Talking about the pandemic may feel like ancient history, but many people are still carrying its stress and anxiety, often without realizing it. In episode 93 of Maximum Octane, Kim Hickey talks with Cally Rempis, an integrative health coach and certified hypnotherapist, about entrepreneurship, stress, anxiety, and simple ways to calm the body and mind.
Cally’s own life changed after she worked with a hypnotherapist to understand what was holding her back. She shares that journey, explains how experiences shape us, and offers practical techniques for releasing stress before walking into work. For shop owners and technicians who spend their days fixing machines, this episode is about repairing your own mind.
This article is for general education only and is not medical or mental health advice. Talk with a qualified professional about your health.
What You Will Learn
- Cally’s first encounter with a hypnotherapist. The beginning of a new life
- We all are molded by our experiences
- Some people weren’t made to work from home
- How focusing on what you want tricks your brain
- How to get rid of stress in a couple of minutes
- Why hiring an outsider to look at the inside might be all you need
Cally’s First Encounter With Hypnotherapy
Cally opens with her first visit to a hypnotherapist, which marked the beginning of a new chapter. That introspective journey led to changes in her appearance, her thinking, her career, and how she sees the world. It also inspired her to help others make similar changes.
Robert Radnoti explains how hypnosis works in Learning the Secrets of Hypnotherapy and Its Benefits, which makes a great companion to this conversation.
Many people picture hypnotherapy as a stage act, which keeps them from ever considering it. In a professional setting, it is usually a guided, relaxed, focused state in which a person stays aware and in control while exploring thoughts and habits with a trained practitioner. Cally’s story is less about any single technique and more about the decision to look inward with help. That decision is the same one a shop owner makes when admitting that working harder is no longer producing better results. Curiosity about why you react the way you do is often the first real step toward changing it.
We Are Molded by Our Experiences
Around the 8 minute mark, Cally explains that we are all molded by our experiences. Patterns formed early in life, or during stressful periods like the pandemic, can shape how we react today. The good news is that those patterns are not permanent. With awareness and the right tools, they can be changed.
Think about how a shop owner who once nearly lost the business might react to a slow week. Even when the numbers are healthy, a quiet Tuesday can trigger the same panic as the worst year. That reaction is not weakness; it is a pattern the mind learned to protect itself. The problem is that old patterns can drive today’s decisions, such as cutting prices out of fear, micromanaging the team, or refusing to take a day off. Naming the pattern (“this is the old fear talking”) creates a small gap between the feeling and the action, and that gap is where better choices get made.
Not Everyone Is Made to Work From Home
Cally discusses how some people were not made to work from home. The pandemic pushed many people into remote work, and while some thrived, others struggled with isolation and blurred boundaries. Recognizing what environment helps you perform best is part of managing your well-being.
Most technicians never had the option to work from home, but plenty of shop owners, office managers, and service advisors shifted at least part of their work to a laptop at the kitchen table. Some found it freeing. Others discovered that they missed the energy of the shop, or that work never really ended because the office was always ten feet away. Owners can learn from this by paying attention to where each person on the team does their best work. A bookkeeper may thrive with quiet remote days, while an advisor may need the rhythm of the front counter. Matching people to the right environment is a practical form of stress management.
Focus on What You Want
Around the 18 minute mark, Cally explains how focusing on what you want tricks your brain in a helpful way. When attention stays on fears and problems, the body stays in stress mode. Shifting focus to goals and desired outcomes changes how the brain and body respond. This idea connects to the leadership concept that you find what you look for.
ATI’s Are ANTs Blocking Your Shop’s Success? Think Positive! applies this to shop owners.
On the shop floor, this shows up in the morning huddle. A meeting that starts with every problem from yesterday sets a defensive tone for the whole day. A meeting that starts with the day’s goal, a recent win, or a customer compliment points everyone in a more productive direction, without ignoring the problems that still need attention. The same goes for an owner’s self-talk. “Don’t lose that big job” and “Let’s give this customer a clear, confident estimate” describe the same situation, but they produce very different levels of tension in the body and very different conversations at the counter.
Release Stress in a Few Minutes
Cally shares simple techniques to release stress in just a couple of minutes, along with ideas for leaving stress “in a drawer” before going to work and incorporating meditation into daily life. Listen to the episode for her specific methods. Short breathing and mindfulness practices are widely recommended for stress relief, and the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health summarizes research on meditation and mindfulness.
A common approach many coaches recommend is a simple transition ritual. Before you walk in, sit in the car for a few minutes, breathe slowly with a longer exhale than inhale, and decide what you are leaving outside for the day. Some people picture placing their worries in a drawer they can reopen after work. Others write them on a notecard. The point is not to ignore real problems but to stop carrying every worry into every conversation. A calmer owner makes clearer decisions, speaks more patiently to customers, and sets a steadier tone for the team.
