ASOTU CON Sessions Episode 5: Darren Doane and Danielle Southwick (audio only)

Paul Daly: 0:03You're listening to the ASOTU CON Sessions by Effectv recorded live in Philly All right, we have a special edition of ASOTU CON Sessions by Effectv this is an ad hoc episode with the one and only Darren Doane and somebody who I think doesn't get enough credibility. My EA and main admin for ASOTU Danielle Southwick, she's got two name badges on one is Paul J. Daly and one is DanielleDarren Doane: 0:31

d&d. This is the d&d d&d show.

Paul Daly: 0:35

Okay, so So Darren and Danielle

Darren Doane: 0:36

show through in daily Let's go.

Paul Daly: 0:39

Okay, so we're at ASOTU CON, the three of us plot and plan a lot of trouble together. Do we feel like we're making enough trouble? That here?

Danielle Southwick: 0:50

Ladies first? I don't I don't feel like we make enough trouble any day. Okay. Well, I think there's always more room for trouble. See,

Paul Daly: 0:58

I knew there's a reason that you've been able to put up with me for so long. She's like, but did we really make enough trouble? Okay.

Danielle Southwick: 1:06

But it's the good kind of trouble, like all I've been hearing all day long. From everybody is like, this is amazing. I can't believe that we get to be here. This is so good. It's just, it's wild to see four months of planning.

Paul Daly: 1:23

materialize here. Yeah, we say it like it was like four years or like four months, like 120 days ago, like there was no venue. There were no sponsors their agenda.

Darren Doane: 1:31

I'm sitting back watching culture develop really mean that, like, I'm literally sitting back are sitting up there. And I'm watching. And it would be easy to think like, oh, this is a thing that's been going on for X amount a year.

Paul Daly: 1:46

Oh, and they just got together. Yeah, that's what they do. Right?

Darren Doane: 1:50

But right down to how you all even speak to the attendees, as far as the being intentional. Right down to I saw Kyle like, hey, so when this speaker is done talking, don't ask a dumb question that sounds like this. And he actually like said, don't say this. Yeah. thoughtful question that sounds like this. And then like, wow, we're here to get work done. I don't want to hear about your store or your place for 10 minutes. And then you throw a question that has nothing to do with what the speakers. So culture, that's culture development, right? You're saying this is how we talk. This is how

Paul Daly: 2:28

you're teaching people like Southwest taught people actually, this is how you board a plane, right? Right. They didn't say like, oh, well, obviously everybody knows, like, no, no, when you're here, you do it this way. I guess it's every culture does that right?

Darren Doane: 2:40

That's but that's my point. And so you guys are carving out a subset, which may something I want to talk about. Tomorrow. We'll we'll see. I've been thinking a lot about what can I bring to this group? Because what being here our session tomorrow? Yeah, yeah, I really think like, you know, you've got some heavy hitters here that are gonna give some pretty great I think, principal talks, right. I mean, you got Meltzer here, he's gonna give you, you know, it's gonna all with the letter P, it's gonna get your life together, and you're gonna know how to do it, you're gonna call your mom three times a day, it's gonna be great. And you're gonna get your whole life aligned and fire to that right now, but I'm thinking, What can I bring in now that I'm seeing that you guys truly are creating culture? I've always had this little thing that I've never given a talk on. But I've always believed the world goes from tribe to nations to empires. And understanding that when I was sort of working through this idea, I remember I was talking to someone about this eight tribe, nation Empire, and I was going in, and actually was Bob Hurley, who had said, you know,

Paul Daly: 3:48

as in the founder of Yeah, early, and he said, you know,

Darren Doane: 3:51

and he said, You, you've been talking about this tribe, nation, Empire thing. He goes, and he sent me the cover of a magazine, and it said, the Nike Running tribes have arrived. Oh, at some point, like six, seven years ago, not probably longer. 10 years ago, running groups were running group starts, right? Yeah. But there was this tribal and he goes, That sounds like that tribe thing that you're talking about, you know, and so I put this kind of whole thing together and I'm seeing you guys do that. Meaning that what you're doing is you're taking the tribes, which I think I'll be able to flesh out more tomorrow, but you're taking the tribes and you're saying listen, we're gonna all get together. Formula nation. Wow. That is some it's so funny. When I think about this. I've never given the talk but when I talk to people about it, the first thing I say is you know you're moving into a nation. When you get your colors when you have a flag, like soccer. In here you guys are soccer scars to soccer, scarves, right? Colors, right fonts, all those things when when you think of, you know, English soccer Right, those are those that's tribes. It's tribal that moves into national. Right.

Paul Daly: 5:06

Now, when you're talking about that, it's giving me some context. Todd Caputo, a dealer and a friend of ASOTU for a long time. He said to me, he pulled me aside. And he was like Vince, going great having your time. He said, Hey, I, there are a lot of people here. He's like a mean listener, you know, because you have your people, right, and they're listening and part of the conversation, because I've heard a lot of people would be like, Who is this Paul character? Like, who is this guy? Right? And, and he's like, he's like, they don't know who you are. Or he's like, they're intrigued, right? Like, what? What, what is he doing? Right? What Why is Why is he here? Right? Why is he here? And that indicates to me that we've now invited successfully a different tribe, yes, into what we're doing. Right? So that is like, kind of indicative of like, oh, we have some outsiders who are kind of together and thinking the same things. And now we have our, you know, our OG tribe, right. And as we bring in this other tribe, now we have two tribes, right? And you said, tribes make nations.

