The Dealer Playbook

Ep. 663 - The Laws That Top Performers in Retail Auto Obey, with Alan Dickie

• Michael Cirillo

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In this episode, my guest is Alan Dickie, President - www.AlanDickie.com and a returning DPB alum.

Alan’s one of those guys who doesn’t just talk about success—he breaks it down to the bone. In this conversation, we explore what he calls the “laws” that make success predictable in life and business.

We talk about why most salespeople stay stuck selling 8–12 cars a month while a few are pulling in 30+. It’s not about personality. It’s not about luck. It’s about understanding how human behavior works and knowing what laws to follow to create momentum.

You’ll also hear:

  • How to break out of the “employee mindset” that’s holding you back
  • What selfishness has to do with better service and more sales
  • Why ignorance always feels like anxiety (and how to fix that)
  • What Dollarama can teach you about value-based selling
  • And how success really is just about following the right laws—every time

If you’ve ever found yourself thinking “I’m doing the work but not seeing the results,” this episode will shift how you think about performance, money, and personal growth.

This isn’t about motivation. It’s about awareness. And Alan doesn’t hold back.

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MC:

This episode is brought to you by FlexDealer Auto industry. Welcome to this episode of the Dealer Playbook Podcast. I'm sitting down with my pal Alan Dickey, a DPB alum. You're going to have to go way back Machine to hear the first episode that you were on. Thanks for joining me, man. Thanks for having me Excited to be here. This is great. How come I don't look the same, but you look exactly the same?

Alan:

Yeah, that's a good question. What's your stress regimen? You know what it is, stay shaven.

MC:

At least that's what my kids tell me. The second I bring the beard out, they're telling me I'm revealing my secrets, so I'm doing my best. Is that real? It is. Are you serious? 100 my. I threaten my kids to shave my beard and they go no, don't, because you look like franklin the turtle without it.

Alan:

I didn't say they didn't chirp me after I took it off, but you know what I explained to the family. I'm like, do you guys enjoy the life you live? They say, yeah. I'm like, well, that life comes behind this face, so let's just keep for the good times rolling.

MC:

I love it. What I remember of our first conversation, something that's always impressed me about you that resonates with me, is law. Yeah, you are a big law guy, not like laws of the land, but laws of success, yes, and you know, having the past that I've had where I've had to overcome many a demon, yep, if it were not for what we call the laws of success, I don't know that we would even be sitting here having this conversation. I would agree. When in your upbringing did you discover that these laws of success, though some may think are intangible, are actually the things that move life forward?

Alan:

You know, it's interesting. Early on in my sales career, as I developed as a salesperson, a leader, a manager in those capacities and then ultimately coming into this business, where I was declaring myself as somebody with the insight to teach people how to win, I started to realize it was all behind sound principle laws, as I like to call them. To give you a background on this, I remember learning a little something about this, ironically, in church of all places, right? So we're talking about laws and there's a lot of laws in that wonderful book called the Bible and apparently, when we adhere to them, life is supposed to go well, and I'm a Testament to say I fully agree to that. Uh, but the premise is simple laws exist for things to function smoothly, right, and this is what I teach people. You know, I love getting in front of groups where I'll say to them hey, did you drive here today? And everybody looks at me and says yeah, and I'm. I look back and I'm like I have a hard time believing that because y'all look way too calm and they look at me funny and I'm like I drove here today but I was surrounded by a bunch of 5,000 pound cannonballs, called other vehicles doing a hundred kilometers an hour. You know I joke with them, but the reason we all arrived here calm is because we have driver's licenses, and driver's licenses are an indicator that we're fluent in the laws of the road. Thus we can join others with driver's licenses and together we can all function smoothly right.

Alan:

To carry that thought a hair further, this was sort of the premise of this thinking, where I was looking at something like the traffic laws you know, laws of the road and how I could apply the same type of concepts into winning principles for success, you know. And that evolved where I would say to people I'm like you could run a red light and you could get a, and they would answer a ticket. And I would say correct, who gives you the ticket? And they would say the cop. And I would say no, that's incorrect. You see, when you break a law, the law breaks you. The judgment for violating a law exists inside of the law itself, which is why, when you got a ticket, you took it and you said thank you to the officer and you wished him a good day because he didn't do anything to you. You did something to you. So that was the beginning of this journey.

