Happy September!
Last month my 10.0 mixed doubles team won the Pacific Northwest Sectionals, and we're headed to Nationals in Arizona later this year. Great weekend. But the moment I keep thinking about didn't happen at the trophy table.
The Point That Should Have Ended It
My partner Luisa and I were in a battle against a tough team from the Seattle Tennis Club. We took the first set 6-0. Lost the second 3-6. Third set tiebreaker, first to 10, win by 2. We were down 8-9 when our opponent hit a put-away volley to end the match.
Only he didn't reach out to shake our hands.
He said, "I think I hit the net."
We all stopped. In tennis, if you touch the net before the ball bounces twice, you lose the point. Nobody saw it. The roving umpire even called it clean. "You didn't touch the net. That was good."
Our opponent held his ground. "My foot barely slid into the bottom of the net."
Nobody saw his foot but him. He could have taken the point, walked off with the win, and nobody would have been the wiser. Instead he told the truth when the stakes were the highest they'd been all match.
Luisa and I ended up winning the tiebreaker 13-11. Which felt a little strange, because we won partly on the back of his honesty. I told him as much afterward. I believe in karma, and Jamie Fisher has some good juju coming his way.
If you're reading this, Jamie, thank you for being a standup guy.
🎯 HiPer8TM Principle: Accountability
"I own my actions, my inactions, and the results they create."
Accountability is the easiest principle to say and the hardest to actually live. Anyone can put it in an interview. Very few do it when nobody's watching and it's going to cost them the match.
The reason it matters so much in franchise ownership is that the machinery of a business gives you a hundred ways to duck a bad result. The marketing was slow. The lead wasn't qualified. The territory is soft. Every one of those can be true, and they can also be the exact thing keeping you from fixing the part you can fix.
The franchise owners I coach who improve the fastest are the ones who take the result first and dig into the reasons second. They still hold their team accountable. They still push their franchisor for support. They still look at the market. But they start with the mirror. Because the part they can actually change is on the other side of that.
Try this: Think about a recent result at work that didn't land the way you wanted. Before you say a word to your team about it, write down the one thing you did or didn't do that shaped it. Just for you. Bring that to the meeting instead of the version where it was somebody else's fault first.
📍 Quick Updates
A new client signing: Hallie from Renton, Washington just signed with ERA Group. She's fired up about it, and she's going to crush it. Watching someone move from circling the idea to signing the agreement is my favorite part of this work.
Owner by Design update: The program is progressing, and honestly, it's taking longer than I originally planned. This version is much more advanced than the first one. Every module is being built with more intention, and the HiPer8 coach we're layering in is a whole new level of what a program like this can do. I'm not rushing it. When it lands, it's going to be worth the wait.
Franchisor workshop: Last week I led a two-day session with 30 Floor Coverings International franchise owners. Best piece of work I've done this year, and the part that mattered most was the owners themselves telling me they got real value from it. It's the same energy that made me want to build Owner by Design in the first place, and it makes finishing the next version of that program a lot easier to sit down for.
🎙️ This Month on The Podcast
Episode 44: Why This Founder Keeps Firing His Best Employees — Rocky Hensley, 1-Tom-Plumber Rocky built and sold 13 businesses before starting 1-Tom-Plumber, then grew it past 100 locations in four and a half years and sold to private equity. The title is provocative on purpose. His reasoning will change how you think about protecting a team from itself. Watch here
Episode 49: Bringing Your Spouse Into The Franchise Decision The spouse conversation belongs at the beginning of this decision, not at the final validation call. In this one I share a client story where the real turning point happened at the kitchen table. If you've been circling this decision solo, this one's for you. Watch here
Episode 51: Why Franchise Failure Rarely Looks Like Failure When franchise ownership doesn't work out, most of the time it doesn't look like a bankruptcy. It looks like an owner who's trapped, underpaid, and running a job they can't quit. This one is the honest version of what to watch for before you sign. Watch here
📚 Free Download: The Franchise Fit Playbook
Not sure if franchise ownership fits your goals, skills, and capital? This free playbook walks you through the questions worth answering before you go any further. No cost, no pitch.
🎯 The Franchise Owner Fit Assessment
If you want a more direct read on where you actually stand, this is what I built. About six minutes on your phone. It looks at the money side and where you sit across the eight HiPer8TM traits, then hands you an honest read plus your best next step.
Ready to Talk?
If you've been circling the idea of ownership and want a real conversation about it, grab 15 minutes with me. No pitch. Just an honest look at whether this makes sense for where you're headed.
Thanks for reading. Try being the Jamie this month, at least once. See what it does.
-Alan
Alan Regala High Performance Franchise Coach Former Multi-Million Dollar Franchise Owner Athlete to Owner
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