like anybody in the wheel and tire business is just like automatic offset, right? We understand uh centerboard, you know, uh bowl patterns, um, tire sizes, metric, standard, like different things like that, right? Tread patterns, things like that that that are just second nature. We know, right, off the top of our head. Um, but yeah, I mean it's the same thing. Like it's just there's so many things that come with this that you take it for granted. Yeah. And I think that's like one thing that you and I have kind of had to adjust to in this is like we have to really slow down that pace. And like, so where I would train someone that maybe have has been in the tire and wheel business, I'm dealing, we're dealing with people that have never seen a wheel or something. No idea what we're talking about, yeah.

Pete Shau 24:55

Right? No idea.

SPEAKER_04 24:56

Yeah. So it's uh it's we have to slow that process down. But again, that comes into pouring into people. What are you had, what, what are you struggling with? What are you catching on to? What are you not catching on to? How can we help you, right? Because that's what we do. Right.

Pete Shau 25:08

I think, you know, I see that I see where there's videos, I see where there's content, and you know, some people like it, some people don't like it. I don't I think it plays a part in a bigger picture, right? I think that I think there's always a place for it, right? I think there's I think there's a great way sometimes to help somebody out by sitting down, learning the definitions, seeing kind of what happens or what's supposed to happen or what's supposed to take place, but then also taking them out of that environment and going, this is real world application. Yeah, this is what it would really look like. Because I think sometimes, even when they're watching a video, as they're going through it in their head, they create a scenario.

SPEAKER_03 25:43

Yeah.

Pete Shau 25:43

And to them, this scenario is how it's gonna be every single time that I talk to somebody, how it is every time that I answer the phone, how it is that somebody comes in and I'm gonna greet them and they're gonna come to the counter. And that is, and you know it, and you guys know, it never happens the same way. No. If it if it's ever happened the same way twice in my entire life, that'd be like lightning in a bottle.

SPEAKER_04 26:02

Yeah, you're you're a lucky folk, you're lucky folks if that's happened. Uh, and we've talked about that, right? Like we talk about how like we can train to a T. We can we can talk about everything under the sun, we can be very thorough with it.

Videos Versus Real World Practice

SPEAKER_04 26:15

As soon as you get into your location, you're gonna have some one-offs. Because it just how it's just how the business works. We need to put a training thing, the one-offs, the one-off. What is the one-off section? Get ready for it.

Pete Shau 26:25

Yeah, because it's coming. Yeah. And I think you know what I love the idea that because rent on is so fluid. And you know, with something that you had said earlier, and you you probably said it a couple days ago too, but it was like, you know, interject yourself into that situation. Don't allow it to be a stiff moment where you're just like kind of going through the motions. You're more than welcome to say something to uh build a relationship through laughter, yeah, through, through mutual understanding. Yeah, you know, I've been through that, right? Haven't been through that. Tell me about it. Or, you know what, God, you know, I could have done that better. Well, I'm sorry, guys, I screwed that one up. And just being open about it and having that conversation and creating that pathway that it goes both ways. Yes, you know, um, being yourself, being personable. I think that is probably the most unsung hero in training, is like we get this idea that we have to be a certain way. And in in maybe some industries are like that. Yeah, maybe some industries you have to answer the phone the same way every single way. And I'm not saying that rent to home is not like that, but you know, you're at a call center, and there's you know, there's certain steps that you have to take where no matter what they say, you have to go down this avenue. And no matter what happens, you've got to supersize the drink. Right. And no matter what happens, you've got you know, you've got to paint the wall red. But in Rent to Own, I think there is so many ways to get to a singular point.

SPEAKER_04 27:35

Absolutely.

Pete Shau 27:36

And it's like, don't be afraid to be yourself, don't be afraid to interject who you are and all the years of that that compile to make you who you are into that moment. And I think that's what builds the relationships best. Yes. I think that's what people makes people remember you most. Absolutely. Um, and getting people to understand that is almost another part of training. It's like you gotta be yourself. You can't be me, don't be you, be be don't be the girl over there, be yourself. And if that person is the one that can come out on top and say, hey, I remember how to do it this because this is what my this is the way I add to it, this is the way I add to the situation. I think it's huge.

