U-R-G On the Go
An informative podcast for the United Recyclers Group. Each week we will feature an entertaining guest that will share their knowledge and information with you, providing you with tips and tools to help you become a more profitable business.
U-R-G On the Go
Celebrating DJ Harrington’s Legacy In Automotive Recycling
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
A good goodbye doesn’t end a story—it reveals why it mattered. We gathered with DJ Harrington, the voice who helped shape URG On The Go, to celebrate the lessons, laughs, and leadership that lifted automotive recycling and the people who power it. Amanda shares a deeply personal tribute, Michael steps in with warmth and respect, and DJ opens the playbook that built his legacy: simple phone scripts that win trust, service habits that compound, and a brand—the “Doctor”—that made big ideas easy to remember.
We dig into the path from General Motors and the PGA to global stages, and how a few smart choices turned expertise into impact. DJ champions association membership—state groups, URG, ARA—not as a checkbox but as leverage. Show up, learn in the hallways, and switch tables at meals to multiply your network. We talk about cooperation over rivalry, how unified leadership earned mainstream attention, and why this industry’s story is stronger when we tell it together.
The conversation lands on education and legacy. The URG Scholarship Foundation opens doors for four-year programs and skilled trades, with applications arriving right after the new year. DJ gets candid about health, shares the moment he chose to pass the mic, and still can’t resist teaching—cue the “Garden for Success” and the twist that turns “drink, swear, steal, and lie” into a pledge to study, serve, and tell the truth. It’s humor with a spine, delivered by someone who believes people are the point.
If you care about leadership, branding, and building a community that lasts, this sendoff is a toolkit. Follow the show, share it with a colleague, and leave a review with your favorite DJ lesson so we can carry the work forward together.
Opening And Guest Tribute
SPEAKER_02Welcome one and all to the URG on the go podcast. This is your podcast, a podcast for the pros that have a need to know that are on the go. My name is Michael. I am one of the team members here at URG performing technical support for all of you lovely folks out there. And uh with me now is uh, or actually allowing me to join her now is Amanda, and she's going to introduce our guest for this edition of the podcast. Amanda.
SPEAKER_03Thank you so much, Michael. Yes, Michael is our lovely IT guy here at URG. And I'm sure you guys have uh worked with him at one point or another if you are a URG member and working with your URG uh settings and data feeds and all of the good stuff that we have here at URG. Uh appreciate you for being on here. And I have today just uh the most special guest that I think we've ever had. Uh, you know, it's an it's an appreciation segment. Uh today's a special episode for me because I get the opportunity to recognize someone that's made an incredible impact on the automotive recycling industry and on URG, on the podcast, and on me personally, DJ Harrington. DJ, thank you so much for being on today. I know we said last time was your your last podcast, but I had to get you back on for one more.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, by me being the guest. And I really appreciate it. And Michael sounds fantastic.
SPEAKER_02Thank you, DJ.
SPEAKER_03Michael ran a ran a radio show in college.
SPEAKER_02So it was a long time ago, but yes, I did have a radio show in college. Uh, but I mean, uh, going along with what you were saying, Amanda, I I guess we can definitely say that we saved the best for last in 2025.
DJ’s Impact Across URG And ARA
SPEAKER_03Right. I completely agree. And DJ, I just want to give a little bit of a shout out here. Uh, your contributions to this industry uh are impossible to overstate. Uh, throughout your leadership with us, you've helped move the conversation forward, encourage innovation, and create meaningful connections that continue to strengthen this community. I always say you know everyone around the world, I swear. You know every single person. Somehow, someway, you know them. Uh, you don't just participate in the industry, you elevate it. Uh, I'm gonna start tearing up. Uh, then there's this podcast. Uh, what you've built here is more than just a show. It's become a trusted space for education, insight, and inspiration. You've given leaders across the automotive recycling world a voice. You've highlighted important issues, you've created something that truly brings people together. This podcast exists because of your vision, and it's so much more of a success because of your heart. Uh, but for me, the most meaningful role you play uh is a mentor and someone that I truly trust and look up to. You you've been just a steady source of guidance and encouragement and perspective, and you've always believed in me and challenged me and supported me in ways that have shaped both my career and my confidence. Your advice has helped me grow not only professionally but personally, and I'm deeply grateful for that. And you'll always be my little baby Leo's Uncle DJ. So I appreciate you, and I just want to let you know that you are such an impactful person in this industry and are loved by so many people. And thank you so much for being on again today.
