In this solo motivational monologue, Rick White draws on Seneca’s ancient essay On the Shortness of Life to argue that automotive shop owners (and anyone in a leadership role) spend too much of their time either replaying past mistakes or worrying about future outcomes, thereby missing the only day they can truly influence – today. He explains how attention dictates action, illustrating how a focus on yesterday creates regret, while a focus on tomorrow breeds anxiety. White proposes an 80/10/10 rule: spend 80% of mental energy on the present, 10% learning from the past, and 10% planning for the future. He contrasts the fleeting nature of happiness tied to circumstances with the lasting peace that comes from being fully present. Throughout, he offers concrete examples for shop owners – from coaching technicians to giving family undivided attention – and ends with a daily challenge: ask yourself, “What does today require of me?” He also provides calls to action for sharing the message, scheduling a personal conversation, and joining his Advisor Accelerator program.
Chapters
So good morning. My name is Rick White from 180 Biz, and this is my Just One Thing. We're going to talk about today, because I recently, I'm reading this book called On the Shortness of Life by Seneca, which is an amazing book. It's not very long, but it is packed with wisdom. It was written 2,000 years ago. And you know what he said 2,000 years ago? There is nothing the busy man is less busied with than living. There is nothing that is harder to learn. Think about that for a second. There is nothing the busy man is less busied with than living. You work hard, you sacrifice, you stay late, you solve problems all day long. You are working hard all day long, but my question is, are you actually living or are you simply staying busy? Are you chasing something in the future or are you running from something in the past? This is super, super important because here's what I'm gonna tell you, and here's the mic drop this morning. You can spend your entire life making a living without ever really living, because it's all about your attention. See, most people think their biggest problem is time. We get so busy chasing that we forget to actually live. Your life goes where your attention goes, right? What do I say all the time? I say wherever your focus goes, your feet follow. That is completely true because here's the issue: when your attention lives in yesterday, guess what you're doing? You're replaying all your mistakes. You're beating yourself up over decisions you can't change. So you beat yourself up and you end up carrying these suitcases filled with regret, and your entire time Every day is spent avoiding yesterday or reliving yesterday. So what happens is you burn today. But what if your attention is focused on tomorrow? You worry about things that haven't happened yet, right? You imagine worst-case scenarios. You catastrophize. Nobody ever thinks about the future and says, wow, this is going to be amazing. Most, almost everybody I know, when they're thinking about the future, they're scared shitless. Right? Because you're imagining worst-case scenarios. So in that case, instead of carrying suitcases filled with regret, you're carrying suitcases filled with anxiety. Here's what I need you to understand. Write this down, please. Yesterday can't be changed. Tomorrow can't be controlled. All you got, baby, is today. That's it. We learn from yesterday, we plan for tomorrow, but once we've done those two things, we bring everything into today because today is the only place you can actually influence the quality of your life. It's about being able to learn from the past, plan for the future, and then being able to live and apply to today. Think about this right now. What do you think a technician is going through when they're still thinking about yesterday's comeback? Do you think they're focused on the vehicle that's in front of them? Or the service advisor who's worried about making the month's sales goal? Do you think they're fully listening to the customer standing at the counter? Think this through for a little bit. Or how about you as the owner? You become so consumed in building your business that you want someday that you misleading the business you already have today. You're sitting in a meeting, but you're thinking about payroll. You're talking with an employee, but your mind is on your next month's numbers. You're home eating dinner, but you're answering emails. You're at your kid's ballgame, but mentally you're back at the shop. Your body is one place and your attention is somewhere else, right? Your focus is somewhere else. And wherever your focus goes, your feet follow, right? But here's the thing: your life is in today. Your life is in today. If you got hit by a bus, God forbid, on the way to work this morning and you were breathing your last breath, would you have a little smile on your face knowing that you connected, that you had relationships, that you made a difference? Or just sit there and think, oh my God, I've wasted it all, right? So where is your attention, right? Because that's where your life is. Is it on the next repair, the next customer, the next conversation you need to have with a team member? Is it on your next decision? See, that's where shops are built, not someday. Today, like being able to enjoy. A little while back, I did a Just One Thing on when versus while. I'll be happy when, instead of saying I'll be happy while. See, most of you think you're chasing happiness, but see, I don't think that's what you're really after, because happiness comes and goes, because by definition, happiness is tied to circumstances. A great week is going to make you happy, a bad month's going to steal it. A new tech excites you, a comeback frustrates you. If happiness is your goal, you're going to spend your entire life riding the circumstances roller coaster. I truly believe what you're looking for is peace, for contentment, for that quiet confidence that comes from knowing You're exactly where you need to be, doing exactly what today requires. See, peace doesn't come from finally getting caught up. It comes from finally being present, from being here right now. It's from being able to be at the end of your life and to be able to step back and smile and say, it was a life well lived. One of the things that Seneca says in this book, and I highly recommend it, it amazes me how a book 2,000 years ago could have been written yesterday. We think it's the cell phones and the internet and all this crap. It's human nature. So here's my question, my challenge for you. The next time you catch yourself replaying a mistake, stop. The next time you start getting anxious or worrying about something that hasn't happened yet, Stop. I want you to ask yourself one question. What does today require of me? Where am I needed today? What do I need to do today so that I can go home with a smile on my face and know that I lived well today? Now, this doesn't sound like it has anything to do with automotive repair shop ownership, but I promise you it has everything. Because the reality is, maybe today requires a difficult conversation you've been avoiding. Maybe today requires coaching a tech instead of criticizing one. Maybe today requires putting your damn phone away and giving your family your full attention. Maybe today simply requires doing the next best thing. Don't try to solve next year's problems today, and don't let yesterday steal today, because today is all you got, and you want to give it everything you've got. Because you don't build a great business in a year, you build it one day at a time. You don't build a great marriage over decades, you build it one conversation at a time. You don't become a great leader someday, you become one decision at a time. So today, let me leave you with the same question I kind of thought of when I started. What day is the only day you've ever actually lived? Okay, because the answer hasn't changed. It's still today. So don't waste today. That's the big thing here. Don't waste today. Tell your kids you love them. Give your wife a kiss. You don't know when it's the last time. Live today well. Just do your best, right? Don't wait for perfection. Make progress. That's all we can do. But you gotta learn from yesterday or you're gonna repeat the same mistakes. And you've gotta be able to plan for tomorrow so you have a destination to go towards. But you should only spend 10% of your time in the past, 10% of your time in the future, and then 80% of your time right here, right now. And that's going to make all the difference in the world. Do you know how many fewer mistakes you're going to make talking to somebody? Do you know how much more present you're going to be? That's what a leader is— their presence, their focus. That's what this is all about. So here's what I want you to be able to do today. I want you to be able to step back, and I want you to be able to just do your best today. You know something? If ass-kicking actually made us better, I would say, great, let's do it. But let's not. If you think somebody could benefit from this message today, please share it. We need your help to get this out. Second thing, if you're struggling with this and would like to talk to me, Shannon will put a link in the comments so that you can get a time on my calendar. Let's sit down, talk, see what's going on in your world. No pressure, just an honest conversation. And then lastly, if you're interested in our Advisor Accelerator program, Shannon will put the link in there. So thank you everybody. God bless. Have a great week this week and live today. Live today. Pretend it's your last and you're gonna end up with a life that is so amazing because of that focus. Thank you everybody. I'll see you all next week. Take care.