SPEAKER_04 28:09

Yeah, as long as we're not breaking any rules, right? We're not doing anything that's gonna cause any kind of legal issues in our building, it we need personality. Like nobody wants to buy from a store full of robots. It's just how it is. I buy from people, you buy from people. Yes, we build relationships. Um, and that's who we are in our industry. We build relationships. How many times has it been told to you and I? It's relational, it's not transactional. It's that we say these things for a reason, but maybe we don't go deep enough with that to really explain. Like, we're buying from people. People want to come in and see a personality. They don't want an order taker standing behind a computer. That's not who we are, right? Um, they're gonna remember you if you're busting a joke, if you're asking how their kids are doing, if you call them by name when they walk in. Everybody loves to hear their name, man. Everybody. Uh so I think that's you're right, that's key, man. It's maybe one of the most important things whenever we're talking to people about people.

Pete Shau 29:05

Hey everyone, it's Pete Chow here from the RTO Show podcast, and I want to tell you about a company that's making a real difference in the rent-to-owned space, WoW brands. I've seen firsthand how they approach marketing. Let me tell you, it's not just about ads. WoW brands build complete digital ecosystems designed specifically for the rent-to-owned industry. Their e-commerce and lead generation strategies are built to bring you qualified leaders. And did I mention that they are actively working with the rent-town industry while also being members of April and Trib? Listen, these folks are passionate problem solvers. They don't just slap something together, they design, build, and scale the kind of digital retail tools your business needs and your customers actually want. So if you're serious about growing, reach out to WoWBrands at WoWBrands.com. I trust them, and I think you will too. You know, in this in this new in this week's newsletter, uh the book recommendation I put was how to win friends and influence people. And Dale Carnegie says that one of the, you know, one of the things that people love to hear the most is their name. 100%. You know, and and to call somebody by their name is not only respectful, it brings them into the conversation.

SPEAKER_03 30:10

Yeah.

Pete Shau 30:11

Not just a transactional conversation, but a relational conversation. It just should

WoW Brands And Relationship Selling

Pete Shau 30:15

be like a relation to own instead of rent to own, right? Because that's I think I heard that all the time. You know, it's always relationary. And part part I think of of going through what you do with these people is that you get to see them grow. You get to see the light bulb go off, you know, and say that was that aha moment that you got it. Yeah. And I love seeing those. And I think as trainers, we've got to look for those, right? We've got to make sure that the light comes on at the end of the night and it goes, you know what? I get it. It clicked. And and is there ever a moment that you come across that you're just like, I don't know if this guy or this gal just gets it. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 30:51

You got them. You they're they're out there. Um, but then it's, you know, I also think like there was probably some times where I was working for some folks and they were probably like, Nick doesn't get it. Nick ain't getting it. They left out of that building saying Nick ain't getting it. Um, but I mean, so that's that's kind of what I'm saying when I talk about like individual working with individuals instead of a classroom setting or group setting. I think that people will be more open to you when you're dealing with them one-on-one. They're gonna be more likely to tell you like real problems that they're having. I don't understand what you're saying. I don't get what a bolt pattern is, I don't get what this means. I don't get what terms mean. I don't get what, you know, they're I think they're more open to like just be real with you. And especially if we as trainers or leaders uh make ourselves available and let them understand, like, hey, look, man, I didn't get it all. Like, I didn't get it all when I started. I I it's it's understandable. Like, how can we get to this point though? How can I break this down to you? How can we move forward to where you've got this down to where it's second nature? Because I think a lot of people want to look good in front of their peers, so then they just say, Yeah, I get it. Yeah, I get it. And then they get out there and they don't get it. And they never got it.

Pete Shau 32:09

Listen, it happens way more than I want to say. Let me so question to you about okay, so we get through training and somebody's out there in the world. Yeah, in your opinion, how long does it take somebody to fully understand rent to own? Not just be out there and say, okay, I understand that if I want to start an agreement, I've got to, you know, I've got to do a quote or whatever the case is, depending on the software that you have, you know, I've got to get your information into a rental order, put that information in, come out with a rental agreement, kind of go over that step, take some COD, whatever the case is, get you to the right due date. I mean, those are almost steps. Again, that's a transactional part. That there's no there's no building in that. You just get the information, you put it in. But to totally understand rent to own, in your opinion, how long do you think does it take a new hire? Because I think sometimes, you know, we could also, as trainers, go through it and go back and go, like, I poured everything into that person. It's been like two weeks, they don't get it. Yeah, it's like that wasn't enough, Bubba. I mean, like, they're not gonna get it.