Alan:

That really had me understand a concept, that there are laws, laws that will allow success and failure to be predictable, and that was something that really fascinated me. I mean to take that just a step further. You drove here today. If I was to go out into the parking lot with you and fill your car up with 100% Florida grade A orange juice, could I successfully predict your car won't start? And the answer is yeah, I can. Now, am I psychic? No, I'm not. I simply understand the laws of the vehicle. In fact, they're clearly written on the back of your gas cap, right. What does it say there? Unleaded fuel only. So, conversely, if I went out and filled the car up with unleaded fuel, could I successfully predict it would start? The answer is yes. There's principles to effectively influencing other human beings, or selling stuff, in layman's terms, that when you follow the same, success can be predicted as well as the failures. That was a long winded answer.

MC:

I love it, though there's a lot to unpack there. It made me think of my kids. Like we talk a lot about how you know mom and dad don't create the consequences, right, we simply enforce them. Yeah, absolutely. And you your analogy about the police officer and the ticket. It's like the cop didn't give you the ticket. You're not following the law got you the ticket, they're just enforcing that. They have to give you a ticket and now you bring it into the realm of human behavior Fascinates me to no end, because I feel like we go through life and there are some people that have just had such a disservice done to them by being led to believe that you can just make it up as you go and that there's no consequence to that. But in fact there is a consequence to just thinking you're invincible to the way the laws work. A hundred percent.

Alan:

And one of the funniest things is, laws have no respect for how you think and feel about them. Right? If you want to get on the roof of this building and walk off the edge of it, gravity is going to show up and let you know that what goes up must come down Right, and that's the beauty of it. You know, when I'm training and developing people, I say to them opinions are like elbows Everybody's got one. And the reason that's important is because I express I'm here to teach you about laws. If I was here with an opinion, you may not like the look of my face or the sound of my voice, which could cause you to disregard what it is I'm teaching you. There's a lot of people who are like well, who are you to tell me or show me? And I'm like well, I'm Alan Dickey, but I'm just somebody who's fluent in the laws on how to get here, and I challenge you to listen to anyone that comes out of my mouth and poke a hole in it.

MC:

I want to touch on this because, you're striking a chord, all right, let's go and the with okay, but it's like a c major chord because I'm like we got a strum at heart. It is when you because undoubtedly you do there's so many strong personalities in our industry, for sure when you encounter someone who is just like I don't want to accept this because I've been taught all of these well. They don't know their limiting beliefs yet, but correct, probably the one that's going to reveal correct, but they just push back. They're almost incapable of seeing the reality of things. What do you do to pry open their brain and help them see?

Alan:

what's interesting is the truth, and the truth sometimes hurts. Here's a law. Ignorance, which by definition is a lack of knowledge, leaps at the opportunity to disagree. Sometimes you need to point out to an individual what's happening for them to see the forest through the trees, if you will. The other thing is to then deliver the law so you know. For example, you'll. Here's one I love saying to a group I'm like and I ask loaded questions, but I'll say is every single person who shows up on the lot ready to buy, like who here believes that I oversell it right Now? We all know I'm the trainer guy, right? So this is my Alec Baldwin moment. Did I just date myself, glenn Gary, glenn Ross? Great pick, check it out. But naturally you would assume I'm supposed to say yes, that's the case.

Alan:

I explained the law, though, to people. The law is this Human beings are inherently selfish. Now, if any human being wants to look me in the eye this includes myself, it's all of us and make an argument to disagree with that, I'm all ears, but usually the conversation doesn't go that far. So then, on top of that law, I follow up by explaining the only reason somebody has arrived at the dealership is because of their inherently selfish desire to solve a perceived challenge I don't like the word problem that they are currently experiencing and they've identified. The acquisition of your product solves it. Thus, the key to closing unearth what that problem is. Provide the solution we're doing business today. Us the key to closing on earth what that problem is. Provide the solution we're doing business today.

