Why I Don't Answer the Phone

Years ago at CFA I would answer the phone anytime it rang.  It made sense.  I was here.  I was available.  I could answer most questions.  AND when I wasn't at the store it wasn't uncommon for the phone to ring and ring.  No answers.

I asked why we weren't answering the phone and the common answer was "I didn't know you had left and thought you'd answer it."

That's when I stopped answering the phone.  But, I didn't just stop answering the phone.  Before I stopped answering the phone I set the expectation that the phone should be answered by the 3rd ring, no more.  I made sure we had a phone working and accessible to leaders at all times.  Then, I stopped answering the phone.  This was probably the most important step.  If I had told them expectations and put phones out front but kept answering the phone we probably would have continued to have the same problem  The key was me, the "leader", stopping the doing so that others could. 

(Oh, and I hate talking on the phone.  Sometimes good decisions can also be enjoyable.  It's easy for me to assume that if I like something or if I want something that it must not be the best idea.  Not everything good for you tastes bad.)

This can feel wrong.  Leaders can feel like they are dumping on their team when they stop doing something.  And, that could be the case if its not done the right way and for the right reasons.  But, as long as a leader does something they are in the way of anybody else stepping up and taking that task, learning that skill, growing...

Nothing in our store is owned by somebody else that I didn't have to first stop doing.  The "funny" part is I remember being frustrated that others weren't stepping up and taking these from me.  It took a while for me to realize I had to let go in order for them to take these responsibilities.       

What do you need to stop?  Where are you in the way of other's growth?


Hint:  ESRC is the tool to ensure this is done effectively         

The Last Game

Spring of 1996.  Put on my uniform for the last time.  I took did my last warm up tosses.  Took my last practice ground balls.  Took the field for the last time.  Last at bat.  Last play in the infield.

I read somewhere that you usually don’t realize when you are doing something for the last time.  But, that day, I knew it was my last competitive baseball game.  My last college game.  At the time I wasn’t sad.  I was kinda relieved.  The next season I didn’t really miss the game.

I do miss tossing the ball and taking some swings but I don’t often find myself wishing I could play it competitively again.  HOWEVER, when people ask if I have any regrets in life I don’t have many BUT I absolutely regret that I didn’t give baseball my best shot.  I was gifted.  Lots of talent.  But, I didn’t give it my best effort.  I didn’t play to win.  I often played not to lose.  I didn’t enjoy the game as often as I should have.

Having said all that, I’m thankful that I can say this.  Baseball was a big part of my first 20 years but it’s not my life story.  I’m thankful I got to learn the lesson with baseball that I need for the rest of my life.  I may regret that I didn’t give baseball my all but it taught me to ensure that when my last days of more important things come I will have given them my all.  I may not always get it right but I don’t want to ever have that same regret.  I’ll give my all.

Difference between me and a pro

In the last 5 years I've learned that water isn't always a good thing.  We moved into our current home in October of 2013.  During the buying process we did the inspection thing BUT the inspector missed something.

Many months later I was in the crawl space and something got my attention.  I pulled away some insulation and discovered that I could see the bottom of the tile that was the floor of our master bathroom.  That's not good.  All the subfloor had rotted away.  It was in an odd spot, not near drains or a faucet which is why the inspector didn't see it.  Water had made it's way to a spot that was in the middle of our floor and started eating away at the wood.

When we bought the house we had thought we might redo the bathroom eventually, so this just expedited that thinking.

Fast forward 2 years.  Early one morning I got woken up by Kaylyn hollering my name.  Water was spraying everywhere from under our sink in the bathroom.  Because I'm only half awake I tried everything except turning off the valve under the sink.  Water was covering the bathroom floor and soaking the carpet in our bedroom.  And there was even more water in the crawl space.  I think it took 4-5 days for ServPro to completely dry the area out.

Another new floor in the bathroom...

What did I learn?  2 things.  1)  Water can cause alot of damage.  2)  While I watched the people work on our bathroom, in both cases, they didn't seem quite as stressed about the problems as I did.  Part of that could be that I was the one paying BUT there was something else.  They knew what to do.  They knew what tools they needed and they knew how to use those tools.





Fast forward to a week ago.  We had a list that was getting longer and longer of little projects at the house that I hadn't been able to complete.  Squeaky step, light not working, door not closing, loose step on the deck, loose shingles on roof...  I called up a handyman to come and knock this list out because clearly I wasn't getting it done.  When he came out I walked around with him and talked with him while he was fixing things.  I never once saw him do something I couldn't have done.  And, it didn't seem to stress him fixing each of these things that had been a frustration to me.  What was the difference??  He knew what tools he needed and how to use those tools.  Check out the difference in the tools in these two pictures above.  One is a picture of my solution and one is a picture of tools of a pro.

Leadership seems to work the same way.  When I watch a great leader, they don't seem to get stressed with things that can cause me stress.  Why?  They know what tools to use and how to use them.