SPEAKER_04 33:05

Yeah, I you know, I think everybody's gonna be different. I think that you have some people that are just naturally gifted in the ability to like take information in and be able to process it, and they're like, Yeah, I got it. I get it. Um, but to understand really like

How Long It Takes To Learn

SPEAKER_04 33:20

the specifics behind it and then understand that it's all about people, you know, I think that I think it takes time. But I mean, I again, Pete, I mean, I think it's based on the individual. It's hard to say like a specific number that I think, like, man, two weeks, everybody should be on board. Um, there's some that I think are absolute rock stars out in our industry right now that it took time. I would be one of those guys. I was one of those guys that probably should have caught on a whole lot sooner. Um, when I was trained, this is no joke, when I was trained in sales, I was trained by a guy that had been in the business for a long time, came from traditional, sold furniture, uh, really great guy. Um, but he he knew I knew nothing about RTO, which I didn't. I had no idea what R Tire Express was when I started. I knew it was a tire shop, that's all I knew. Um, but when he came to me and he started talking to me about sales, he was like, I don't care that you don't know. He said, You can talk to people. I want you to go talk to people. And that's where I got my start. And so I'm one of those guys, and it probably took me a little bit longer to understand the process and the terminology and things like that back behind RTO. But then with time, I just dug my heels in and I just kept on and kept driving, kept pushing. I was mentored in a phenomenal way uh by leadership in that company. And uh I eventually came around, but I understood the basics of taking care of people. I knew how to love people, how to take care of people, and how to work with a team and how to build a team and things like that. That is where I got my start, even though I didn't understand RTO to the fullest, you know. Um, so I don't know. I don't know that there's a number on it. I would say you probably caught on a whole lot faster than I did.

Pete Shau 34:54

Well, I I you know, I was in a position where I was calling on customers because when I first started, you know, we had a delivery and accounts position was the same position. So I would call customers, I would ask for you know payments, I would take payments, I even know that type of agreements, but to say I fully understood, I would probably say the the full interaction of me understanding really down to the wire what I was doing, it probably took three months.

SPEAKER_04 35:19

Oh, I would say every bit. I I'm not even gonna act like I knew in three months.

Pete Shau 35:22

Yeah, like like I mean, it was like I'm doing these things, like I know how to do them. Yeah, but I really did like if you would like to get really granular with me and be like, Pete, but why do we do that? I really don't know. Yeah, I wouldn't like I had no idea what a reinstatement like why didn't we call a late fee? What was your reinstatement fee? Reinstatement fees, you reinstated, you know what I guess. I didn't know. There was a lot of things that I I took for granted. Um, I didn't know why the same as cash was built, I didn't understand what it really meant. I didn't know, you know, at some point in time, and every since, you know, when I first came on, when I first came on, EPOs at one time with Rack were like 50% and then it dropped down to like 45%, and then it dropped down to 40%. And then, you know, I've seen EPOs as low as 25%, right? And at one point in time, I didn't even really know what that meant. I just know that we were gonna give you a discount and I would hit it in, the computer would tell me something, and I would just be like, this is what it is right now. Yeah, uh I had no idea what real BOR meant. You know, what's balance on rent? I have no idea what balance on rent meant. I I I had no idea, I mean, I know what I thought. Yeah, you know, I didn't know why we tracked it, I didn't know what UR, UR was where units on rent. I had no idea um what half of it we were doing. Yeah. And then when somebody finally sat down with me, which was probably way longer than three months, I'm not gonna lie. Yeah, um, you know, a lot of it made more sense. Yeah. And it took me that time frame just to kind of get my feet wet and to do it on a daily basis repetitively to say, I even I'm even decent at this.

SPEAKER_02 36:52

Yeah.

