On this week’s Grease the Wheels we talk about the new guys that are attempting to put a dent in the 650,000 mechanic and technician job vacancies nationwide. We all have a million “new guy stories”, and let’s be clear we want to hear every single one of them! Obviously they are not set to replace us right now, but given time and space to develop some of these new guys are going to make very good technicians, if they don’t use their brains and GTFO of the industry! Realistically though in a macro view of the industry as a whole, we should be fostering the ones who have chosen this profession just so they can replace us when we want to retire! We don’t mind when they ask questions that will genuinely help them out seeking an intelligent answer, especially when the lights are on when you give them your response. We’re also not going to fault them for asking us for fasteners or extra parts that we might have lying around.
Odds are if you take a proactive approach with your younger technicians, they will be better in the long run. One rare occasions, they show promise right out of the box and these are the techs that you need to keep and develop if you want your shop to continue to be successful. Of course however there are the ones who just don’t get it, and sometimes no amount of tutoring is going to help them get it! So overall the kids are alright, but shops need to recognize the talent they are developing in house and aim to keep it!
Also Uncle Jimmy gives his dystopian opinion on cell phones all while sounding like the worlds most insane Zoom Call!
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