A two-word phrase from college has been on my mind a lot lately. Don’t worry, it’s clean.

During one assignment to craft a story pitch, I had gone through the normal who, what, when, where and why in the story and asked my professor to take a look. He looked at it, quickly skimmed it and said, “So what?”

I had looked at him sideways and chuckled. It was all right there on the sheet. He repeated … “So what?”

My professor wanted me to go deeper – to get to the real “why” this would make a great story. Why should the reader care? What is it about the story that is really worth telling? What makes this one special?

We all have a “so what.” It’s our why … but deeper than that.

For this publication, (and CAR WASH The Podcast, and CAR WASH Magazine Live) the “so what” is not that we create content and stories for the car wash industry. Yes, we exist to help our industry, but our “so what” is deeper still.

It’s that we do this work because we are passionate about helping people grow. And the way we can best do that is by bringing the car wash community – the people – together through storytelling to share ideas and inspiration.

My challenge for you today is to think about this as you’re out in your business, doing your day to day. Stop and ask yourself, “So what?” What’s the deeper reason you are doing what you do?

Do you build your business because you want to provide a lasting legacy for your family? Do you wash cars because it makes customers happy? Do you do what you do so that you can have a great impact on your community?

Keeping that “so what” in your mind will help you stay focused and grounded.

In this issue of CAR WASH Magazine, we’re focused on talent management, the people side of the business. You’ll find great tips for ways to balance tough love with empathetic approaches to staff management, plus details around ICA’s new Leadership, Education And Development training program.

And never to be missed are the great stories of how the people in the car wash industry make it about #morethanwashingcars through the way they engage in their communities.

If there’s a story you think needs to be told or a topic area where you could use some help, we’re here for you.

After all, it is our “so what.”