Bucket Filler or Bucket Dipper?

There are two types of people in life. 

Bucket dippers and bucket fillers. People that invest into others and pour their time, effort & energy into helping, fixing and developing others, are bucket fillers. The people who continue to simply take from and not give to others, are bucket dippers. 

Bucket fillers typically use kind words. They are inclusive and work well together with others. They have manners and say things like, “please and thank you” and “I’m sorry”. They like to share and are generous with what they have and don’t live with expectations of reciprocity. 

They ask lots of questions and actually listen to the answers without constant interruption, because they are being present and engaging. They will continue to help others, even when it is not deserved. They will push through tough times, because they see the good in others and they know they have the ability to be the light. Bucket fillers ARE the light. 

They are the good energy people to whom everyone is naturally drawn. 

Bucket dippers are the opposite. They are the ones who steal the light. They are the vampirical form of the worst of us. They typically have low self-esteem. They consume the energy and emotional gifts from those upon whom they prey. They are typically very selfish, lazy individuals who proudly admit to it. They can’t tell the truth easily and engage in selective omission. They are people who are constantly behaving in ways proven to be self-serving, allowing them to deceive people opportunistically. They are narcissists. Sometimes, they are gas lighters, the WORST ones. They frequently blame others and have a difficult time admitting they are wrong, not only to themselves but others as well. They are messy. They don’t share. They rarely offer to pay for things. They are takers. 

You get the idea? Terrible people. Bucket dippers typically don’t have a knowing problem. They have a doing problem. It is totally controllable and correctable if you are on the wrong side of the bucket. 

In the dealership world, as a manager, your job is to build up your team. Your job is to connect with and engage with all of the people on your team. It is your sole responsibility to make sure the people on your team have the right words of affirmation and quality time spent with them to feel valued and appreciated. Those managers who pump up the team and bring the positive energy to the store daily have happier, more productive members of the team. 

The managers who treat their team like brown shoes, are the worst kind you can be. They are the reason that salespeople quit their jobs. They make the people on their team feel guilty for no reason. They offer nothing of value in terms of compassion or support. They make people on their team feel bad, and question everything. 

Eventually the people on the team feel like they have gone crazy and after losing countless nights of sleep, they wake up one day and decide, no more. 

If you want to take your team to the next level, it starts with you.  

I encourage you to take the bucket filler pledge

When you wake up in the morning, as part of your daily mindset routine, remind yourself that you will do your best to be a bucket filler at the dealership, at home, and everywhere you go. You will feel better about yourself, knowing you chose to do the next right thing. This will yield a lifetime filled with meaningful relationships, as opposed to running through friends, relationships and customers simply as transactions. This is what takes you from being average to becoming a polished professional.