Some people say leaders are born, not made.  Not true.  Just as I could learn to be a plumber by learning what tools to use and when, anybody can learn to lead by learning what tools to use and when.  We all already do this everyday.  How do you get places?  Driving a car?  There was a day that you didn't know how to drive and getting places was more difficult.  Now you know what tool to use and how to use it.  How about cooking?  Same thing.  Grilling?  Brushing your teeth?  Heck, there was once a time that each of us had to learn when and how to use a toilet.

Leadership is no different.  Once you learn the tools and when to use them, leadership becomes more routine.  Just like remodeling a bathroom for a professional builder.        

ESRC
SBI
SERVE
How to Get Your Boss to Say Yes

Just a few of the tools we have available.  They only have value when we know how and when to use them.

 

Parker Pens

Parker Pens. They are my favorite pen. They fit my hand well, they write well, they fit in a shirt pocket well, they can be used with one hand (don’t have to take a cap off)... when I have my Parker Pen, I don’t ever have to look for a pen that works. I’m ready. I’m prepared!

I got in my truck this AM and headed to the store. Unfortunately, I didn’t have my phone charger in my truck because I had taken it in another car yesterday. I’m composing this in carpool line at Voyager on a phone that is getting low on power. Because of this, I’m having to consider whether to continue using it and when will I have access to a charger. That’s interfering with my productivity. I’m not prepared.

My intentions may be great but my preparation determines my capacity.

Which Came First?

When our kids were small, Myrtle Beach was our go-to beach destination. Easy, affordable, convenient oceanfront accommodations. Plus the lazy rivers at all the condos are a tired dad’s best friend.


Back then, Wendy’s were still decent restaurants so we stopped at one on the way down and one on the way back. They couldn’t have been more different. One was remarkably clean, friendly, fresh and fast. The other was remarkably dirty, slow, rude and stale. I’m not one to submit comments at businesses but both of these Wendy’s locations were so remarkable in their own ways that I did look for a way to submit feedback. The remarkably good store had comment cards at the tables, on the wall and a phone number posted near the menuboards. So many ways to give feedback. The other Wendy’s had zero options for submitting feedback. On the way home I was thinking about this.

Was the good one good because it sought feedback? Or, did they seek feedback because they are good? Was the bad one bad because they didn’t listen to customers or do they not listen to customers because they are poorly run? Which came first? Excellence or feedback? The Chicken or the Egg? Who knows?!?!

I started paying more attention to which places make it easy for feedback and noticed that the better run places typically make it easy to get feedback. I still don’t know which causes the other but I’ve learned that if you act like a top performer you tend to perform well. This is before we had the easy access to CFA CARES like we do now. We placed comment cards on every table. I really expected to get alot of feedback on how we could get better (complaints). What I learned is that customers just like being asked. Most of the feedback was positive. It seemed that simply by asking them how it was, customers felt more favorably about their visit. And, yes, we got some constructive feedback as well.

I still don’t know if asking for feedback made us better or if we decided to ask for feedback because we were leading better. What I do know is that top performers crave feedback. If I want to be a top performer, I probably should crave feedback.

Challenge Accepted

I think it was my sophomore year but it could have been my freshman year of HS. There was a guy named Brandon in my grade that sat in front of me in geometry class. I don’t know what I did to get his attention but he must have decided that his purpose in life was to make me miserable. In today’s culture, I’m pretty sure you’d call it bullying. I don’t recall any physical attack but he would just try to provoke me any way he could. Stupid stuff like ketchup packets between pages in my textbook to see if I’d pop them accidentally. If he got to class before me, I knew there would be something awaiting me. Called me every name in the book.

I was a pretty quiet, reserved kid. Not provoked very easily. Plus, I was kinda wimpy. Didn’t lift weights till college. But, one day he met me at my locker and said or did something that ticked me off so I responded. I don’t remember exactly what I did but it provoked him to ask “so you want to fight?” Part of me did. And the sensible part of me said that’s stupid.

The timing of this was key, though. We were right at the beginning of baseball tryouts. We had a big school so lots of guys trying out and it was about a week long process with multiple rounds of cuts. He was also trying out.

I don’t recall exactly my immediate response to his request for a fight but then he made a comment about baseball, implying that he was better. I knew the truth and saw an opportunity. “Brandon, if I get cut, there is no chance of you making the team. How about we settle things on the field?” I wasn’t just returning trash talk. I very objectively knew I was better than him. You know the song “Devil Went Down to Georgia” by Charlie Daniels? The coolest fiddle song ever. Brandon played the part of the devil. I felt like Johnny accepting the challenge. “My name’s Johnny (insert Tony) and it might be a sin but I’ll take your bet and you’re gonna regret, cause I’m the best there’s ever been.” No, I didn’t think I was the best there’s ever been. Just good enough to win this bet.

