Jim Treliving - Decisions: Making the Right Decisions, Righting the Wrong Ones

This book is dedicated to my wife, Sandi, whos also my partner in life, and to my business partner, George Melville. I also devote it to my daughter, Cheryl; my son, Brad, and his wife, Julie; my granddaughters, Candace, Samantha, Ryann and Reese; my step-children, Katie and Dan; and my sisters, Joy and Pat, and their families. My family has always been my inspiration, but my parents, Ted and Mina Treliving, were the first to inspire me.

Whenever you see a successful business,
someone once made a courageous decision.
Peter F. Drucker

The Smallest Big Decision I Ever Made

What I remember most about that December night in 1966 was the cold. I was with a friend of mine, a city police officer named Don Spence. I was a 27-year-old RCMP officer newly transferred from Prince George, in northern BC, to Edmonton. That frigid night we were driving around, feeling a little restless after a busy night shift. Those are the times you dont want to go home right away without unwinding over a meal or youll find it really hard to fall asleep. I had been a police officer for almost a decade by then, so I had my routines, and a late-night bite after a long shift was one of them.

Feel like grabbing pizza, Jim? Don asked close to midnight.

Why did I decide to say yes to pizza this time? Thats the billion-dollar question. I had driven by a little restaurant called Boston Pizza countless times and it never drew me in. In fact, when I first moved to Edmonton, I lived only two and a half blocks away from it, but I always ate at the restaurant right next door, skipping the pizza place entirely.

That night, for some reason, I said, Sounds good, Don. And by picking pizza that night, I made one of the biggest decisions in my life, though its impact wouldnt be felt for a while. I eventually became a regular at Boston Pizza because the service was good and the food was great. I liked the look and feel of the place, and the energy. But I had no idea that soon I would learn the pizza business from Gus Agioritis, a smart guy with a black moustache and apron, and his four brothers, who also sported black moustaches and aprons. Or that Id eventually open the first Boston Pizza franchise in BC, offering the same simple menu to brand new customers in a different market. Nor did I know that a few short years after that Id partner up with a small-town accountant named George Melville, eventually buying up the entire company for $3.8 million and growing it into the billion-dollar operation that it is today, with 420 franchises in three countries. But people who think that big right out of the gate are usually a little off, or they dont make it. That night I wasnt making those kinds of big decisionsjust a small one about what I was going to eat for a late-night meal.

Eighteen months after taking my first bite of pizza, more decisions followed. I eventually left the RCMP to open Boston Pizzas first franchise, a pretty surprising decision for a guy like me. I was raised to work hard for other people, keep my head down, sock some money away, and eventually retire in a nice, comfortable community with the first gal I brought to the dance. Nothing wrong with that kind of life, except, I would soon discover, it wasnt me. In fact, it had never been for me. I just didnt know it at the time.

When did I decide to become an entrepreneur? I get asked that a lot. Total strangers come up to me when Im out alone or with my wife, Sandi. Well be enjoying dinner, checking into a hotel, or deplaning at an airport, and it happens. Ill make eye contact with someone. They realize they know me. Theyre sure they know me from somewhere. And then it clicks.

Youre that guy! Youre the pizza guy! From that show! Youre a Dragon, right?

Yes, Im a Dragon, Ill say. (Is there a more ridiculous sentence in the English language?) Im one of five Dragons from the hit CBC show about venture capitalism called Dragons Den, one of the highest rated on TV. Were seven seasons in, but we broke through in the middle of our second season, around the time these kinds of questions started coming at me from total strangers.

Because of the show, these people, the ones who stop me in airports and restaurants, really feel like they know me. They know my businesses involve food, cars, sports, real estate and entertainment, and who doesnt like to talk about those things? Dragons Den has made me a very unlikely TV star around the age when other people are thinking about retirement. And because of the show, people get to understand some of the things Im very passionate about: partnering with talent, growing stable businesses, launching new products and fostering innovation. I also get asked if Kevin OLeary is as mean in real life as he is on TV (no) or if Arlene Dickinson is really that kind (yesand shes prettier in person too).

I also get questions about franchising versus opening a one-off restaurant or store. Sometimes we talk about Mr. Lube, of which my partner George Melville and I are part owners. Or we talk sports, usually hockey in particular. Im not just a fan, I was a player and a coach, and I sit on the board of the Hockey Canada Foundation. George and I also franchise a bunch of hockey teams in the American Southwest. People who stop me often know I split my time between Dallas, Vancouver and Toronto, so I get asked about the difference between doing business across Canada and in different countries, including Mexico. So theres a lot to talk about. And when I have time, I dont mind answering those questions. But the question I get asked the most is, how did you decide to leave the daily grind of a job and become an entrepreneur?

Heres the answer: Because we ate pizza instead of Chinese that night. Its true. That very small decision, the kind of decision people make every day, turned out to be a very big decision because it changed the course of my life forever.

Be willing to make decisions.
Thats the most important quality in a good leader.
T. Boone Pickens

Success Is about the Big Picture

How do you know youre making the right decisions? Thats another question I get asked a lot. After more than 40 years in business, I thought I would have a complicated answer. But in sitting down and writing the story of my business and my life, Ive come to see that my success has been built on a series of decisionsdecisions that seem to follow a pretty consistent pattern. I like simplicity. I believe that simplicity is the key to success. So my pattern seems to be this: I make decisions about work with my heart, about money with my head, and about people with my gut. In other words, Im emotional about work, practical about money and instinctual about people. This method is what seems to have guided me in the right direction. But I can only say this looking back now. I certainly didnt start out in business using this method. I think its just how Im built. But you can train yourself to make decisions this way by watching what happens when you dont. Think about it: when you make emotional decisions about money or people, theres a lot of room for error. Thats why I use my head when it comes to money. And when you make rational or emotional decisions about people, you can end up hiring the wrong person because youre biased or playing it safe. Thats how a lot of companies end up with too much family on the payroll. I like to listen to my gut when it comes to hiring and partnering. It never lies to me, whereas my head and heart can. And Ive never made decisions about work rationally or even instinctually; I make them with my heart. I have to love what I do. I have to feel that same passion for my work that I do for my favourite people.