O'Connor: How to Get in the Groove at Your Dealership

If we’re paying attention — really paying attention — valuable lessons are everywhere. They’re in the shop, in conversations, in the morning rush and in the silence that comes after a tough day. Operators who perform at a high level — the ones who build sustainable, profitable, people-first businesses — have this in common: they know how to learn from their environment. They find rhythm in chaos.

In elementary school, I started learning to play the drums. I was obsessed with trying to nail one simple thing: the basic backbeat: kick, snare, hi-hat — boom, bap, tss — played with the right spacing, at the right time, with each limb working independently. I practiced every day. On the school bus, I’d tap it out on my legs or on my books. What I didn’t know then — and what I see now — is that I wasn’t just learning music. I was learning rhythm.

And rhythm, it turns out, is a foundational piece of leadership.

When I was practicing that backbeat, it would go like this: I’d get my right hand and left hand working together, but my foot would fall off. I’d fix my foot and then my left hand would fall apart. It was always this dance, with one thing working and another breaking, over and over. Sound familiar?

If you’re running a tire dealership, you’re living this rhythm every day. One department is clicking and another is struggling. One tech is flying and another is off his game. Your numbers look good, but the culture feels off. You’re constantly tuning.

That’s rhythm.

Rhythm is not about perfection. It’s not some fantasy where everything is clicking 100% of the time. Rhythm is positive movement. Rhythm is a fair balance between time and space. You can be busy, but still be in rhythm. You can be slow and still be off. Rhythm is a feeling, but it’s also something you can observe and build.

Let’s get specific. In your dealership, every decision you make is like a musical note. Every pause you take is just as meaningful. I learned, through music, that rests are not the absence of sound. They are sound’s partner. That applies to leadership, too.

The time you take before responding to a frustrated employee? That’s a rest. The deliberate delay before launching a new service process? That’s a rest. The moment you let someone speak fully before jumping in? That’s a rest. And these rests matter as much as action.

Running a tire dealership isn’t just about torque specs and tread depths. It’s about your workflow, your people and your customer experience. It’s about how those things interact and play off one another. Just like in music, each component has to hold its space and know when to yield.

The most successful operators I work with don’t chase speed or volume for their own sake. They build systems that create a sustainable pace. They allow breathing room in their process. They honor structure, but leave room for improvisation. That’s rhythm.

So how do you apply this practically? Tune your workflow. Every shop has its own rhythm. The mistake is assuming that just because you’re “busy,” you’re operating at a high level. Activity is not productivity. Are your processes predictable? Are hand-offs smooth? Are your people clear on their roles?

Look at your workflow like a drummer looks at his drum kit. How do the pieces interact? Is each one adding to the groove or muddying it?

Observe your pauses. As operators, we tend to focus on action, but what about periods of rest? Are you building in time to reflect on decisions, to talk to your people without an agenda and to just step back and observe the flow of your shop? A moment of silence can sometimes teach more than a day of action.

Train for independent strength. Just like each limb on a drummer needs independence to serve the whole rhythm, your team members need the ability to function autonomously while staying in sync with the greater team. That takes coaching. That takes trust. Don’t just give your people tools. Help them build feel. That’s where rhythm lives.

When you find a groove, a system that’s working or a team dynamic that’s clicking, protect it. Don’t rush to change for the sake of change. Find the line between innovation and stability. Honor the groove.

Here’s what I know: rhythm creates confidence. When a team is in rhythm, you feel it. Communication flows. Customers sense it. The shop breathes. When something’s off, you don’t panic. You adjust, like a drummer correcting tempo mid-song. You find the beat again. That’s leadership.

In music and in business, rhythm is how you know you’re moving in the right direction — not perfectly, not without a struggle, but with intentionality and purpose.

The next time your shop feels chaotic, take a step back. Listen. Observe. Where’s the beat? What’s falling out of sync? What needs more space? What needs more time?

If you can answer that, you can lead through anything.