He took the challenge. That was the last time I ever had to deal with his irritations the rest of my High School days. *Insert some crazy fiddle playing

It's A Beast

The way the Interim Manager program worked back when I was trying to earn a store was you’d go for a few months and then they’d send you to another store. My first stop on that path was University Mall in Bloomington, Indiana. You don’t hear me talk about it much because there weren’t many lessons learned there. It was a very well run store and my role was just to not mess it up. Seriously. That’s what they told me.  Just in between owners. The original guy, Rick Johnson, had opened a store in Indianapolis and the next guy was still in operator training. I had about 2-3 days notice that I was going to Bloomington. And it was a beautiful place right on the edge of the campus for Indiana University.

Fast forward just a bit to the last few weeks of my time in Milwaukee (after Bloomington) which I hope you’ve already read about. I got a call from a friend that was an operator in GA. He was giving me a heads up. “Tony, they are going to ask you to run Memorial Drive FSR. I’m just warning you. It’s a beast.” He was discouraging me from accepting that offer.

Here’s what I knew. I wanted to be back near Atlanta because Kaylyn and I were getting married on Sept 20 and it was August then. I also knew I wanted an FSR as an operator but up till then I’d had no experience in anything but a Mall. I also knew that the worse the store, the easier it is to create a track record of growth. Sure enough, maybe a week later, Chick-fil-A calls and asks if I’d run Memorial Drive. Because I knew what my long term goal was of having an FSR and being in Atlanta during that season, it was an easy decision. Back then, IMs only went to malls. I had never heard of an IM going to an FSR. What an opportunity! YES! I’ll take the Beast.

And it was a beast (another story). I still remember a few friends commenting to me that they thought my decision wasn’t the smartest BUT I knew where I wanted to be and Memorial Drive was a step toward that. I remember running into my travel baseball coach during this time and told him what I was doing. His response in a very heavy NY accent: “Tony, you got a degree from Oglethorpe University and now you are running that restaurant? What a waste.” I liked this coach. Great baseball coach. Fortunately, I knew he was wrong this time.

When you know where you want to be in 3-5 years it makes the tough decisions today a lot easier. Whatever gets you closer to that goal is the right next step. 10/10/10

Real ER: The Bronx

Last night as I was jumping back and forth between a ball game and car building show I stumbled onto a show called Real ER: The Bronx.  As the name implies its a documentary style show of life in the ER at a hospital in The Bronx.

Regan was in the other room studying for her final exam in her EMT class and recognized the sounds and dialogue and came in to see what I was watching.  She was captivated.  I asked her if I was going to cause her to fail her exam.  "Probably" was her response as she settled in to watch (She took the exam today and passed).

As patients were brought into the ER, I'd ask Regan what she knew about their conditions.  I was amazed at how much she knew.  She sounded like a doctor to me.  There was one patient with a collapsed lung and they were inserting a tube into his chest, through the ribs to fix the lung.  They used used words I didn't understand, but she did, and so did all the supporting medical staff that was treating this patient who had been stabbed and was going to die if the staff treat his wound properly.

As I watched the show I saw up to 10-12 people working together to diagnose and treat the patients.  They used a common language.  One they had learned as they grew into medical professionals.  One that was clear and consistent.  One that took a very complex, high stress, situation and simplified it.

Imagine if I stepped onto the scene in that ER.  Could I figure out that the guy had been stabbed and had a collapsed lung?  Probably eventually.  Could I figure out that he needed a tube inserted to revive the lung?  Probably eventually.  I'm very confident that the patient would have been dead for days, maybe weeks before I could solve the problem.  And that was just one case that evening.

Application??  What is our common language?  Everyday we have as many cases come into our store as they do in that ER.  3,000 customers.  30+ team members.  IT.  Fryers.  Corporate.  Food Safety.  Reports...

As leaders, how are we diagnosing each case?  With our own personal language and systems?  With added drama?  Or, with a common language and common tools?  Professionally?

Can a doctor... I mean leader, step in and take the case you've been working on and smoothly proceed?  Or, would there be excessive time spent explaining things?

We have this common language.  We have these common tools.

Values
Toolbox (ESRC, SBI, 3 for 3, 4 Disciplines of Execution...)
Checklists (lots of checklists in the world of medicine)
@CFA
Podcasts

Are you like the doctors in this show that understand their role is to see the next patient, diagnose and begin treating them as efficiently as possible?  Or, are you like me walking into that ER and trying to solve it my way, eventually losing the patient, even if I eventually figured it out, just too slowly?

As leaders, we must control the systems and language we use.  The more consistent we are, the more effectively we will execute our Mission.  Be Remarkable.     

Even if you get uneasy with blood, I encourage you to google the show or find it on TV, or any other documentary of life in the ER.  Pay attention to how professional the medical staff remains.  Pay attention to what they say.  How they say it.  We think our environment can be high stress.  Maybe we are creating a good bit of the stress in how we respond to the cases that are coming in.  What if we approached the cases with the same professional urgency that is demonstrated in this show?  Think stress would be higher or lower?  It's easy to wish others would do this but we can only control one person.  Ourselves.  Let's each do our part to create this professional urgency in our culture.

     

                                   

Pressure Release Valve

Craig and Heath. Two of my managers when I was a teenaged team member. These guys were not small. Their arms were the size of most people’s legs and “barrel chested” fits the description perfectly.

