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Car Guy Coffee Podcast Live from NAMAD 2025: Vegas. Special Guest James Bennett III

Car Guy Coffee Podcast Live from NAMAD 2025: Vegas. Special Guest James Bennett III

Car Guy Coffee Nov 17, 2025 18 min
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About this episode

Live from NAMAD 2025 in Vegas, the Car Guy Coffee Podcast features an engaging conversation with special guest James Bennett III. The discussion revolves around the sense of community at NAMAD, the importance of personal growth in the automotive industry, and the value of mentorship. James shares insights from his extensive experience, emphasizing the significance of providing tools for success and fostering a culture of continuous improvement. The episode highlights the transformative power of automotive careers and the importance of understanding one's 'why' in achieving personal and professional growth.

Topics: community building mentorship personal growth automotive industry insights networking success stories technology in automotive leadership development continuous improvement
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Hello and welcome to the CarGuy Coffee Podcast. This brew has been brought to you by Certified
Solutionaries and if you want to consume more brews or want more information about how to
build your brand on our podcast and want to see how you can sponsor the brew, go to CarGuyCoffee.com.
Let's brew! Hey, what's going on Car Guys and Car Gals? We are at Name Ad and we are having an
incredible time and look who it is that we roped in. The one, the only, James Bennett! That's right,
the third. Just like me, right? I love that he's the third and the number three is big. I've noticed
at this event I've ran into a couple people that are the third but the way that the third matters
to them inside their life is such a big thing. I think the number three is massive. Number three
biblically is what? Is the number of completion. That's right and that's what we do. We like to
complete to the next level. That's what the thirds do. So that being said, honored to have you on
here James. Had great conversation with you last night with dinner. Dinner was over the top. It was
amazing but to me the food was great but the conversation was better. So I appreciate you
just pouring into us and then hearing more of your past got me excited and I couldn't
wait to get them on the show but we're here at Name Ad just like Lou said and at Name Ad
there's something special brewing here. There's something that's unique going on and I love it.
This is a sense of community that I've never seen before and all the events that I've been to.
For you, what does Name Ad mean to you? Basically it's where you can come and grow.
There's a lot of information given here. There's a lot of networking going on.
One thing I do love about it through the years that I've been involved in it is there's always
something on the cutting edge. There's always information that's out there. As of right now
today with the interest of AI and chat GPT, this is a very good place to be. There's good spots,
there's good information given and you know what everybody's like a family. It's like a family.
Every time I see these guys and had a guy talk to me last night, he said,
man you've been around here for a long time. I said, yeah man we just had a good time
but that's what it's about. You get into a circle of people that you know remind you of yourself
and you get to talk to them having a good time. It all comes out. The natural piece in your decision.
You know what I love and I have a passion for what we're doing here with Name Ad. Name Ad has
a passion for wanting to help grow people. Whatever it is you want to do, whatever you want to do
in this automotive section, I'm telling you that Name Ad has really been there. I've got friends
that have been in it for a while. People go where they want to go with it but at the end of the day
it's just a good core group of family members that come together every year somewhere along the line
and just know they can get together. That's incredible. You said it. Family members coming together
like a family reunion and that's ultimately what we're doing here. We're getting together a big
family that's having a big reunion to get back together, have a good time, learn about what
you've been doing over the last year, taking some of that stuff, bringing it back to your store but
also sitting around and getting to learn some stuff from some of these vendors. This new technology
that's coming out is coming out fast so what I love is that Name Ad is bringing people in here
so that they can get educated on the new technology. What's happening now? How do we help your store
take it to the next level and to the next generation of people coming out to buy cars now?
And you guys are crushing it and I love that Name Ad is everything and I love it. This is community
and I know that's something that Lou and I, it's our very first one so this isn't going to be the
last one. I can't wait for next year's. This is going to be really great. So speaking of these
family reunions, how many years have you been coming to these family reunions? I've been in the past
tuppies as you started coming. Awesome. I've been with Name Ad for a long time. Oh really? 2006.
Wow. That's a long time. I've always been involved with people around it. I was in Miami last year
so times have changed that we're able in our careers now to get away from the store a little bit.