Alan:

If you fail to understand the nature of human beings in this particular law, then you're the guy who's running around trying to be Walmart, the cheapest guy in the building, and nobody has ever wanted the cheapest thing of anything in my experience, unless it's toothpaste. Shout out Walmart. But yeah, so it really is about informing them. You know, a lot of people have predisposed belief systems. I tell people it's like a table in your head and the legs are what hold up this belief system you have. Well, when I start to explain these laws, in essence I start to kick the legs out of those belief systems, or the tables of those belief systems, and very quickly it's the individual realizing that belief system is now crashed because its foundation is well, it's non-existent. And that's a lot of the many times how I sort of win them over to the good side.

MC:

I was going to say like, but you have to be ready for a fight. Yeah, they're going to fight you. Yeah, of course it also makes me think of as you're saying nobody wants the cheapest thing of anything, right, of course it also makes me think of as you're saying nobody wants the cheapest thing of anything, right, and ignorance almost always, I think, positions you to just take the cheapest thing of anything. Yeah, because you don't know, because you're willing to accept that you don't know any better. But, yeah, look we. So emer, who's just off camera, is the first time to canada, right, so we're giving them the experience.

MC:

We went to canadian tire, yes, we went to dollarama, yes, but you know what, as you were talking about it, you know what you made me think of. What's that? Even dollarama, yeah, who's the cheapest of the things? Yes, knew that people don't want crass toothpaste, right, so they sell crest. They even sell the better option, corral, right, because they used to sell what was it? It was arm and hammer, but theirs was like leg and ankle toothpaste and you're like what fruity o's instead of fruity loops? And now they just sell all the name brands of things because even they knew, yeah, as the quote-unquote cheapest provider, that nobody wants the cheapest alternative.

MC:

Yes, and ignorance always positions you for the alternative right and in and of itself. I sit here and I say cheapest alternative and I feel like an idiot saying it. Why would I want the cheaper alternative? You wouldn't. And so when I think about what you're saying and that you have to be ready for the fight, yeah, because sadly, our world, yeah, our society, is basically set up to prey on ignorance and to perpetuate it. Yeah, I'd agree with that. Yeah, so now you show them the law.

Alan:

Yeah, the you know it's as you're sharing that example. Here's the law Anytime value exceeds price, business gets done. Now there is a Walmart, there is a dollarama, right, and yes, they are selling things at the cheapest price possible. But the way they operated under the law to position themselves to do that is through understanding that the value of buying in such great numbers and spreading it out through such a number of locations is what allowed them to bring the price to where it's at now.

Alan:

Abc motors would love to have 10 000 locations selling whatever cars they're selling, but in many instances they might have one or a dealer group that might have 10, so they're not in a position where they can buy so many pick, a brand of vehicle that they're able to undercut the market.

Alan:

So you know, in that instance, when value exceeds price comes down to what is it, above and beyond the product itself, can you create value in, to engage decision-making? And in those instances that comes in the form of the one thing you know all Ford dealers, for example, they have all got the same vehicles, same dealerships, same balloons inside the store. But I say to the sales representative what's the one thing you can offer that no other Ford store in the country can offer. And they look at me for a minute puzzled and then I look at them back Simply I say you, you are that value. That's where we get on a journey of explaining how they can create value through themselves, through their brands, that will exceed the price of said Ford vehicle and make decision making easy for someone to take advantage of.

MC:

Hey, does your marketing agency suck? Listen, before we hop back into this episode. I know you know me as the host of the Dealer Playbook, but did you also know that I'm the CEO of FlexDealer, an agency that's helping dealers capture better quality leads from local SEO and hyper-targeted ads that convert? So if you want to sell more cars and finally have a partner that's in it with you, that doesn't suck visit FlexDealercom. Let's hop back into this episode. This is bringing me to employee mindset and how our industry is plagued with employee mindset, where they only can see things from their point of view, and what you said that made me think of it is when value exceeds price. Business Every time, every time. How do you help employees in a dealership who are like, but I'm only getting paid to do this? Think, no, but there's more to it than that. Oh, but I only get paid for this, so I'm only. How do you rip them out of the black and whiteness of that so that they can grow?

