My son has now taken over the firm with a little help from Ativan
I ran my car dealership for decades, literally for decades. Let’s just say that I still remember the big crises in the ‘70s when you couldn’t give a car away. Over the years, I managed to keep the dealership afloat, even expand a bit. I was very happy when my son said that he would love to become a car salesman himself. I guess it had something to do with all that time spent on the floor with other guys.So over the years, he became one of the guys.
He started from the bottom, as I never pushed him or gave him favorable treatment in any way. He also preferred it that way, as he knew that he could be one of the guys and not my son. And it went on for years; he was becoming a car salesman in his own. And then, a few years ago, my doctor told me that my heart is telling me to stop selling the cars and to go into retirement. And to tell you the truth, I didn’t mind it at all. I was looking forward to spending time with my wife and with the grandkids.
Finally, I decided to retire and I left the reigns to my son. I wanted the company to stay in the family, and him being a car salesman (and a good one). I decided to pass the dealership onto him. That is when the problems started. It turned out that he was nervous when he had to talk in front of the guys, like we do at the beginning of each week, sometimes even each day. I could see the terror in his eyes. He knew these guys well and yet, he was trembling, his voice was breaking and his eyes wondered across the room.
It was even worse when we went to official lunches and conferences with the owners of other dealerships. Whenever he had to make a speech, he would freeze, completely unable to utter a word. So, I introduced him to my old shrink, a guy older than me, but still the best damn shrink in the world.
He immediately knew what was going on and he prescribed my son Ativan. He said it was the best thing in such cases, those panic attacks and anxiety episodes that he had occasionally. And really, the changes were apparent from the very moment he took Ativan.
The next day, he held the best motivational speech I have ever heard. He actually had the guys excited about going out there and selling cars. Some of them even shouted as they were leaving the meeting room. Also, his speech was a killer at the next convention, with other owners rolling on the floor with laughter. I was finally sure that the dealership will be sailing without any problems with my son at the helm and Ativan played a role in this. I don’t think he takes it anymore, but it sure did its job.