Pete Shau 36:53

Because, you know, what usually happens is especially with you know what we see in training is we have a position open and that position goes unfilled. And now I am a store owner or I am a manager or I'm whomever in a position trying to fill that position with somebody who I think can do it, right? So I hire somebody, I bring them in, and I'm gonna give them the crash course because I need somebody to fill that position right away, right? Too often. Right. And so, you know, if it's a collection position, man, I'm close too high these last couple of weeks. I really need somebody to go in there and dig in and kind of handle things, go out there and running and take care of the, you know, whatever it is any done. And then I take somebody and I run them through this, what I would think is, oh, it's great training. Yeah. Here's a phone, start calling. Yeah, you know, and it's it's like this speed dating, yeah, right. And I'm gonna give you everything about me in five seconds or less, and I'm gonna expect you to remember that as you go through. And you know what? This is great training for you. Go ahead, sit down. I'm gonna make the first phone call out of 50. I mean, it could be a voicemail or whatever, and then just keep on going from there. And you know, what I learned was is that probably one of the biggest things I learned about training is you can't rush training. No,

You Cannot Rush Training

Pete Shau 38:00

you can't, there is no shortcut. Yeah, there is no, I can get you to understand it faster because I need you to. Yeah, it's like I need to slow down because I need you to, not go faster. Because if I stick you not only in a position that hasn't been filled for a while, I'm stressed about the position. Probably the people that need to be called are stressed about the position. Yeah. Because what? They're not being called, they're not being taken care of. And then out of nowhere, we're gonna hit them with some serious. I need you to come in now. We have a situation on your account, it's been unpaid for for a little while, and we need we need to discuss this like immediately. And they're like, listen, Bob, I got bills to pay. Like, we need to have a better conversation than this. Who are you? And it's like, I like, dude, I don't even do you even know anything about my account? Yeah, what do you know? Who are you? You're like the third guy I've talked to. Yeah, and so you know, one of the biggest things I've learned is gotta be no matter how bad we need them in that position, no matter how much that position is screaming, fill me. I need more people. If you don't train somebody for an average the regular average, whatever your training takes, and I would say the better part of a week, maybe a week and a half, where you're and that's solid training. That's not, you know, sporadic. That's on top of it training. It could take up to two weeks if I've got things to do and I've got meetings and I've got calls and I've got to put you on the side and I'm gonna set you somewhere. Um, and we have the we have the ability, luckily, to be able to do it away from a location or in a location, but in the sense that we're not running that location. I don't have to run to the phone every time it rings. I don't take care of every single customer. Somebody parks and I'm like, okay, guys, stop. Let's let's stop for a few. Yeah, and we really had the opportunity to go through it, and it still takes a week and week plus.

SPEAKER_04 39:31

Absolutely. Yeah.

Pete Shau 39:31

And you know, I just you know, I just feel like as as trainers, we've got to remember that you cannot just pile it on and they'll understand faster. Yeah. I'm gonna give you algebra in three minutes or less. Yeah, you burn out. You burn them out. Burn them out. You burn them out. And then the problem with burnout is everything after the moment of burn or burnout, whatever to call it, it's out the window. Yeah, it goes one one ear and out the other. It's not getting caught. Yep. You also in and in training, I believe in training that you also have to see that burnout moment coming. And not saying that it's it's it's an all or nothing burnout, but when you've been teaching something for an hour or two and you see their glide, their A's starting to glaze over and you're like, they're not paying attention. Yeah, they want to, yeah. I think they want to, but it's like I I'm I'm burnt. Like you don't know you're feeding them through a fire hose because you know it. But man, they've just learned all these things that they got to do and how they're supposed to do it, and the best practices, and they're like, I got this is a lot.