Alan:

There's two things there. I look at them and I would say to the hourly employee how do you ever expect to make $30 an hour when all you do is $20 an hour worth of work? Usually, the guy who's willing to do $30 an hour worth of work when they're only being paid $20 is thus delivering value on that same law that exceeds the price of what their employment is. And they are the ones who tend to be offered opportunity. Move this to a sales representative in a commission role. It comes to your production. I go and work in dealerships all the time and the mass majority of the sales representatives they're eight to 12 car a month sales representatives that tend to be eating off of the reputation and marketing dollars spent by the store Right. So these are also the ones who sometimes feel they're not making enough money, sometimes feel the hours are too crazy, sometimes feel they don't get enough time with their family, and I say to them that you're doing it wrong. When I was in those positions, I took time whenever I wanted to. I worked whatever hours I wanted to, but the value of me on that team exceeded the price of having to listen to 10 other team members complain about the exceptions made for Alan Dickey. That was only achieved through production. So if you're a sales representative who is like, well, I'm only getting paid this to do that, do more right. Luckily for us, when your production is directly correlated to your income, your performance is directly correlated to your income. You just need to perform more right.

Alan:

You see a lot of people who make those statements. They just want to throw their hands up in the air and stop there instead of asking the question and it's a simple one how do I perform more? And then there's laws for that. As I'm saying that, I just start thinking to myself and again, I don't claim to be the smart guy. I think like a child, but I'm not in the business of teaching people how to be perfect. I'm in the business of teaching them how to create enough opportunities to afford failure to really dumb this down. I'm the kid that when I wanted a date for the dance, I wasn't hoping to be perfect.

Alan:

Asking Lisa. I was going to ask a hundred Lisa's, create new problems where 10 of them said yes, and then I had a problem of who am I going to tell? Can't come Right. So, like law, and when you start to explain that to people. You're not perfect, you never will be. Yeah, so let's just take more action. And then law human beings when they're good at something, it's in their nature to perform it. Often the only reason they're not taking the action is because they're not comfortable and confident on how to how to use the telephone, how to utilize social media, how to even do networking and outreach opportunities in their immediate communities. Yeah, so again to your point. It all ties back to ignorance. You only know what you know.

MC:

Yesterday I had the pleasure of interviewing the vice president of the Fairmont Royal York Beautiful hotel, beautiful hotel. Yeah, he said something that I'm thinking about, that you just said, and it was tying back earlier. You said we're inherently selfish. Yes, he talked about how they train people to pick up on cues, which you can't do if you're inherently selfish. You have to train out of selfishness and this ability to see the bigger picture, the bigger playing field. Is that something you were raised with? Is it in your DNA or did you develop that over time? Because I think those watching and listening sometimes go easy for a guy like Alan Dickey, a highly successful individual, to say. The successful people always say these things and make it sound easier. I'm imagining you had your own rude awakening.

Alan:

I'm working on it daily. But I'm an incredibly selfish person. If we're all out, I'm going back. You know the boys are going out. Hey, where are we going tonight? I want to go where I want to go. I'm making a suggestion, I'm telling my buddies the features and benefits of going to that place, because there's a lot of pretty girls there and that's where we want to be. And so I had a willingness to go for failure because I wanted to do what I wanted to do.

Alan:

Great question, and I think, like a child I just mentioned it when I was on the showroom floor, I remember early in my career hearing things like did he drive the car? No, he says he doesn't have time. We can't give him payments. That seems weird. Man Like we're, you know, isn't an informed customer somebody who's going to be in a position to make a better decision?

Alan:

Law, the law, my law, states ignorance breeds anxiety. If somebody doesn't know what's going on or what's coming, they're going to be in a very anxious state and that breeds I need to think about it. So what I did is I number one, acknowledged I had a problem. Hey, I got to stop thinking about me. But number two, I just said to myself if I was walking into a dealership, how would I feel if somebody was reluctant to give me information?

