Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to James Donnelly. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi James, thanks for joining us today. Parents play a huge role in our development as youngsters and sometimes that impact follows us into adulthood and into our lives and careers. Looking back, what’s something you think you parents did right?

My parents taught me at a very young age the value of hard work, the importance of remaining humble and willing to learn from others. My father would always tell me no matter how skilled you become at something there will always be someone better than you at it. Rather than being intimidated or threatened by this accept it, learn from that person watch what they do, imitate that until you are as good or better. Look for individuals who are more skilled than you, and surround yourself with those type of people. My mother taught me how to sell, understanding that the way in which you carry yourself is the first part of the sale, she taught me to listen to the needs of others and that meeting those needs is essential to closing a sale.
My father and mother taught me general principles of life, respect others and yourself, be humble, be willing to learn, be kind and honor your word. These simple truths I application to business help me grow as a business owner as much as they did shaped me as a person.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is James Donnelly, I am an Ida certified professional detailer, I have 6 years professional experience and well over 10 thousand hours of detail work, as well I constantly on an endless journey to continue to grow my professional knowledge and skills I go to workshops and trainings, I spend hours studying the latest technology and chemistry to remain at the peak of my industry.

Black Sheep Detailing is a brand for people that are passionate about how their vehicles look. That dont just want their car to be clean, but want to drive perfection. My clients range from professional athletes, to ceo and business owners, car collectors, dream car owners, and just the people that love what they drive. I specialize in perfection. Black Sheep is the detailing company for when you want your vehicle to stand out.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

“Dont teach people everything you know.”

I think it’s a common mentality in business, and I feel it’s easy to be pulled into thinking it’s true. My first management job I was tasked with training my replacement, as I was being “promoted” so I spent 2 weeks preparing the individual to do my job so I could move up. I taught them everything I could about what the jobs responsibilities are as well as strategies I employed to overcome obstacles and effectively motivate teams. When I finished traing that person. My employer jumped them over me and gave them my promotion. I was told they felt I was to difficult to replace in my current role.

That became a lesson for me that I would force myself to unlearn. Because initially it sparked an insecurity in me that if I train individuals well or give away my knowledge and experience I will only be stepped on by my employer. When truth was I had one bad employer that didn’t value the skill of a teacher. Teaching others is a great skill and tremendous asset as a employer, manager or team leader it’s a challenge to overcome the worry that teaching someone everything you know makes you replaceable, or gives your employee more opportunity to leave or become a competitor to you. I discovered by giving away freely my knowledge and experience I was awarded better teams and elevated my crews. I believe as a leader your responsibility is to enable your team to grow and achieve more.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I believe my reputation in my industry grew because I don’t discriminate, I do not treat my jobs differently based on the price tag, that doesn’t mean that I don’t understand the value of my jobs rather that I’m not basing my quality on how much money my client appears to have. My work is excellent every time because every job has my reputation on it, and every job someone is trusting me with one of their most expensive assets.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.blacksheepdetailing.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/Blacksheepdetailingllc
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/blacksheepdetailingocd