SPEAKER_04 40:26

But I think everybody learns in a different way, too. So I mean, like, that's where like individual training, I think, is so in so important. I think if you find the right person that's willing to come in and give you everything they've got, and you can read that on this person, you can tell that this is somebody that I know, like if I pour into these folks, they're going to buy in, they're gonna, they're gonna build relationships like I'm asking them to do, they're gonna drive to be better, right? I think those are the ones that um we can really like invest in. And then if it takes more time, it takes more time. But I would much rather have somebody like that that's loose clay that I can mold instead of somebody that thinks they're a rock star, they come in and then you're trying to deal with training somebody the right way and you're breaking old habits and all this and that. I would much rather have somebody that I know that is willing to do what we ask them to do, which is put people first, obviously, and then allow things to fall as they may, but just invest in them. Somebody that's willing to ask you a question. I always try and make sure when we're dealing with somebody that they understand they can come to me with anything, any question you have. If I don't know it, I'm gonna find out for you. Like I'm going to invest in you. So anything you need from me, I'm gonna give you, right? And I think as as we train across the country, like it has to be that way across the country. We bring somebody in, most people have not come from the RTO world. You're gonna get some, you'll find some out there that either come from RTO or they come from wheels and tires. Rarely both, but sometimes both. But we have to find a way that we can just reset and think, what are we doing here? What is our relationship uh with our customer base? What do we really want out of these team members? And that's to treat people right. We want people to have an experience when they come into our business. I think the only way we do that is by setting up ourselves with a foundation of people first type mentalities, letting the rest play out. If it takes us two weeks to train, it takes us two weeks to train. That's where us as leaders step in and we fill that hole. We take we take over that responsibility until our guy's ready, right? So I think we have to be willing to do that as well, not just rush them through the process so we can be hands off now and and manage from I did it. I trained, yeah, I did it. I did it. I'm gonna go back to my office now. Yeah, right? Like, no, like what are we doing? Well, who are we? Like, that's not who we are. Um, we fill that gap. We take in, we step in that role until that person's ready, if we find the right person. And I think that's another big key to hiring right now and training. Yeah, finding the right people.

Pete Shau 42:54

I I agree with you wholeheartedly. I think sometimes, again, it falls back to the we have a spot open, we need to get it filled as soon as humanly possible. And sometimes what we do is we fill it with the first what we think is capable body, but it's not really the right personality, the right fit for our culture and for what we do. Yeah, and we're gonna have to make some pretty hard decisions later on, and I and I hate that. I hate that for them and for us because we're wasting their time and ours. Yeah, you know, let's let's make that up front. If you were to say right now, okay, I'm a trainer, I I you you you literally go around the country, which is really cool. I mean guys, I mean, he's got probably like stickers from everywhere or some kind of you know, I try to buy my wife a t-shirt every every city I go to.

SPEAKER_04 43:33

So he's got a hundred t-shirts. Yes, okay.

Pete Shau 43:35

Yeah. So if you're doing that, what are some things as a trainer that you picked up that you that you could say to somebody if you're going to be a trainer or if you're training, not necessarily a trainer, because a trainer is somebody who does it all the time, but somebody who's like a GM or in a position going to be training somebody at least for a little while, right? I mean, I have you know five, ten guys, whatever. I'm not gonna be training every day, but I will be training, you know, somebody who new comes on. Are a couple of things that you can say that will that helped you learn to be a better trainer that you can pass along?

SPEAKER_04 44:06

I would say one thing that we have to do a better job of is finding like one or two guys in our group that we can say, I'm these are these are going to be my guys and I'm going to pour into these guys and then they're going to duplicate what I can do. So it's like really like trying to pass that down and then let that multiply. Because if you try and put it all on your own shoulders when you're out there, if I try to say I'm the only thing that's going to go out and help a store, we're in trouble, right? I'll help as much as I can, but I'm not there every day and I'm only going to be there for a short amount of time. So my mindset when I go somewhere, when I'm dealing with someone or I'm talking to somebody or I'm trying to help a team member out somewhere out in the country, I want to

Finding Leaders And Running Proofs

SPEAKER_04 44:45

find my guys. I want to find my owner operator or my GM or my area manager, somebody that's going to be in a leadership role in that spot. And I'm going to pour into those people so that they can waterfall that thing out.

SPEAKER_03 44:57

Okay.

SPEAKER_04 44:58

Right. So that would probably be one of the big things I would say. Find your one or two guys that can go out and do double your workload, that can go out and spread what you're doing into two or three other guys. And then you've got two or three other guys that can go pour that into two or three other guys. Instead of just like saying, all right, you're the GM, it's all on you, which look, there's responsibility that comes with each tier. You know this. Um, but I I don't know. I I would think that would probably be it. Like find your guys that are willing to go out there and duplicate what you're doing and and then spread that out, you know. So that's something that I really try and focus on while I'm out there. It's making sure everybody knows how to do the job. Yeah, well, I mean, just making sure that my leaders really understand how to do the job. Like the leadership teams understand how to do the job. Because they're the guys that are going to be left there working with the other team members after I'm gone or after you're gone, right? There's only so much we can do. I'm here on the phone, but I need people in the building that really get it. So I identify those people and then I train them, and then I hope that they multiply and do the same thing, pay it forward.