These guys had an agreement. If one of them got angry, they would go out in the back hall (back halls of malls must have all sorts of stories). Whichever one was angry was allowed to punch the other one in the arm. Yep. True story. This wasn’t a rare occurrence. They were managing a bunch of teenagers after all.

What’s the lesson? You are going to get frustrated in life. If you are leading others, you are going to get frustrated even more. What will you do then? What’s your pressure relief valve? I still remember a manager years ago. She wasn’t happy about something and I was walking by the walk-in-cooler. I don’t recall understanding the words but I could hear some yelling. That’s how she “cooled off”.

I’ve had various relief valves over the years. Punching boxes in the stock area (be careful to choose your box wisely. Don’t cost us $$ and don’t break your hand). I’ve taken walks around the block. I’ve gone to sit in my car. Usually now I just go in the back and vent to my brother via texts. Or, if time allows, a trip to the gym, a jog, a bike ride...

Hint: prayer is also advised.

Just have a plan. We all need pressure relief valves ready for when the pressure rises

Grocery Cart = trust

Why do insurance agents put their faces everywhere?? My insurance agent is Andy Jones. We’ve become friends over the years, and neighbors. And a couple of his boys have worked for us.

One day I was in Kroger and I saw Andy. Well, I didn’t see him in person. I saw his picture on the seat of the grocery cart in an add for Andy Jones, State Farm. Is he that stuck on himself that he wants to see his face on the seat of the grocery cart when he needs to buy milk and eggs? He’s already got his head blown up 20 times on a billboard I drive by every day.

I don’t know if he actually enjoyed having his big smile plastered on every surface up and down Roxboro Rd but I did realize this. Insurance is a commodity. There isn’t much difference in policies. What it comes down to is trust. Who will take care of me best when I have a wreck or a tree falls on my house? The guy I feel like I know because I see his face everywhere or Geico? I don’t know for sure but I do know I’ve chosen State Farm in part because I know Andy. I can call Andy. I’m sure Geico is also good. I just don’t know who I’d call.

Just like when I think of State Farm I see Andy’s face, when customers think CFAROX they think of our faces. Each one of us is CFAROX to a customer. They choose CFAROX because they trust the person that comes to their mind when they think of CFAROX. They trust you.

Do You Know How To...?

Around the end of the 2nd year of being a Chick-fil-A team member I walked in to work and my shift leader asked “do you know how to run boards?” Back then, 1 person breaded and 1 person did all the rest. Sandwiches, nuggets, fries…. that’s Boards. I had never done it. I’d been asked before but until that day I’d never done anything but run a register. I guess we didn’t have a good boards person scheduled or maybe the shift leader just didn’t want to run boards or maybe he wanted options down the road. So that night I learned to run boards.

That night the shift leader opened a door for me that ultimately led to owning a Chick-fil-A. For the next 2 years I mostly worked the boards area, and really enjoyed it. A nice break from the front counter.

Now, with a full understanding of the restaurant some of my peers started suggesting I be a team leader (we had 2 levels of leaders. Team leader and manager). I was reluctant but eventually said OK. What I learned as a team leader was that I like when problems are mine. I like responsibility. The more responsibility the better is what I found out.

How can we open doors for more people more often? Who are you developing today? It may just be learning DT or fries. It’s a door. And who knows what opportunities that door can open up to. I’m sure glad that shift leader decided that was the night I was gonna learn boards.

Leadership Gym

Back in High School I had to take Weight Lifting as a class.  I'm assuming I "had to" take it because I didn't want to take the other potential electives but I had a semester of weight lifting none the less.  And, if you've been paying attention you could probably guess that I wasn't much on exercise most of my high school life and this was no different.

Combine that with my tendency to avoid doing what teachers asked and still finding way's to get decent grades and you can imagine how little weight lifting I did that semester.  I was in the weight room alot.  I watched alot of weight lifting.  I sat on benches.  I leaned on walls.  I walked around in the weight room and occasionally I lifted a weight.

Fortunately, I was thinking ahead at the beginning of the semester when the coach had us record our max on various machines.  I sandbagged.  I lifted just enough to not look like a complete wuss.  So, at the end of the semester, when we needed to record our max (which a large % of our grade was based on) I was able to record a good enough weight gain in order to pass the class.  Everybody knew I didn't lift any during the semester.  Including our starting catcher on the baseball team.  My first swing at baseball tryouts that year was a homerun which made him so mad he yelled out "and he never touched a weight all semester!!"

What's the lesson?  Just being in the weight room isn't enough.  Sitting on the equipment isn't enough.  I may have gotten the grade but I wasn't any stronger.

In our store, we have a leadership gym.  Everyday we have so many opportunities to flex our leadership muscle, to try a new technique, maybe try something a bit heavier.  Our leadership toolbox has the various exercises listed.  ESRC, 4 Disciplines of Execution, 10/10/10, SBI, SERVE (crossfit)...  Every day we can lift these weights.  Lots of reps.  But, its also easy to just walk around.  Maybe talk to some people.  Sit on the equipment.  We can get through the day without lifting if we really want to.