SPEAKER_01Well, I am honored for this opportunity because it was, it's been a lot of fun. URG on the go podcast is a great way to communicate with the whole world. Because with Chuck Camp, you know, who's really been the guy behind the curtain, he keeps us all going. Chuck Camp has done a great job. But Amanda, when you came on to help out, this has been a wonderful event. And by finding out how many people are listening from foreign countries, how many people we have in Australia, how many people we have in the UK, that are regular listeners to URG on the go podcast, and that's the great thing. And then you have a tendency to invite the like like the Shannon Nordstroms of the world, and all of a sudden now we're listening to Shannon, who is now the new president of ARA for this year. And I think challenge-wise, we gotta little by little, since Teresa from Car Park is always invited on. I agree or after today, I talked to Jeff Schroeder, yeah, and Jeff Schroeder. I explained to him what we were doing today, and Jeff was like, Oh my! And and that's one of the reasons why in the industry I got to meet people. There was an it convention, and I got on an airplane and I sat next to Jeff Schroeder. And Jeff Schroeder, because he was working his booth, I then gave him a mini talk of what I did at it. And then Jeff goes, Well, maybe you could come and do the seminars with CarPark. Well, by being involved with CarPark, way back early days, he had maybe um less than 40 employees. You know, today they have over 350, but they had less than 40 when I met Jeff.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_01And then little by little from ARA University, I did all of their phone skill presentations. And then little by little, I started writing for the Power Source magazine. Now I write for PowerSource, Recor, Toolbox, and it just grew. Yeah. All the state associations I spoke at. I think the nicest honor I got is this year of being inducted into the URG Hall of Fame, along with you know, some famous people. I was just honored by that.
SPEAKER_03So it was well deserved. Well deserved. You've done so much hard work for for the industry and URG alone, too. Seeing you in that Dr. Code every conference is is such a fun thing to see. And everyone remembers you and knows you by that, and the cardiologist. So we appreciate you.
SPEAKER_02I'm gonna I'm gonna have to get a train whistle once DJ, since DJ's not gonna be there. I'm gonna have to get a train whistle and start running around to get people to go into the big talks. There it is.
SPEAKER_01I may have to put it in the mail and send it to you. I'll I'll keep an eye out for it. Well, I told Amanda when Amanda said, Who do you think could do this? And I said, I know one person, Michael, from your IT department. Hey, I never thought of that. He would be perfect, it just worked out that way, and of course, Christy thought the same, so it was to thank you both.
SPEAKER_02Thank you for the recommendation, and thank you for bringing me on.
SPEAKER_01Well, you would be the best person because you have a great background, you know the industry, Michael, and this is something that uh will come up. So I know Amanda's gonna say, Do you think we should take a break now and then come back?
SPEAKER_03Is it time? Is it time for our first break?
SPEAKER_02We haven't been talking that long, have we?
Origin Story: From GM Trainer To “The Doctor”
SPEAKER_01I don't know now. Unless you want to ask me a question about my background or my dad.
SPEAKER_03That's a exactly what I want to do, DJ. Let's get one question out of the way. What what brought you to, you know, we obviously you said you the I the it conference, and and I think our listeners don't necessarily know what that is and and don't really know how you got into this industry. So can you tell us just a little bit more about that?
SPEAKER_01Yes, I'd be happy to. I was speaking at a location and somebody had said to me, and I was doing General Motors training, and the guy said, Um, I own a recycling center, and I also own a car dealership, and so I I was wondering, I said, Well, you own a recycling center. He said, Yeah, do you have any tips? And I was telling the guy, a lot of people they actually answer the phone the wrong way. So I was telling him how I would answer the phone. And I I always say, and if you call up wellers, or if you call up Shannon Nordstrom, or if you call up there's four or five people that really do it right, but wellers would be one. They answer the phone, thanks for thinking wellers. And they they always do it, they do it you know, verbatim, and it's you know, it's thank you for calling, and then no one gets off the phone without saying, thanks for thinking wellers. Because when they think about a a pre-owned, you know, uh not a used, you know, part, but if you're looking for a recycle part, they want to thank wellers. Yeah, so you tell them thanks for thinking wellers, and a lot of times, even if they had the wrong part sent to them, you leave them on a good note. And when people schedule an appointment, they schedule it 15 minutes after the hour.
