Episode 141

full
Published on:

3rd Jul 2024

Rebounding After Failure [E141]

Thanks to our Partner, NAPA Autotech

Matt Fanslow reflects on his early experiences in the automotive industry. He discusses the struggles and challenges he faced, as well as the opportunities that led him to specialize in diagnostics. Matt emphasizes the importance of perseverance, continuous learning, and hands-on experience.

Show Notes

  • A former employee (00:01:14) Discussion about a former employee's misconceptions about success in the automotive industry.
  • Early career experiences (00:02:33) Details about Matt's upbringing on a farm, education, and early jobs at a Ford dealership.
  • Challenges in the dealership environment (00:04:56) Struggles faced in adapting to the dealership environment and the lack of proper training.
  • Transition to a parts store (00:12:00) Transition to working at a parts store, experiences with computer-based systems, and forming relationships with different shops.
  • Career transition to a repair shop (00:15:44) Taking a pay cut to work at a repair shop, focusing on diagnostics.
  • Importance of training and education (00:16:53) Dedication to learning through training, reading industry publications, and attending classes.
  • Napa Autotech Training (00:19:17) Promotion of various training sessions offered by Napa Autotech for automotive professionals.
  • Drive for Improvement (00:21:33) Personal reflections on the drive to improve skills and the satisfaction of overcoming challenges.
  • Overcoming Failure (00:23:51) Reflections on overcoming failure.
  • Resilience and Growth (00:24:42) Discussion on getting knocked down, learning from failures, and using setbacks as a springboard for long-term success.
  • Continuous Improvement (00:26:17) Emphasis on the importance of continuous improvement and the value of dedication and hard work.
  • Striving for Excellence (00:27:37) Encouragement to find inspiration, work hard, and strive for excellence in the automotive industry.
  • Perseverance and Improvement (00:28:49) Personal experiences of overcoming challenges and the importance of creating an environment for improvement in automotive shops.

Thanks to our Partner, NAPA Autotech napaautotech.com

Email Matt: mattfanslowpodcast@gmail.com

Diagnosing the Aftermarket A - Z YouTube Channel HERE

Aftermarket Radio Network: https://aftermarketradionetwork.com/


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Show artwork for Automotive Field Theory

About the Podcast

Automotive Field Theory
From Automotive Diagnostics to Metallica and Mental Health
Automotive Field Theory explores the forces that shape automotive repair, including the ones measured with a meter or oscilloscope and the ones that cannot be found on a wiring diagram.

Hosted by automotive diagnostic specialist, shop manager, and instructor Matt Fanslow, the podcast begins in the automotive aftermarket but rarely stays inside its traditional boundaries. Diagnostics, electricity, technology, leadership, psychology, economics, game theory, history, music, movies, family, and human behavior may appear unrelated. Look closely enough, however, and connections begin to emerge.

A vehicle may arrive with a technical fault, but the work surrounding it is rarely technical alone.

Information is incomplete.

People make decisions under pressure and uncertainty. Incentives shape behavior. Standards gradually drift. Good intentions produce unexpected results. The official process may say one thing while the system quietly rewards another.

Automotive Field Theory is an attempt to understand those interactions.

Drawing from real diagnostic work, shop management, industry conversations, personal experience, and an occasionally inconvenient level of curiosity, Matt examines not only how things work, but why they work that way, how they became what they are, and what apparently unrelated subjects might teach us about repairing vehicles, leading people, running businesses, and improving the automotive industry.

Some episodes begin with a failed component. Others begin with Metallica, quantum physics, professional wrestling, a historical disaster, a round of golf, or a question that refuses to leave Matt alone.

Eventually, they all enter the same field.