Prestige vs. Purpose: What Really Drives Career Decisions in the Automotive Industry

I once had a long conversation with Team Member at the dealership. He said he was contemplating taking a job offer with a competitor and wanted an "honest opinion". He said the automotive industry would always be his career path but wanted to experience how the "other side" lived (meaning the folks who work at a new car dealership). I’m always grateful when someone comes to me and has an adult conversation about these things instead of just walking out, never to be see or heard from again. I told him that before he made a final decision, he needed to determine his true motivation. According to Bill Radin, there are 4 reasons someone would change companies but stay in the same line of work.

Reason #1: Has nothing to do with the job itself. Instead, it has to do with the candidate’s SITUATION. Things like losing an important benefit or some other external factor, such as the job’s location, commute time or a change in the candidate’s personal of family needs will compel a person to seek out a different employer.

Reason #2: MONEY. Enough said.

Reason #3: There’s something the employee hates or something that drives the person crazy at their current job. Whether it’s a particular individual, a work environment, a corporate culture, an attitude, a technology, a tool, or whatever, the bottom line is that the candidate feels trapped where he is. And whatever it is the candidate hates about his job will never change.

Reason #4: LOVE and passion. Perhaps the employee has a passion for doing something or working with like-minded people who share his values—but that role or relationship doesn't seem to be available in their current workplace and perhaps the frustration has become overwhelming.

He immediately replied “it’s none of those things. It’s just that sometimes I feel embarrassed telling people that I work for a used car dealership and I think it sounds a little more prestigious to tell people I work for a new car dealership.”

To me, that’s a #3. It’s obviously embarrassing for him to tell people where he works for a living so he feels trapped. All the justification from me wouldn’t help because the issue here was his mindset. So I told him that it sounded like his mind was made up and that I would reluctantly accept his 2-week notice.

Less than 6 months later, he called me and said he had made a huge mistake by leaving and wanted to know if he could come back. Once again, I asked him his motivation. He said that while he initially made a little more money at the new car dealership, the 6 12-hour days began taking a mental toll on him and his productivity dropped. He liked our 5 9-hour days much better. I explained to him that I would like to have him back but he would have to overcome his embarrassment of working for a used car dealership in order to make it a successful career.

In the end, he chose to take a different career path in a warehouse setting. We still talk from time to time and he often tells me that he wishes he would have stayed with me. I explain that it wouldn’t have worked long term because he didn’t believe. Perhaps I failed him because I wasn’t able to properly communicate our vision to him or maybe this was 100% on him. Either way, it’s things like this that keep me up at night and that’s the life of an entrepreneur.