SPEAKER_03You know what what makes you such a powerful leader is the is the way you show up for people and the way you talk to people and the way you are represented with integrity, uh, you know, patience and and humor. You always are making people laugh and and having a good time and have a genuine commitment to help others succeed. And you know, you don't lead from above, you lead from alongside. And I think that's something that I've really learned from you uh and why people trust, respect you so much, just as an example of of who you are, and as a leader and as a speaker and someone that has trained a lot of a lot of the people in this industry, especially. Um, so that's why we wanted to have you on today and just wanted to say thank you for everything. Thank you for you know your vision and what you've done for United Recyclers Group and the Automotive Recyclers Industry and this podcast. Um, you know, the industry is stronger because of you, the podcast is here because of you, and I am personally a better person because of you. So I just wanted to have you on.
SPEAKER_01I know one thing. One guy asked me one time, he said, Why do you have now here I am almost 78 years old? And the guy had asked me in my, I think it was a 61, it was uh recycled magazine, and the guy was just asking the question, and I thought to myself, well, if you really want to know the truth, my father was vice president of Bethlehem Steel, and I had 12 children, and my father had a chauffeur who brought him into New York, and then at nighttime.
SPEAKER_03Wait, he just glossed over that. You're one of 12 children, is that what you said?
SPEAKER_01Yes, one of 12.
SPEAKER_03Oh my goodness gracious. Okay, continue.
Break One And URG Membership Plug
SPEAKER_01And my it looked like the last supper at our dinner table. There were 12 kids around the table, and and we waited for my dad to come home uh at from New York every night, and his chauffeur was his chauffeur's name Roger, and Roger would come in and tell us if it was a good day or a bad day, you know. And my father sometimes was still in the car talking to somebody on the telephone when they pulled into the driveway. And we lived in a very nice neighborhood in New Jersey. Well, my father one night, Roger comes in and says, Um, your dad today laid off 1800 people. So he's not in a good mood. And I said, What? And then Roger's, and I was in high school at the time, and Roger says, your dad laid off 1800 people, and uh he's not in a good mood. So he comes home, and my brother John was very outspoken. John said to him, Oh, well, what happened? And my father looked around the table, and it just hit him that he laid off 1,800 families. Because here we all looking at him and want to know what happened. We never ate dinner without my father. We would wait some at nights till eight o'clock to eat dinner because that's how long my dad took to get back home. So he goes upstairs and he's just crying his eyes out. And my mom comes down and said, Listen, your your dad won't be down tonight. But and all of a sudden, you could hear my father say, I'll be right down. So he comes down to talk to us after he laid off 1,800 people, and he said, I hope all of you around this table will one day think about what you're gonna do for a living. Well, I've been running around the country trying to hire 1,800 more people in the recycling business, or 1,800 more salespeople that would sell more parts, or 1,800 people that will become dismantlers, or 1800 more people that will just be good delivery people. And so that's what I've been doing all these years. So my father, as I grew older, my father would say things to me, like I was president of my student body in college, and my father said, never stifle creativity, just redirect it. And there was kids on campus that were smoking marijuana at the time, and my father just said, you know, DJ, it's one of these things that and the the name DJ. Now there's something I was born with the speech impediment, and I changed my name from Dennis Joseph after I had my speech improved. My speech improved my sophomore gear of college. All of a sudden it caked in. And so I changed my name to DJ. And I met people when I was speaking that came over to me and said, they went to school with my my brother. And I said, Well, what school did you go to? He said, Columbia High School. Well, I went to Columbia High School, and I'm the only one in my family that went to Columbia High School. Oh no, no, no, it can't be you. That guy had a speech impediment. I said, I know I did. What's your name? He said, Anthony. Anthony Gerardo? He said, Yeah. I said, You went to school with me. And and he was like, What? There's no way you are such a great speaker. And he was up buying a book and a tape, and he said, you know what he said to his wife, I went to school with uh the the retarded Aaron. I thought, well, what do you think now? And he said, and I felt like Toby Keith. What do you think? Yeah, yeah, what do you think of me now? Yeah, you showed him, you showed him, and he was he was he was speechless. He just said, I can't believe it's you, and I said, Yeah, it is me, Anthony. I'm the same guy that went to school with you. But I changed my name at my sophomore year in college to DJ, because I wanted I didn't want Dennis anymore. I wanted DJ, and that's you know, when I got married, the priest said, Would you Dennis chose to marry? And the whole church said, Who? What's his first name? And I didn't know.
