“Decision is a sharp knife that cuts clean and straight; indecision is a dull one that hacks and tears and leaves ragged edges behind it.”- Gordon Graham 

Various sources suggest that the average adult makes 33,000 to 35,000 total decisions each day, including what to eat, what to wear, and what to say. Those types of decisions are made in our subliminal mind. However, there are deeper decisions with longer lasting impact that must be made at every dealership we serve. The impact could be on customer satisfaction and profits. Here are three decision-making principles that dealership personnel should be reminded of:

Decisions are a down payment on your future. To gain the future that you want, decisions must be made to get you there. So the question should not be which decisions you are willing to make but rather what you want the future to look like. Most F&I professionals would tell you they want to make more income. The next question should be: What are you willing to do differently for that outcome? Write it down and share it with others who can hold you accountable. Share with everyone that the plan is to make decisions that will have a positive impact, and then track the progress. Promises create confusion. Decisions create a path to increase.

Decisions become the guardrails for behavior. When a decision is made to implement a more visual and interactive process to reach the desired income level, anything outside those parameters can detrimentally impact the outcome. If you go back to the old norms of attempting to verbally build value in a product, you are outside the guardrails and sabotaging your own success. I served as an F&I professional for years, and every time the desired outcome was not realized, it was because I did not follow through. I went outside the guardrails. When decisions were made, I was much more likely to stay inside the guardrails so I could realize the outcome. To get more consistent results, ask for consistent decisions and a plan on how to realize the result. 

Decisions set you on a sure path, unaffected by emotions and markets! We must take ownership of our decisions and success! John Maxwell asks the great question: “Why don’t we wax rental cars before we turn them in? Because we don’t own them!” When decisions and outcomes are not realized it is easy to say the market is tough, the rates are high, and the credit unions are too competitive. While all of that may be true, if we take ownership of our decisions and success despite all those factors, we will find a way forward. F&I professionals have endured downturns in the economy, world-impacting disasters, and a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic. Yet those who master their crafts acknowledge the impact of the negative and make decisions as to where and how they will continue to move forward. 

For decades, the market has determined how and where we will make our profits. The best adjust and make decisions that meet those changes head-on. What they need is agents who will consistently help outline the decisions that must be made to meet the current challenge. The challenges will change; however, decision-making with follow-through will always succeed!

Rick McCormick is national account development manager for Reahard & Associates.