Yeah. To go out and see. What other conferences do you ever get to go to? Oh I go to, haven't
gone to the Saudi yet, but I've actually gone to workshops with Sean. Oh wow, very cool. I've got a
lot of guys I've been to, not to name all of them, but I'm constantly going through workshops. Andy
Elliot's got a workshop. There's a lot of different people that are out there that have different
workshops and I stay on top of them. I stay on top of them. Everything's happening and I'm
constantly learning. One thing that we're seeing here is some people, this is the only thing they
do come to and now that I keep looking around and we're having more time being exposed to, we're
like, you know what, it's okay. Basically because you are getting the conversation time with people,
you are getting the information about the technology, you are getting sessions that are
teaching, that are helping people out, you're getting information, you're getting all the
things that you would want at a big over-the-top conference inside of a more intimate area,
but even with this, feels still pretty big. It's all relevant, yes. It's all relevant information
that you can take to your stores and use every day. I use it with salespeople every day. You know,
the constant grind, a lot of people see the results of a lot of stores that are very successful,
but they don't see what it takes to get there. The day in, the day out tasks are just constantly
doing it, constantly performing at a level that you want to be at. Now, you might not be at the level
you want to be at, but you continue on and you progress and that's what really allows you to become
simply what you want to become. They've had, I'll tell you, through the years,
meeting up, following up, going through all the emotions with them, it motivates you to want to
help somebody else, to reach back and say, let me tell you how you can get it. And in this business,
you change so many lives. And I hear so many guys tell me how their lives are changed through this
industry and they manage just to kind of do it to doing just that for even more people on a different
level and different scale than you see them every day. I love that. It's just passing the baton and
there's a legacy level to that, right? And I know 38 years, y'all, 38 years in the automotive industry,
he's seen a thing or two. But one thing you have also done is you poured into so many people in
this world. You've seen success stories. What's been one of your favorite success stories with one
of your team members that you've seen for somebody who went from like rags or riches type stories,
or maybe somebody who came in, didn't feel like they had any worth and then found out how much
worth they were? Oh man, that's countless. I could imagine that. I've counted names I've had people
come to me and said, you know what James, you changed my life, you changed my life. That's what
it's all about, isn't it? Because you come in and not really knowing what it is available, what
you've come in with a different mindset. And let me tell you, I've coached a lot of guys that had
to come in and I said, hey man, you got to start from scratch, wipe that up. That's right. Get that
out of here. Just get that out of here. Stinking thinking. I don't know if it's stinking thinking
and they just don't know. Some people don't know. That's true. I love what you said that. Once they
get in and you start talking with them and you start developing, people want information.
It's anything that'll make you better than you were yesterday. At some point you decide that
I do want that. And it's a personal decision and some people take a while to do it but I think
once you get a taste of it, it's not just the monetary benefits. It's what you become while
you're trying to learn something. It's the journey that's about to end. So to finish up on your
question, when I deal with individuals that come into the business, I let them know what's available
to them. This is what you can do with this business. You go as far as you want to go,
as fast as you want to go, or as slow as you want to go. But you have to continue to progress.
And that's the biggest thing that people get lost in the progression part.
But once they start, brick by brick, it's no turning around. You've got countless guys that
sits at self-disk, other stores in different areas that basically say, hey, you know what?
They're starting with you telling us you can do it. And you need sometimes someone that can
tell, that a coach sees more on the player than he seems.
Amen to that.
And I think that's where you get the stick to it list to say, you know what? It worked for him.
I know it'll work for him. But he's got to work. And it's not hard. You've got to get people to do
what they know to do. And in our businesses, sometimes it gets to a point where it's not a
knowing problem. It's a doing problem. And that's attitude that you can develop that.
Yes, sir.
You can develop a guy that his attitude is not right because you don't understand.
Right.
But once you get control of your attitude, that's a want to do.
Okay? That's a want to do. If you want to do, that's an attitude problem.
Know to do. It's just a lot of things that they go into. But I just enjoy watching the person grow.
And then call me back and say, hey, James, you know what? Thank you. I thought about you today.
And I've had salesmen call me back from the store and say, hey, I've got three salesmen in front
of me. He's worse than I am. Would you talk to him for a second? I'm like, okay.
He says, you don't speak if I just roll. So I just start talking about what we do.