SPEAKER_03That's impressive. I mean, the fact that you had a speech impediment, but then became a professional speaker is incredible. It's an incredible story to just complete turnaround. That's amazing.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I got that with the help of my wife, thank God. Because at General Motors, that was my largest account. Then I took on the the PGA and they took too many days a year. See, General Motors, I spoke for General Motors almost 50 days a year. I spoke for the Golf Association 21 days a year. Well, to be a CSP, you had to have 50 different clients. Holy moly. Yeah, and I had maybe 26, but 26, you had to make over 250,000 a year speaking and and 50 clients to become a CSP, which is less than 3% of the whole population of speakers. And there's 4,000 uh registered speakers right now. So I'm in the top 3%. And uh thanks to General Motors, General Motors said, Well, what do we have to do? If you need 50 different clients, why don't we say General Motors of New Jersey? General Motors of Michigan, General Motors, that's how I did it. Wow. The help of General Motors and the PGA jumped in and helped do the same thing. So I became a certified speaking professional. But when you have a dad like mine, my father would write on the back of tax reports, and he would write, you know, like that comment, never stifled creativity, just redirected. When I was with him in New York one time, we got on one of the ships, and he was vice president of the shipbuilding division of Bethlehem Steel. So we're on one of these ships, and he said to me, Now, DJ, watch this. And of course, at that time I was Dennis. So he said, Dennis, watch this. And he said, You see how this ship goes out to sea? And it just snuggles up. Now, all of a sudden are these tugboats push ocean liners out to sea. And the tugboat just gradually comes along the side of the gigantic A steamship or the cruiser, and they're gigantic, and these tugboats just slightly push them out to sea. And he says, You see how they snuggle up to them? That's how you have to be with people. You have to slowly push them out to sea, and they don't even know they're pushing them. Little by little, they just go. And you have to be that way with people. And I'm listening to my father, and then my father had an opportunity to listen to me speak. And it was great. I think the nicest day of my life, I spoke in New York City for a big, large manufacturing company, and in the audience was my brother Bill, his two sons, uh, you know, Buildy Jr. and John, who are down there at Harrington Construction. And little by little, and my brother John, you know, my brother Bill brought them to listen to me speak because he said, now we all watched Uncle DJ grow up and now watch him speak. And he got in a line with the guy, and the man in front of him says, Are you here to hear the next speaker? He said, Yeah, what do you think? And of course, they led him on and they got, oh yeah, he's the best speaker of the convention. So we go here and watch all the props he uses. And then he said all types of props. Yeah. From the whistle down to the shoes. I had socks that says, Well, knock your socks off. Then we have little tiny shoes that says, Now I had my foot in the door. You know, let's talk about the next foot, you know. Yeah. All those props. And that's what got me going in the speaking business.
SPEAKER_03That's incredible, DJ. That's incredible. I love hearing all about this. This is all new stuff for me, too. I'm glad that we're we're doing this. So uh we'll be right back. We're gonna go ahead and take a quick break here. Uh, I know Chuck's probably squirming in the background trying to get us to take a break. So we'll take a quick break and we will be right back after these messages. Thank you so much for listening.
Associations, Branding, And Global Stages
SPEAKER_00URG can help you streamline your business for maximum efficiency and increased profits, access powerful software and unique tools, receive top-level training with industry experts, work with hundreds of recyclers, employ e-commerce solutions, boost business, receive support, resources, and discounts. Starting at just$150 a month is the smartest investment you will make for your business this year. Go to u-r-g.com and click on Become a Member. Your path to a profitable future is just to click away. That's u-r-g.com.