Who will be stronger after a semester in the "gym"?  The guy increasing his reps and the weight every day or the guy walking around the gym doing anything but lifting?

Don't miss this opportunity.  Every day is a day in the leadership gym.  You may get lucky and hit a homerun occasionally but don't be like me back in HS.  Don't miss that opportunity to get stronger.  If you lift every day you will be a strong leader.       


PS-If the store is the Gym and the toolbox is the equipment, books and podcasts are the protein needed for strong leadership muscle.                   

Stress Free Memories

Years ago I was looking through some family pictures that included a beach trip.  As I looked at the happy pictures I found myself wishing for those good old days when I didn't have the stress I do now.  But, then I checked the date of those pictures and thought of some of the stuff going on in that year.  Phases kids were going in and out of.  Challenges at the store.  Uncertainty about some future situation.  Sitting there years later looking at those pictures I realized all those things I was stressing over ended up OK.  Maybe not perfect.  Maybe not all to my liking.  But, none of those stresses I had back in those images carried over to that day I was looking at the pictures.  So what?

I decided to start writing down all the stresses I had that day.  And then I did it again the next day.  I didn't do it every day but I did it periodically over a couple years.  Then I'd go back and read what my stress was a few months ago or last year.  Almost all my daily stress was over stuff that either worked itself out or "magically" disappeared.

This taught me something.  Now, when I am anxious about something, I create an image (photograph) of me at an event that I know is coming in the next 3-6 months and I ask myself if that future Tony will still be worried about whatever is bothering me that day.

A couple years ago, we had a situation at the store that ended up making its way onto Facebook with some misinformation being shared about myself and our team.  Customers were calling.  Friends were calling.  "Is it true?!"  It wasn't but its not easy to control the conversation on social media.  I had done what I could and CFA Inc was monitoring and advising. 



A couple days after this started we took our girls to Winshape Camp in N Georgia and Kaylyn and I were staying in a mtn cabin near the camp.  I remember settling down and thinking "I wish I could relax out here and not have this FB thing going on".  Then I remembered the lesson from above.

I looked at the calendar and found an event a few months out.  Martinsville Nascar Race.  I placed myself at that race, with Riley sitting beside my brother and dad, watching the race.  Would that Tony be worrying about this FB stuff on the drive up to Martinsville?  Probably not.  So, why should this Tony sitting in the cabin in the mountains?



Guess what?  Not only was that Tony at Martinsville not worried about it but the Tony in the cabin had pretty much forgotten about it within a week or two of then.

Got something that won't let you sleep?  Have you done what you can?  Find an event 3-6 months from now that you'll be at and ask if that YOU will be worried about this?  Then follow their lead.

Matthew 6:25-34
Matthew 10:29-31
                 

 

     

White Towel Test

D.O. David Ottman. He was one of my first bosses. I can still picture him standing in the
doorway to the front counter, leaning against the doorframe with a clipboard in hand. He was
meticulous. At least by 17 year old standards.

His expectations were very clear. From the time you arrived till the time you clocked out. The
image of a white towel is what always comes to mind when I think of D.O.

At closing time, we each had our areas just like today. At the end of the night, we had to have
D.O. inspect our area before clocking out.

I had dining room one particular night, which included bathrooms. David’s rule was that if he
could wipe a white towel over an area and see anything, you had to do the entire area all over
again. You probably can guess where this is going. I had to do both bathrooms over again that
evening. Thankfully, he didn’t make me redo the dining room as well. I have no memory of
what wasn’t right BUT I can tell you I never had to redo my area again. I learned my lesson.
One that Truett used for the title of his first book. It’s Easier to Succeed Than to Fail.
It’s easier to do it right the first time.

For leaders, this is also a good lesson on setting expectations. Do you think he wanted to stay
later that night while I cleaned the bathrooms again? I doubt it. But, he was wise. He knew
that was time well spent and an investment in future nights.

Do you have a “white towel test?” Are you investing in future excellence?

Milwaukee

In the summer of 1997, I had the “opportunity” to go run a CFA in Milwaukee. It was literally the
worst store in the nation. Northridge Mall. It hadn’t had an actual owner in years. Interim
Managers had come and gone and it had actually gone 6 weeks without an IM before I arrived.
Daily sales around $1,000. Total staff of 12. The mall closed at 7 on Saturdays because of
safety issues (high crime).

I flew in on a Sunday afternoon. The hops from the breweries in Milwaukee create a very
unique smell as you are getting off plane.

One of the 2 operators in Wisconsin (3 stores total in the state) met me and showed me where
the Chick-fil-A and my apartment were. When I got in the apartment, I discovered it was
furnished but had no linens. Had to drive around looking for a Walmart Sunday night (No GPS
back then). My ironing table was the coffee table. Not easy to get wrinkles out.
Monday morning comes and I get a phone call. No cell phones then and I didn’t even know my
phone number at the apartment... But, the manager of the CFA did! She was calling out sick.
OK, guess I get to go open up this store that I’ve not been in with a team I don’t know. I’d been
working in mall stores for 6-7 years so no problem...