Pete Shau 46:00

I, you know, one of the one of the things that I learned was pro I call it proofs. So, you know, it's not just showing me that you know how to do it, because that doesn't prove to me that you can do it well. It it shows me that you know to check a box, right? So if you're calling collections, you gotta proof me. In other words, you gotta prove to me that there's proof somewhere in this that you not only know how to make a call, but you know how to handle the situation, right? Because anybody, I could tell anybody, okay, they showed up on this list, this is their due date. It's not paid. Yeah, you make a phone call. Yeah, if you can do that, okay, great, but that's not account management, yeah, right? And we gotta we gotta run proofs. Uh whether you want to call it role play proofs, but at the end of the day, before checking that box and saying you understand this, it's to me, it's like one of those, okay, but can you really do it? Yeah, just because you can do it, you know, I could change the tire with somebody else standing up behind me going, hey Pete, you do this, this, and this, okay, great. But if they left me alone, yeah, man, you ain't going nowhere. Yeah, you know, and so it's one of those the proofs in the pudding. And that's really where I got it from, you know, the proof.

SPEAKER_04 47:05

Yeah. So I mean, if you think about that, so like if we're just gonna, you know, if we touched on collections for a minute, account management, I don't even like calling it collections, um, account management. Every case is gonna be different. So, like when you're asking somebody to show us that you can handle a call with someone, it's case to case, which comes all the way back full circle to our very beginning conversation that we had about relationships and people. Yeah, right. If our account managers understand the foundation of R R Tire Express and of RTO, which is building relationships with people across the country, building relationships with our customers. If they understand that foundation, then when Mary Joe calls in and her dog died for the fifth time, we're gonna know Mary Joe is probably making that story up, right?

SPEAKER_02 47:51

But at the same time, Mary Joe.

SPEAKER_04 47:53

Yeah, how dare you. But at the same time, there's other customers out there that we know have been fantastic customers, and they may give us the exact same story that Mary Joe gave us. But we know that we've dealt with this person, we understand that situation is probably genuine. So we're probably gonna go out a little further on a limb for that person. So it really comes down back to case-to-case, person-to-person relationships. So there is to me, it's really hard to train a one-off scenario for training. Absolutely. To sit here and say, if this phone conversation happens, this is how you handle it. Yeah, like there is none because there's so many different variations in our business that that come into play with that. And it boils back down to know your people. Yeah, know your customers, know your team members, know what we've got.

Pete Shau 48:40

Yeah, yeah. I think we think you gotta come back to it time and time again. Yeah, you know, it's like uh there's so many different scenarios that you can come across in training and then have 10 more as soon as you're done. And you know, it's not just a checkbox, it's not just an action, but it's almost what you're trying to get out of that transaction because you have to be you have to be fluid with what happens, pivot back and forth. There's gonna be so many different reasons that things happen, and life, if anything, is unpredictable. You know, it's one of those things that it's just amen, you know. Did you ever think that as things happened and progressed in your life that you would ever be a trainer?

SPEAKER_04 49:17

No. No, no, sir. I uh, you know, I uh I had big dreams, I guess, at some point after David Harrison thought made me think I was like something special. Uh no, man, no, no. I uh, you know, to be a trainer, I don't know that I ever thought I'd be a trainer. I don't know what I I honestly thought I'd do, Pete. Um, I can tell you I'm absolutely in love with the fact that I am a trainer. Um, and and not even, you know, trainer makes me feel like I've got it all figured out and like I'm out there just like, you know, I've got every answer you need. Like I'm that guy. And so to even put that on me, and I know that that's that is our title, um, and that is what we do. We go out and we help and we train and we get them ready. But um again, I just I'm here to serve our people. You know this, we know this, that that's really what we're here to do. We understand it, we understand the foundational principles of what we do and how we operate in our business. So I think that's why we're in our role. We get it. So our job is to go and pass that on. But man, we still see things. I know I do. I still see things where I'm like, man, that's a first.