SPEAKER_02Welcome back, listeners. Of course, you know you're listening to one of the best podcasts in the automotive recycling industry, the URG on the go podcast. I want to remind everyone listening, we're also available on Spotify, iTunes, Pandora, Stitcher, iHeartMedia, and pretty much wherever you get your podcasts. So make sure you download and give us a listen. Um, Amanda's gonna pick up our conversation with the incomparable DJ Harrington. Amanda.
SPEAKER_03Thank you so much, Michael. You're doing great at those intros. Love it.
SPEAKER_02Thank you.
SPEAKER_03DJ from uh from doing that position here. And then it's been it's been great working with you, Michael. So um, yes, we've got DJ Harrington on here today for his final podcast, just talking about uh how he he's gotten into the position that he's in today. And uh, you know, I didn't realize that you I did know that you were a certified speaking professional, but I didn't realize that was you know fewer than three percent of professional speakers worldwide. That's incredible, DJ. That's that's an accomplishment in itself, and you've just done so much more than that.
SPEAKER_01Well, what happened to me is I spoke at a convention. It was well, I don't mind telling you, it was the real estate association convention, and I was teaching new techniques to prospect and how to get more, you know, more people listening with you. And the guy who gave me my check said to me, and he was, you know, I was in my 40s and he was maybe 28, 29, and he said, I'm gonna give you this check, but this will be the last check I give you until you join your state association. And I was like, What? He said, Yeah, you gotta belong to your state association. Everybody that belongs, if you're a speaker, you should belong to your association, if you're a recycler, you should belong to your state association. If you're uh and it's true. So I want to tell all the people that are out there listening if you don't belong to your state association, or if you don't belong to a national association, and some of you qualify to become a member of URG, uh, then you should look into URG. And everybody has an opportunity to better themselves. So, as my dad would say, never get bitter, just get better. And so that's really what it's all about and joining your association. When I joined my association, they taught me so many things about prospecting, how to get in front of larger groups. Now, I told somebody yesterday because they were asking me, and so I said I've spoken to four people, I've spoken to six or seven people, and then I spoke to 7,000 people in Australia. I've done every BMW store in the UK. I mean, I have been all over doing these type of talks of uh checkup from the neck up. So I have 18 different doctor jackets. I have one for the PGA. In the towing business, they call me the tow doctor. In the car business, I'm the cardiologist in the automobile business. And some people don't even know my name is DJ Harrington. They call me the doctor, and that's it. They just know me as the doctor. And when they go ahead, Mike.
SPEAKER_02No, I was just gonna say that that's fantastic. That they you're you've got so many names across so many industries. That's just great.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and it's it's called branding. So I branded myself so that people saw the jacket, they knew I was in the market. And so a lot of people that come to URG, they've seen me in the towing industry. Matter of fact, Spauldings, you know, a big, big outfit in Washington, they saw me in so many different places that when Mr. Spaulding fell at the tow show up in Baltimore, I immediately got him first aid. And the next month, who hires me for all his doors? And it was just an he boy, oh, if anyone ever wants to go out and visit, you know, they visit Shannon, they should go out and visit the Spauldings, and they're at URG every year, yeah, and they're wonderful members, and this is the way you know you grow and you learn from each other. So it's just like Jeff Schroeder. Jeff Schroeder helped me get in there with Carpark, and then all of a sudden I was at all these shows, you know, and it was just one gift after another where somebody helped me.
SPEAKER_03Well, like I said too, you know, that's that's a big part of who you are, is is you meet people and you're instant friends. And I feel like that's it, it just comes from your personality and the and the way you treat people and your integrity, uh, and just the the willingness to be involved in so many different things and and helping people succeed. And I think that's where your your your main drive comes from and and why you've been doing this for so long and and why you've helped so many people. And um, you know, you were talking about being a member of uh the Georgia Speakers Association, is that the one? Yeah, and then your National Speakers Association. You've also written a few books. Is that correct? Is that correct to assume there, DJ? I think I'm I have one in my uh in my office here as we speak. So yes, can you tell us a little bit more about you being an author as well, as a speaker and a mentor and all of these the long list of of of everything you've done?