We get the store open and as it’s approaching lunch time I decide to get a sandwich to eat. It
resembled a hockey puck. I had gone into this store with the intention of not changing anything
immediately and taking time to get to know the team. Well, that lasted about 3 hours. No way
we could serve food like that.

And the day got better. The health inspector showed up. I didn’t have a clue where half the
stuff was but we survived the visit... I thought. The next week, she comes back. Everywhere
else I had been they leave and then come back 3-6 months later. Up there, they keep coming
back till everything is fixed. Got to know her pretty well over the coming weeks.
The GM had hired 2-3 of her family members so 25% of the staff were her family. One of them
got mad because I sat in the food court just watching the store and she decided that meant I
didn’t trust them. She quit. I had to fire the son of the GM. I had 2-3 threats of lawsuits from
those I let go. I asked CFA if I could close the store for a week and start with a fresh team.
Nope.

The last day I was up there, the employee bathroom, which was up in a loft in the back of the
store, flooded. Water cascading down the steps into the stock area. When I got back to
Atlanta, I discovered my credit card info had been stolen and used in Milwaukee. Pretty sure it
was the GM. “Great timing” because I was right in the middle of the operator application
process and a credit check is one of the first steps. Back then, addressing a fraudulent use of a
credit card wasn’t as quick and easy as it is now. Multiple calls and letters to the various credit
agencies. Probably 6-8 weeks to get my credit reports cleaned up.

I truly loved Milwaukee. Lake Michigan is beautiful. The German food is mmmmm good. They
make the most of their summer with a lakefront festival that makes our state fair look like....
well, a state fair.

It was just the 60+ hours a week at that CFA that were brutal.

If it doesn’t kill you, it will only make you stronger.

Turns out this was a great experience for me because the next store was described to me by a
friend as “a beast”. That’s another story...

Oh, and I just remembered this little gem to round it out. Y’all know I love baseball. I had never
been to Wrigley Field in Chicago, a couple hours away. My consultant and his boss (Todd
Sweatt and David Turner) were coming up for a visit and I found out they were heading to
Wrigley after visiting me. I asked if they’d mind me tagging along and they said sure. Well, the
visit goes well but right as they are wrapping up Todd pulls me aside and says “Tony, we need
to talk some business (confidential personnel issues) while we are at the game. I don’t think it
would be good if you were with us.” So, no game and me left wondering if some of that
conversation was my future...

Ahhhh... Milwaukee. Such fond memories. Any time I think things are tough I just have to
remember Milwaukee. I made it through that. I can make it through this.

TGIM??

For years and years I thought work was an unfortunate result of the fall of man. So, a
necessary evil. I got my timing wrong.

First, God created... He WORKED for 6 days, and it was good. On the 6th day He created
Adam and Eve to manage the garden and the animals (Creation). We were created to work.
Work was good.

It was after Satan stepped on the scene that work became difficult (Yes, he STEPPED onto the
scene but he SLITHERED away). Man and woman wanted more than God had given them and
they ruined a perfect situation. Literally, a perfect situation and we “humans” messed it up.
Work is good. It’s also difficult. There is no getting around this. We can choose which part we
dwell on. Good or difficult. We can accept that it’s good and dwell on the difficult or we can
accept that it’s difficult and dwell on the good. We get to choose every day. Choosing not to
choose is a choice. Choose wisely.

So do you choose TGIF or TGIM?

Check out Genesis 1-3 for more on this.

Also, Tim Keller has a good book on this. Every Good Endeavor.

Click to read a good blog about it here

Pit Stops

You already know I like car racing. Some of my favorite days are spent at a race track and I still
dream of being a race car driver.

In most races a key moment is the pit stop. In NASCAR they can change 4 tires and fill up the
fuel in about 13-14 seconds. In Formula 1, they change 4 tires in about 3 seconds! In
endurance racing, they change tires, add fuel, change drivers and sometimes change the
brakes in under a minute. In each of these series they also make adjustments to the car during
these pit stops so that it will perform better.

Not only is it important that they do it efficiently, but they need to do it completely.
Imagine how well it would work out if they didn’t fuel up the car? Or, didn’t put the brakes on
right? Or, no fresh tires?

Our lives kinda work the same way. We need “pit stops”. We can’t just keep racing around
without refueling. It’s best if we plan these pit stops to optimize our performance and come in
before the tires are worn out or before we run out of gas.

What is your plan for pit stops? How are you ensuring that you’ll be able to finish the race well?
3 For 3 is a good tool for helping you plan these pitstops. The first 3 in particular.

Mental fitness - books, podcasts, mentors
Relational fitness - your peer group
Physical fitness - exercise, rest and nutrition

You can either plan these into your race or you can wait till you run out of gas or hit the wall.
Either way, you’ll end up in the pits.... you get to choose if it’s on the way to victory or after a
crash.