SPEAKER_03 50:26

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 50:26

You know, I'm not, I'm not so vetted that I'm like, I've seen it all, boys. I know everything, I've got it figured out. You know, everything's still, I mean, there's still one-offs out there that we're we're we see um that we have to work through, that we have to ask questions on, maybe. Every day. Um, yeah. And so that's again where these legacy guys come into play, where it's like, hey, I bet so-and-so knows that. Like, I may not know that, but I bet you know that. I bet that guy that I worked with.

SPEAKER_00 50:51

The secret being a trainer is someone knowing somebody that knows. That's it, right? I if I don't know it, I know somebody that knows.

Pete Shau 50:58

But no, did you? Did you ever think you'd be a trainer? Oh God. I, you know, going back, let's say about 15 years, when I finally was really neck deep in rent to own, and I had managed several stores. Rack had me driving all over the place because that's you know, we just I I put out fires and you know, it's the way it was. And uh I told myself, I'm gonna be a DM. Yeah, that was that was like, and I don't know why that was my end all be all goal, but it was like that was it. I'm gonna be a DM. Uh I told myself two things actually. I was gonna be a DM and I was gonna have a BMW. So uh, you know, and I and I like check, check. Uh you know, and like you, I had, I didn't, I didn't have uh a silver spoon. I was really hard headed when I was younger. I had people that did give me a lot of opportunity. Yeah, um, probably to somebody who I wouldn't say I didn't deserve it, but I I I wasn't first on the list. I did not deserve it, but you know, I was seriously hard headed. So I think that I mean that was a plus on my side. Like I just didn't want to give up. Like I wasn't gonna let my credit close that way. Yeah, I weren't uh there was no way that I was gonna be sold out of the building. Like you're gonna you're gonna have to come with it. Like, I'm gonna add on, I'm gonna get something going on, I'm gonna get new customers. I I I lost a fear of going out from business to business and doing all that stuff, but I never, ever did I ever think that I would attain to something other than being a DM. That was always my goal. Yeah. When I took over my first uh you know, district with Rant King, I I was ecstatic. But what I found out was I had become essentially a trainer.

SPEAKER_03 52:33

Yeah.

Pete Shau 52:33

I I mean, there are things, there are KPIs that you look over, there are situations that you that you look out for, and you want to make sure that everything's running right. But what I had learned at a certain point was I didn't I didn't know that I would be a trainer, but the better that we got, the better at training I had to be. Yeah. I had, you know what I mean? For there for there to be overall success, and it wasn't just training in one area. I mean, probably the biggest thing that I had to learn, because you know, a lot of a lot of guys we have are absolutely smart people.

SPEAKER_04 53:02

Yeah, oh yeah.

Pete Shau 53:03

The hardest thing I had to remember was I gotta train these people to lead people. And those people skills, uh, you know, there is no page that comes with this is the rules of managing people, and and if you follow this, you know, it's just gonna be great. No, it's it's it's really not because there's my personality, there's your personality, yeah. There's the experiences that I've had and you've had, and your crew might be completely different from this crew. So again, you have to be fluid, you have to be open, you have to be understanding. And as I started doing that, I learned about training, I learned about more about people. The second region I had taught me even more because it was even harder.

SPEAKER_03 53:42

Yeah.

Pete Shau 53:42

And at that point in time, I realized after the BMW and after the role, yeah, that I had so much more to learn, but I actually started taking more into learning. When this position came open, and it was we were having our discussions, that's when I realized like I I guess I could be a trainer. Yeah, you know what I mean? But it never crossed, it would have never crossed my mind in a million years if 20 years ago Pete aspiring. No, 20 years ago Pete talked to me and I'd be like, You be training, guys. That's what you do. Like, get out of here, man.

SPEAKER_04 54:11

Yeah, you weren't an aspiring trainer when you were young. No, no, I get it.

Pete Shau 54:15

I get it. But like you, I completely feel blessed and honored to be in the position to do what I do. Goodness, yeah. Because not only do I get to meet a ton of people who have the feels that have the energy and the drive to be in rent to own, yeah, but I get to pour in some of the knowledge that I've learned along the way to hopefully get them to where they need to be to see be successful. And I think that's that's where my whole uh thing is is like I love to see people become successful. Absolutely. If I can if I can figure out a way to help you in some way, shape, form to to get that light bulb to click in less than three months, in two months, in an hour, whatever. Yeah, and you know, I I I've seen guys go and I've seen guys some guys do some amazing things and uh some guys that didn't, some guys that that put me to shame.