Alan:

If I was walking into the Fairmont hotel and I said, hey, I arrived early, a long flight, I was hoping for an early check-in, and somebody was like check-in's at four. Now, that might be the case. My room may not be ready, but there is a way to handle that opportunity. And I know it's not check-in's at four, because I know how that makes me feel. A lot of people listen to the techniques I've come up with on how to effectively influence other human beings, not only in life but, you know, on the sales floor in a dealership, and a lot of it has come from me just thinking how does that make me feel? How would I respond? And then, once I identified that, proactively, reverse engineered how to avoid those pitfalls and come up with the techniques that I utilize now those pitfalls and come up with the techniques that I utilize now.

MC:

So, almost right, using the selfishness to your own advantage. You nailed it. How would it make me feel it's almost. It's poetic and oxymoronic almost at the same time. Yes, it's like don't be selfish. But also, if you're gonna be selfish in the right way, you know, think about this, see and just so we're going to be selfish in the right way.

Alan:

You know, think about this, See, and just so we're clear to everybody sometimes there are instances where an inherently selfish nature actually serves your success. I mean, think about this. When you get on an airplane, there's a moment where they tell you if the mask drops, what do they tell you to do? Yours first, Put yours on first, so then you can serve others right.

Alan:

So you know, there are instances where being selfish and really getting inside of that nature that we have can actually lead to a lot of opportunities to serve, and again, one of them being, you know, when I'm thinking about my personal experiences as somebody in a retail environment, I can understand what it would be like if it was difficult to get information, difficult to get answers to my questions, and so, again, reverse engineer the techniques.

MC:

Well, you want to come back on and talk more.

Alan:

Yeah, we would not run out of time, would we?

MC:

No, that's great. You know, I always appreciate someone who can, and I find myself much this way. Where people will look at a microphone like this, my first instinct is to say I want to look at it from this angle, in other words, to examine something from all different angles, to poke and prod and examine so that I get a better understanding of it. And this is what I'm picking up from you. Yes, so that I get a better understanding of it, and this is what I'm picking up from you. People are going through and they think, hey, dealer playbook, just give us more word tracks, right, that'll help us sell more cars, right. And over the years, especially since we've spoken last, I realized no, it's about how do we improve all facets of life, including mindset, heartset, right, might be fitness, it might be mental fitness, it might be sales techniques, it might be whatever. And that's what I appreciate about how you're approaching this, alan, is you're saying but let's just talk about law. Law is law and you're also what I'm picking up on. I'd love your take as we wind down.

MC:

I had this conversation the other day. You brought up the law of gravity. I had this conversation the other day. You brought up the law of gravity. Yeah, I said, you know, the law is the law, it can't be broken, infallible, right. And then I said the law of gravity is what goes up, musk, and they finish, my sentence must come down, I said.

MC:

And then the wright brothers discovered the law of lift, which now means what goes up could actually stay up given certain laws, or and physics, yeah, and now, all of a sudden, we have a law that is senior to the other, law that can't be broken yes yes, and when I saw the laws of success here, yeah, the first thing that came to my mind is that the laws of success are actually the most senior law of all the laws, the og, ogs Right, yeah, they supersede everything they do Because they have to do with human growth and human baby. Yeah, yeah, absolutely, absolutely. How can those listening and watching connect with you and learn more about this?

Alan:

They can find me on my website, alandickeycom. There's a lot of great information there, including the laws. These are things that I've put together in programs and made available for consumption for those that understand, connect with it and want to make winning easy. So, yeah, that, and Google. Google's an amazing tool, isn't it? If you're doing anything of value, you could usually punch a name in there and you could get a little feedback, and the internet is wonderful.

MC:

You're the only Alan Dickey I know.

MC:

Well that's good to know. There's all sorts of Michael Cirillo's since the internet Before Google. I was the only one, Is that right? But now there's dozens, Imitations, flattery, right. Alan Dickey, DPB alum. Thanks so much for joining me on the dealer playbook. Thanks for having me. Great to be here. Hey, thanks for listening to the dealer playbook podcast. If you enjoyed tuning in, please subscribe, share and hit that like button. You can also join us and the DPB community on social media. Check back next week for a new Dealer Playbook episode. Thanks so much for joining.

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Michael Cirillo

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