Fat Shortstop

In 1991, I headed into conditioning for the high school varsity baseball team for the first time.
Part of the training included variations of stadium steps. Running, jumping and hopping up the
football stadium steps. Over and over. Well, after one of the climbs to the top my lunch decided
to resurface. If that wasn’t bad enough, one of my coaches was standing right there and his
feet were in the worst possible spot. Right where lunch was heading.

Fast forward to later that season. I’m doing well but coach pulls me aside at some point to talk
about my future. He knew I wanted to play college ball. All I remember from the conversation
was “you are too fat to play shortstop in college. If you want to play college ball you have to
lose weight”. He was right. I had lots of talent but not much discipline. That summer, I injured
my knee (another story) and part of the rehab included jogging in place. Jogging in place led to
jogging a 1⁄2 mile. That’s as far as I could go and not because of my injury. That’s as far as I
could jog because of the rest of my out-of-shape body. But, that eventually led to jogging a
mile. Daily.

By the fall, I had lost 40 lbs and when the baseball team started conditioning I wasn’t tossing my
lunch any more. In fact, I was out front on the distance runs.

I didn’t enjoy my coach telling me I was fat. But, thankfully he was willing to speak the truth and
thankfully I listened. It didn’t just get me in shape for baseball. Turns out, girls started to notice
me. Kaylyn (a cross country runner) and I went out on our first date that November. The
following spring, Oglethorpe University asked me to come play ball there. 4 years after that, in
part because of attending OU, I decided to pursue the role of CFA Operator. In 1997 Kaylyn
and I got married. In 1998 I became a CFA operator. In 1999 we moved to Durham to open
CFAROX. In 2006 I ran a marathon. In 2007 we won Symbol of Success (F-150) the wrong
way (that’s another story). In 2008 we were selected as a test store in Recipe for Service (Core
4 and 2nd Mile Service). In 2015 we won Champions Club (Mustang) the right way. In 2016 we
launched “We Nourish Dreams”.

All because a coach was willing to tell me the truth and I was willing to hear it. Listen to the
truth-tellers around you and commit to the work you need to go after your dreams. Start where
you are and take the next step, even if it is just jogging in place.
And, are you willing to be that coach? The one that changes lives.

Coach?

I think it was my Junior year of college. Back then it wasn’t common to have video used in
baseball training. Other than still shots, I didn‘t know what my baseball swing looked like. You
can only accomplish so much in front of a mirror. Hard to watch the ball AND the mirror at the
same time...

One day our coach brings out a video camera (camcorder) to video our swings and then we set
up times to go meet with him to analyze our swing and find opportunities to get better. I was
really excited about finally getting to do this. While I was good, I wanted to get better.
My time to meet with our coach came and I got to see my swing and hear some suggestions on
how I could get better. Kind of like a performance review (360) on the job. It started off well.
Coach complimented my swing. That made me feel good. But, then he said something I’ll
never forget. “Tony, you have a textbook swing. I can’t find anything to improve.” It was true, I
had been working on my swing for 12-15 years and I had studied the “textbooks” on swings.
BUT, I was still getting out 60-70% of the time and I had zero professional scouts looking at me.
Surely I could have done something better.

A coach exists to enable a team, and the players on the team, to accomplish something they
couldn’t do on their own. He had one job. To help me get better than I could on my own. He
failed.

Remember that HS coach that told me I was fat? The one that changed my life more than just
about any other human? They both had the same position. The same title. Which would you
rather be? The coach that changes lives or the coach that just says “good job”?

In order to be a good coach, you must know what needs to be said AND be willing to say it. My
HS coach knew.

You Are My Favorite

When I got hired as a 16 year old at the Chick-fil-A in Gwinnett Place Mall, I spent the first 2
years on a register followed by the next 2 years on boards (kitchen).

One of our managers was a really tough lady. I loved working for her. You knew what to expect
and you knew everybody was going to do what was expected. Because, if they didn’t do their
job they knew they’d have to answer to her. She was tough. But fair.

Well, one night I was working boards and she comes up to me and says “Tony, you are my
favorite boards person.” Wow! You certainly didn’t take her compliments lightly. So, my head
began to expand. BUT, she solved that almost immediately. “It’s not because you are the
fastest.” This is what most of us took pride in. Who was the fastest? “It’s not because you are
the best.” Well, if I’m not the fastest and not the best, why would I be her favorite??
“Tony, I always know I can count on you AND I know you will ask for help when you need it. If
you aren’t asking for help I know you are OK.” She could trust me.

This has stuck with me for 25 years. And I completely agree with her. Some people are fast.
Some are friendly. Some are the best in their positions. But, when it comes down to it, my
favorites are the ones I can trust.

Even the best have bad days. Even the best can get overwhelmed. Even the best can crash.
The ones that know when to ask for help... those are the ones I trust. Those are my favorites.

Throwing Strikes or Winning?

One of my strengths as a pitcher was my accuracy.  I can hit just about any target any time. When it would rain and practice would go into the gym sometimes we’d throw a football to build arm strength.  Because throwing a ball back and forth can get boring quickly we’d find ways to have fun. One is that we’d see if we could throw the football through the basketball goal from the far end of the court.  No problem. Footballs, acorns, baseballs, .22 calibre ammo, you name it. I can hit the target.