SPEAKER_00 55:02

And I'm like, okay, you know what? I got maybe I've got some work to do. It happens though.

SPEAKER_04 55:07

And I I think another thing too to add to that is I think you know, we're always quick to share our wins that we've had in our life. I think we're really shy about our failures and our losses that we've done. You know, and I think that's just as important to share with these young people. If not more important, yeah, absolutely. I've learned way more from my failures in business and in my life, absolutely, uh, my personal life. Uh, I've learned so much from my dumb failures than I have my big wins, man. I mean, I'm just I think we need to be as uh as a as a just a network across the country. I think we need to be more open to that with sharing those stories. Like, man, look, here's what I did, and I completely fell on my face. Don't make that mistake. Right. Like, I'm not, I don't know exactly maybe the right way that you need to do that or handle that, but don't do this. Like, I've done that, don't do that. You know, I think we need to be better about it. Yeah, yeah.

Pete Shau 56:02

I I got to be human. When one time I I I got away from rent owned a couple times. The first time, uh, I opened a business and it it was hard. Yeah, it

Failures That Make Better Trainers

Pete Shau 56:15

I failed, not gonna lie, I failed. And I that was one of the hardest lessons I had to learn because I learned so much more about business that I had no idea. There was a grit and a grind that came with that. And it wasn't like I thought, like, I'm on my own boss, and I was like, No, no, I get to work on my time. Oh, yeah. No, that was, and uh, it literally like it knocked the wind out of my sails. It really put me on my butt. But I will say to this day, besides all the great people that I've had in my life that poured into me, like you said, yeah, um, that failure let me feel like, you know what, I've learned to and what not to do. And whether it helps somebody or not, I and I hope it does, it was such a teacher to fall flat on my butt. And it was no safety net, there was nobody there going, oh, you know, it's gonna be okay. Nah, it was like life was like, that's all you got, bro. Yeah, and uh taking that and and using that and that failure, and I agree with you, sometimes those stories are just as, if not more, important because it's not about the loss, it's about getting back up and what did you learn from that loss? What did you take from that? And if you can take out the what you need to move ahead, it only makes things easier. Yeah. So as a trainer, if I can help you in any way by telling you how terribly I failed, it's one of one of the things that one of the things that I would tell you is it's not fun, but man, you will never get a better teacher than like that. Absolutely, man. It's just absolutely the best.

SPEAKER_04 57:38

Yeah, I think we should be doing that. I think that's something that we should all be doing a little bit more of. I think it we feel like maybe if we talk about the the downtimes and the failures and the bad points and the low points in our life and mistakes that we've made that for some reason people will view us differently or look at us like we're not Superman or like we don't have it all figured out, which who cares? Like, who cares? Like we're we're here to learn together, man. Nobody's got it all figured out. Anybody that says they've made it on their own without any help, without any failure, without any mentorship is fooling you. It ain't true.

Pete Shau 58:10

It ain't true. It ain't true, guys. I want to tell you it if you think you got it all down, you don't. And for those of us who are trying to help you out, listen, coming from a training standpoint, we'll only pour into you as much as we can. It takes you to accept and reciprocate. Nick, I appreciate all the all the words and everything. Listen, you guys need to make sure you're going to the website. I you gotta listen to stuff like this because I'm telling you, I love having these conversations and I love having these stories. It there's nothing like it. Uh, the newsletter, though, is a place where you're gonna learn a lot about rent to own. And it's not about what we talk about here, it's a lot of what's going on in the industry. Things that you probably wouldn't pick up on here, but the trends, the industry, we talk a lot about AI, the things that are happening today in RTO and how it's gonna affect you. Nick, I appreciate you being on the show, man. I love you. Listen, if you guys want to hear more about training and you want to ask Nick anything, feel free to hit up the show, Pete at the RTO ShowPodcast.com. Hit me up on that email or any social medias, send me a DM and we can talk about it. And I want to tell you guys as always, Nick, thanks for being on the show, man. We'll talk soon. You got it. Get your collections low to get your sales high. Have a great

Wrap Up And How To Reach Us

Pete Shau 59:20

one.