And there's other guys that I've never met that would call me back and say,
hey, Mr. Bennett, I want to be so and so in this store. And I talked to you last week, man,
give that a chill before the fast department. And that's when it clicks for that individual.
That is the journey that I'm speaking.
Oh, I love that. And when somebody asks for more, you knew you did something. That's something
special. Like, even if it's not somebody on your team, but they're asking for more,
you want to give it to them because not everybody asked for that. There's something special about
that person. You almost see your future is bright. If you keep asking for more and you keep wanting
more, I guarantee you're going to get it, right? And that's a beautiful thing. Your passion is just
oozing out your pores just so you know. And I absolutely love what you're talking about here,
being able to have that legacy move on and they go and it transcends so much. It's not just about
the money. It's about the self worth, right? Being able to have self worth in yourself and knowing
that, hey, I have something of value. And that's one thing I love about automotive
is that we bring value in somewhere that we didn't know we had. And automotive,
most of us come in by accident, right? This is not everybody walks in here like getting out of
high school. Yeah, I'm gonna go sell cars, man. I'm gonna go work at a dealership. No, they don't
do that. But when they do this, wow, why didn't I get told this? Why wasn't someone telling me to
do this right out of high school or at least get some more education or training on this?
My dad told me that you're gonna sell cars? And he says, you're gonna sell cars? Yeah,
I'm gonna sell cars, dad, until I find me a real job. And then I found out this was a real job.
So if you're doing something you love and with a passion, it's not a job. It becomes your work.
That's right. A job you go to and you go back home. A work stage with your work stage with you,
as you go. And as long as you're supporting the people, the success that they can attain,
there's more than anything. And that's gratifying to me. At whatever level you want to be. So at
the end of the day, I love it. I'm in a level of passion. And I just, I'm just, I've always been
excited about it. Yeah, no kidding. I love it. What I'm more excited about is personal growth
piece, that you can become anything you want to become. And tying that in today, man, they give
you the idea, you know what? Whatever you think you can't do, yeah, you can. You're already there.
This can take a couple more steps. And that's what this comes. And it takes people to be there
coaching you, building up that confidence, and also helping to re-get you in line. Because just
as zealous as somebody could be that wants direction and wants to go and wants to run,
they'll run into a lot of walls if they don't have people that have actually been through
the muck, been through the mire and say, Hey, watch out for this, watch out for this landmine.
It's good to have that. And what we're seeing here is that kind of culture of this is a mentorship
culture. This is where everybody wants to see everybody win. And everybody's helping to steer
everybody in a direction that we win. But we don't just win, we win together. And that is a big
piece that we're seeing here is that there's so much celebration around everybody's wins. And
everybody is at a different stage in their career. Every single one of us are inside of a different
stage inside of our career. The newest guy on the floor to the longest running CEO of a major
corporation to big OEM dealers, everybody's at a different stage, but you never don't need
mentorship. And being able to line that up, what have you seen being effective inside of your
stores with making sure that new people come in, get onboarded and set up for success? What kind
of things do you do or recommend others to do in their organization? You have to give everyone
the tools that it takes to win. Yes. And once you give that guy the tool, that individual,
that person, then you follow up with, hey, how are you doing here? How are you doing that? You're
constantly and never ending trying to improve that individual. So on a day-to-day task,
you're onboard them, say, hey, here's what you can do. And actually, even in the interview,
you're asking, hey, can you do this? How do you feel about this? That's so true. It all
starts with the interview. In that interview. Amen. Careful enough, you got ways to pass the
interview. You have some professional interviewers. Professional interviewers. But if a guy decides
he wants to do the business or whatever it is, it doesn't take long for you to get it to the next
level. No, you're right. Because he's constantly improving himself. That's facts. I love that.
And it's right. It is inspect what you expect. Give them the tools. I love that you said that.
Give them the tools, because if you're not providing tools, it's like putting a guy in
a football field without a helmet and pads. That's not going to work. It's like putting a guy
with dress shoes on a basketball court. It's not going to work. So you got to make sure they have
the right tools. And if you give them the tools, it's on them. But it's on you to inspect what you
expect. Go back and see, hey, how are you doing? How is it going for you? That's right. It's on us
as leaders to make sure that they're using those tools. Yeah, sir. One thing to have a tool in
your pocket that you're not using. I'm straight out of Sharpen. Yes, sir. The Sharpen is on. That's
right. Amen to that. You got two guys working the same job. One does one thing. Another one does
another. And one guy gets so much done, you know, he's done it. He's shopping his song. Yeah.