In baseball, you generally want to throw strikes and not walk batters.  BUT, that’s not the most important objective for a pitcher. Ultimately, a pitcher wins when they don’t allow runs… or, allow very few runs.  Looking back on my pitching days, I realize I was too focused on the little goal of throwing strikes and not the ultimate goal of not allowing runs.  

The best pitchers don’t necessarily throw a lot of strikes.  In fact, often the best pitches aren’t strikes. They are pitches that look like strikes but end up out of the strike zone, luring the batter to swing and miss or hit the ball poorly.

Because I threw so many strikes, batters could anticipate and trust the next pitch to be worthy of swinging at.  When you eliminate that doubt, hitting becomes much easier. My senior year of college I led the team in the lowest number of walks per 9 innings.  In fact, I’m still in the top 5 of all pitchers at OU over the last 25 years with that stat. BUT, my ERA was over 4. For those that don’t follow baseball, an ERA in the 2s is solid, 3s is good and 4 is mediocre at best.

I was too focused on a measure that had some value and lost focus of the measure with the most value (earned runs allowed-ERA).  By the way, an example of a pitcher that I could most relate to regarding my pitching style is Greg Maddux. Crazy good control. Not high velocity.  One of the best pitchers of all time. More often than not his target was outside the strike zone to get batters to swing and miss or hit the ball poorly.  The biggest difference between Maddux and me wasn’t our physical ability (he looked like an accountant throwing a ball). It was our mindset. Our focus.

What measures are you focusing on?  Are they the best measures or just good measures?          

            

Just Do It

It’s March 2009.  We were in our second year as the top sales and profit in the Triangle.  We had won Symbol 2 years prior. We had been one of 9 stores chosen by Chick-fil-A to be part of the test for Recipe for Service in 2008, the beginning of Core 4 and Second Mile Service and the Hospitality push for Chick-fil-A.  

It was spring break.  We did a trip up to Charlottesville to see Monticello (Thomas Jefferson’s home) via the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Afterward we drove out to spend an evening at Rod Stoner’s house in West Virginia.  He was our consultant specifically for the hospitality test. Former Executive Chef at the Greenbrier Resort (google it).  His place was beautiful. The food was unreal. Truly amazing experience of hospitality.

That evening we are sitting in his family room.  Big glass windows with a light snow shower. Big stone fireplace with a fire burning.  Rod is reading books to our little kids. Perfect Hallmark Moment.

After the kids go to bed Rod and I talk some business.  He asks how the store is doing and I’m honest. NOT GOOD.  Despite all those good numbers and apparent success I knew there was a problem.  I’d been paralyzed by success. I hadn’t been willing to make some decisions that needed to be made and they had piled up.

I summed it up by saying “I wish I could just start from scratch.  I wish I could do what a new operator does when they take over an existing store.  They get to decide who to keep and hire only those people. They don’t have to fire anybody because technically none of those people work for them yet.  People expect change when a new operator walks in. I wish I could just go in and take over my store like that.” He had a simple reply. “Why don’t you just do that?”  

The next day, on the drive home I began piecing together what was going to happen.  I didn’t do it all right. In fact, I did a lot of things wrong. BUT, finally taking action meant I finally started the movement toward CFAROX as we know it today.  This included as much change for me personally as it did for my staff.

Is there something I’ve been needing to do but haven’t?  Anything Rod would ask me “why don’t you just do it?” Is success paralyzing me?

Parking Lot

Sometime in 1998-1999 I was sitting in my office in the basement of my first store when I heard the voice of Jimmy Collins, president of CFA.  One of the best descriptions of Jimmy is one I heard another operator share. He said “If you heard Truett Cathy was going to visit your store, you may not sleep well the night before.  If you heard Jimmy was going to visit your store, you may not sleep well the entire week before”. Jimmy was tough. He had very high expectations. But, he was also consistent.

So, the visit starts off exactly as I had heard from others.  He would try the lemonade and the cole slaw. Then, if they were to his liking, he’d very sternly ask “Who made this?!”  Marcella, who was a very bold Jamaican, wasn’t shy and immediately said “I did”. It was all good.

Eventually, Jimmy and I headed to the parking lot.  We had probably cleaned it that morning but it wasn’t great.  Lots of little stuff like cigarette butts and straw wrappers. Jimmy looks at me and asks “what are you going to do about this?”  My simple reply was “I’ll get this cleaned up right away” but that wasn’t good enough. “No, what are you going to do to ensure this never happens again?”  Guess, where the parking lot timer came from? It’s evolved from once a day to twice a day, to hourly, including blowing the lot daily every day, not just in the fall when leaves are coming down.  

More importantly, the lesson was that anytime something isn’t just right, don’t only do the quick fix.  Find a solution that prevents the problem. Don’t keep dealing with the same problem day in and day out.  Solve it so you can go find the next problem/opportunity.