Darren Doane: 6:04

And then you have empires. And the way you define an empire is who could shut you down? Or whatever it is you do. Overnight. Those are the Empires. So that's where it gets interesting, right? So when I was working at Hurley, it all kind of came together for me because the individual surfers or the tribes, but those tribes really flush themselves out in surf shops, thrift stores, tribal Santa,

Paul Daly: 6:36

right? Oh, Jujitsu, right? This study and this guy, that guy.

Darren Doane: 6:40

And so Hurley was a nation. That's better, but the nation lives off of serving the tribes,

Paul Daly: 6:47

right? Because back in the day, like the nation really runs risk of being the man.

Darren Doane: 6:52

Well, a nation has an army. A nation has a military. Okay, tribes don't. That's why tribes have to be very careful. And what they like defensive only right now, tribes make pacts all the time with nations. That's how you survive. And so the local surf shops had their relationships with Hurley and Billabong and write all that you. So you're trading all the time. But this is where I think it gets interesting. But the but the nations but then so nations look to the tribes, and they better speak a certain way to the tribes. That's where I think all messaging gets messed up. You have to know who you're speaking to, and where you're out on that. Are you a tribe, nation or empire? Because if you're a nation, you speak a certain way to the tribal people. But you speak a totally different way to the Empire, you suit up to go talk to the Empire, because you either have an alliance with the Empire, or at some point you will be folded in Nike bought Hurley, the Empire bought the nation, the nation rolled it in, but say hey, but like Rome said, but you just keep doing your thing. Yeah, but we'll supply you with whatever military might I mean funding, you need to do whatever you got to do. So if you think in those terms, and by the way, every empire crumbles eventually. And then you start over and you go to tribes, America is crumbling. Right now we were an empire, tribal, to a nation to an empire were crumbling. And when we think about all the things we talk about now with right and left and echo chambers, those are just tribes, just tribes now forming because something is collapsing. But in business, you have to know where you're at, on the tribe, nation Empire, and it really works in auto, because an auto you think about it, you're dealing with tribal people who walk in every day, who have a national allegiance to that dealer, but that dealer is only that national dealer is only existing because of an empire. Now that empire could be financing from a bank, or it could be the Empire, multiple empires in regards to where you're getting your inventory. Yeah, the right so the problem becomes, this is what I call the Scarface problem. It's when you're tribal, and you start making money. And you think you run the world. You think you're an empire or an empire were taken over. Tribes cannot take over an empire whenever the Empire wants to come in. Little local drug dealers who amassed a couple million dollars and some nice cars that run this town, run this town. Oh, really? Watch this, and you're gone overnight. Because they have the firepower. They've got whatever, that's where things get. That's where in life we get into trouble is we think we're bigger than we are. Not just because we're bigger than our britches, we're, we're we're tribe, nation empire. Where are you? And I've never seen it work so well. Now that I've gotten here thinking, Man, this is something that really fits with the auto industry. I've never seen a more perfect model of tribe, nation empire. And I don't have an application. One thing I wanted to make sure when I came here, I didn't want to come with an application. A lot of speakers have an application like application be prescriptive. Yeah, now now go and do this. I thought maybe I could just bring something that would maybe just get people thinking. And somehow maybe that will do something. I have no idea. But I know tribe nation Empire my own life has kind of helped me has helped ground me a little bit. Because you guys know me. I mean, I can't even keep a quote unquote, traditional type company, which would be kind of like a nation with like, yeah, days off and T shirts and all that stuff. I dabble and all that whatever. But like, I can't do it. No. So I know I'm

Paul Daly: 10:33

right. Yeah. Would

Darren Doane: 10:34

you drawers? Right. So I know, I'm tribal. So that but that helps me understand that when I go, maybe I'm hanging out with you guys. My job is not to try to be like, match you nation to nation. Like I get you guys like, yeah, we're all doing the same thing. No, I'm respectful. I'm like, I can't believe what you guys are doing. Because you guys are nation building. Right? And then when you introduce me to Person X over here, and you're like, Oh, they're from the Empire? Yeah, you don't flex like you're the Empire or you're a nation, right? Gotta know. Hey, I'm tribal. But you know what? My little tribal group may be of some benefit. Bring

Paul Daly: 11:11

a little value to the higher. That's all. That's all we're looking for. Well, Danielle, look at what you start. She sits down, she presses the record button. And here we are in a podcast. I said Hey, guys, come Come take a seat. Yes. Well, there you go. Your work here is done. Darren, Danielle. Thank you for spending some time. Watch this be our most downloaded Thank you for listening to this. So to concession by effective if you want more content like this, you can check out our other podcasts we have a daily show called The automotive troublemaker Monday through Friday. Here on podcasts also live streamed on YouTube, and LinkedIn and Facebook. We also have a long form podcast called Auto collapse, auto collapse. And if you just want to go a little deeper into this community, you should sign up for our regular email we put our heart and soul into it. You can get it for free by going to a sotu.com. We'll see you next time.

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