Work the same hours, but you got guys to sell here. You got guys to sell there. You got people to do
this. But at the end of the day, you got to shop for your song. And that's here. That's being here.
That's being around people that can tell you hate me if you can do this. Not only that,
but you can learn it. You can get, there's a deeper dive. There's always a deeper dive. Yes,
there is. Amen. Oh, I love it. There's always a deeper diving. There's always something you can
go back as relevant. You go to school and use it right now. Come on. I love it. Bingo. With the tools,
it is. It's imperative that you keep your tools sharp. It's imperative that you keep your tools
up to date. But it's also imperative that you keep yourself sharp, up to date, prepared,
upgraded. Just like we upgrade our tools and our technology, we should be upgrading our mindset,
especially in this ever-evolving industry that we're in. The customer has evolved. Leadership
is changing and transforming what it looks like inside of the stores now. And we're loving to
see this evolution happening. It's much like a good cup of coffee, everybody. It starts off as
maybe something that you may need to add a little sugar to. Eventually, you might start drinking it
straight black and you can handle it, but it's designed to help advance you. But you can't create
a habit on one sip, not on one cup. It has to be something that you're doing continuously. And
eventually, even your taste buds mature, which is part of what's also happening with this event.
There's still a maturity that's occurring with everybody's insight, everybody's growth, because
we're noticing that there's so many people that this is their first time ever being at a NAMAD.
And with that, along with us, it's awesome to be able to have the opportunity to highlight
what many people may not have put a microphone in front of, may not have put a camera in front of,
and to let the whole world know that NAMAD is a spot you need to be at and everybody is welcome
to come and to participate. And your coffee thing is right. You got to take the
chug-ass coffee, whatever that might be. Every morning, you got to wake up with some zest.
You got to wake up with some reason. People have to have a why, and a lot of people don't have a
why. It all starts right there. It all starts with the why. So if you can start with why I'm
doing this, what's the real reason? You'll become better. So for anybody out there that's not sure
what you want to do, we'll find out what you want to do with why. Is there an individual in your
life? Hey. I got a family. Listen, at the end of the day, I love what I do, but I love them.
And for that reason, it's easy for me to drink the coffee. Oh my God. He worked that in there.
Oh, I got to say this. Before we started the show, he was like, I'm camera shy. Okay, he's camera
shy. You came in here and you brought the fire today, and you bring the fire all the time,
and that's an amazing thing. And people need that in leadership. People need somebody who's
going to bring the fire on a daily basis. Even on our bad days, we had to bring that fire because
of the why. When that matters so much to you. If you can go back to that why on your bad day,
I promise you it becomes a great day. And then you'll end up bringing greater and greater days.
Every single day, let's improve. I love you talked about that daily increments of just growth. If
you do that every day, there's no doubt that you're going to end up becoming great at whatever you
do, right? Fall in love with something. Amen. Fall in love. Love it. Love it. Drop in. Drop in
James. He's dropping the bombs today. I love it. This is amazing. Great time. Namad is amazing.
He's going to be back again. You all do not miss next year's Namad. We're going to be here.
Everyone's going to be here. It's going to be amazing. Be there or be square, my friends,
and I promise you, James, if you've got any questions, what's the best way? If somebody
just wants to have a conversation, we say, Hey, James, I'm curious about why you do, you know,
you're the kind of guy like 919-337-7840. Give me a call. I'm available to you.
That's right. Let's go. Awesome. We got one thing less to drop. And we call these the F bombs that
don't offend the moms. It's to forgive, focus, fly, and keep growing. So help us out. Keep growing
all the time. Go ahead and put your hands on your shoulders. Count this off real quick. Loud and
proud on three, one, two, three. Forgive, forgive, focus, fly, and keep growing. Thank you so much,
everybody. That's right. That's right. I'm Lou Ramirez. We are at Namad and we've been having a
great time. You've been listening and watching the Car Guy Coffee podcast and we're hosting it with the
one, the only, James Bennett, the third. Let's go. Later, everybody. We out.

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