Why an Outside Perspective Helps
Around the 31 minute mark, Cally explains why hiring an outsider to look at the inside might be exactly what you need. Just as a business benefits from a coach who can see what the owner cannot, individuals benefit from professionals who can help them understand their patterns. ATI’s Top 5 Reasons Why Every Auto Shop Owner Needs a Coach makes the same case for business.
Shop owners are used to being the expert in the room. They diagnose the car, solve the employee problem, and talk the customer through the repair. That habit makes it hard to accept that someone else might see their situation more clearly. Yet the same logic that makes a fresh set of eyes valuable on a stubborn diagnostic applies to the mind and the business. An outsider has no history with your blind spots and no reason to protect them. Whether that person is a coach, a counselor, a peer group, or a health professional, the value comes from honest observation you cannot easily give yourself.
Recognizing Stress Before It Runs Your Shop
Stress rarely announces itself. It tends to show up sideways: a short temper with a technician, trouble sleeping before a big week, skipping meals, or reading every customer question as a complaint. Owners often notice it last because they are focused on everyone else. A useful habit is a quick weekly self-check. How have you been sleeping? Have you snapped at anyone? Are you avoiding a decision or a conversation? Patterns in those answers are early warning signs.
It also helps to know your common triggers. For some owners it is the first of the month when bills come due. For others it is a comeback, a negative review, or a key technician calling in sick. Once you know what tends to set you off, you can plan for it, such as reviewing cash flow before bills arrive or having a standard process for handling comebacks so they feel less personal. ATI’s How to Keep Your Shop From Stressing You Out offers more ideas from the business side.
Building Calmer Habits Into the Workday
Big changes are hard to sustain, so small, repeatable habits tend to work better. A few minutes of quiet before opening, a short walk after lunch, or stepping outside to breathe before calling back an upset customer all add up. Some owners block a short period on their calendar each day with no phone and no interruptions, just to think. Others use the drive home to mentally close the day, reviewing one thing that went well before switching into family time.
These habits work best when the team sees them as normal. If the owner takes a short reset break and comes back calmer, employees learn that managing stress is part of doing the job well, not a sign of weakness. Leaders can encourage the same habits for technicians, whose work is physically demanding and mentally focused for long stretches.
Stress Reset Ideas for Shop Leaders
- Take two minutes of slow breathing in your car before walking into the shop.
- Write down one thing you want from the day instead of what you fear.
- Build a short daily mindfulness or meditation habit.
- Talk with a professional if stress or anxiety feels overwhelming.
For more on mental wellness, listen to Eric Gibson in A Quantum Leap to Mental Wellness and Sam Richter in Hit the Switch: Master Your Mood or It Masters Your Business.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can hypnotherapy help with stress and anxiety?
Some people find hypnotherapy helpful as part of a broader approach to stress, often alongside counseling, exercise, and good sleep. Results vary from person to person, and it is not a replacement for medical or mental health care. If you are curious, look for a practitioner with recognized training and credentials, ask how they work and what to expect, and talk with your doctor first if you have an existing health condition. Anyone dealing with severe or persistent anxiety should start with a licensed health professional.
How can a shop owner reduce stress quickly during a busy day?
Short resets work best when the day is packed. Step away from the counter or the bay for two or three minutes, breathe slowly with a longer exhale, and focus on one clear next action instead of the whole to-do list. Drinking water, eating a real meal, and taking a brief walk outside also help. Keep a simple routine so it becomes automatic. These steps will not fix the cause of the stress, but they help you respond calmly instead of reacting.
What are signs that stress is affecting my leadership?
Common signs include a shorter temper with employees, avoiding difficult conversations, trouble sleeping, making decisions out of fear, and feeling that every problem is urgent. Employees may start bringing you less information or tiptoeing around you. If customers or team members mention that you seem tense, take it seriously. Noticing these signs early gives you a chance to adjust your routines, delegate more, or get outside help before stress starts to shape the culture of the shop.
Should auto repair shops offer mental health support to employees?
Supporting mental health does not require a large budget. Shops can share information about any employee assistance program offered through their benefits, make it easy to take time off for appointments, and train managers to check in privately when someone seems to be struggling. Leaders who talk openly about stress, and how they manage it, reduce stigma. Healthier, calmer employees tend to communicate better, make fewer mistakes, and stay longer, which benefits the whole business.
Does focusing on goals really change how you feel?
Many coaches and practitioners find that where attention goes affects mood and energy. Dwelling on what could go wrong tends to keep people tense, while focusing on a clear, positive goal often makes it easier to take action. This is not about ignoring problems. It is about defining the outcome you want, then working toward it. Writing down one goal each morning is a simple way to practice shifting focus.