Collaboration Over Rivalry: URG, ARA, And Leadership
SPEAKER_01Yep, I've written five books, and I've been lucky because I I started writing small little books, like little pamphlets with one group, and then I got picked up and this guy, what a wonderful man. He and his wife said to me, Would you be willing to write a chapter in the book? And so I started writing a chapter, and then I did one on just the doctor, and it was prescriptions for success. And I did one with with famous people like the chicken soup people, and the chicken soup people took me in under their wing and I did one with them, and uh you get a revenue from the book. So the last one was you know the it it was called Race to the Finish. And it was on just professional skills of some things like I tell people it only takes seven muscles to smile and twenty-eight to frown. How many people are working overtime because they're frowning more than they're smiling, and they don't realize that a smile is worth everything, you know, and and it doesn't take anything to to make a smile, and it's actually less muscles. But I started thinking back at of some of the things that I've done, and I started thinking, well, maybe if if there was a young person listening and they say, Well, well, why is it the way you are? I and Amanda and Michael, I I'm gonna tell you, if you tell the truth, you don't have to remember what you said. And so often if you try to lie about it or in in or enhance it some way, all of a sudden it's it's not there. And by giving credit to the other person, it actually helps you get better. And so in my case, um when people say, Do you have a thing between ARA and URG or you know, groups that are out there? No, because I'm like Switzerland. I think we should belong to all of them. I d I'm not I don't bring on any baggage, I don't want to cause any trouble. So I don't I don't ever spread a rumor. You know, if if if a rumor is being spread, it ain't being spread by me because I don't get involved. I'm Switzerland.
SPEAKER_03I just think that's you know, that's what's helped us, you know. You you being, you know, my mentor, talking about ARA and you know, me coming into the industry, not really knowing, and then you know, having new leadership here at URG, is having that mentality, you know, just saying we all need to work together, and it it's gonna be better for the industry and better for uh everyone in the room. So, you know, you've definitely been a part of that too.
SPEAKER_01Well, Christy is a definitely this is Christy is such a leader that the the new executive director of URG.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, CEO, yeah, yeah, the CEO.
SPEAKER_01She is so creative, and she looks at ARA and and and then they embrace the same type of thinking. So why not? Exactly. All of a sudden, I'm gonna tell you, I believe down the line, the United States government will see us bigger and better, just like being on national television. Who'd ever thought we'd ever see them on ABC News? And all of a sudden they're there, it's because of Christie's leadership. Yeah, and all of a sudden, you know, I think Yard is one of the gifts in our country. If you had never gone to Y Yard, I think Glantini up in New Jersey, who uses Harrington construction to help their property, it works out good. It does, absolutely, and it's that it's that kind of relation. You are right, Amanda. It's it's as we see things, you know. I I'm trying to think of Wayne Dyer. And Wayne Dyer says, change the way you look at things and the things you look at will change. And that's Wayne Dyer's that's his saying. It's change the way you think, uh change the way you look at things, and the things you look at will change. And it's true. Just sit back and watch some of the and watch some of the leaders of URG. Good Lord, we have the best of the best. And when you go to a conference, you learn more in the hallways than you do in some of the platforms. Yeah. Because people are saying that's why I think if you I if you go to a URG conference, never ever eat a meal with the same people you ate a meal with earlier. If you ate breakfast with one group, switch tables and eat lunch with another group, and eat dinner with another group, and at nighttime go out and have a social drink with a different group, and you will learn so much. And that's what it is, and that's what I do. I go and someone says, How'd you pick up that tip? Well, honestly, I I just shut up and I sat at this lunch table and let these guys talk, and I picked up the information. Yeah, it's it's that kind of a relationship, and you learn so much from the URG conference. So on your calendar, May 7th and 8th is the URG conference.
SPEAKER_03Always promoting, always promoting DJ. I love it. It's really great.
SPEAKER_02We don't even have to remind him. He just jumps in there with the promos himself, doesn't he?
SPEAKER_03He's right there with it. Well, and like you said, you know, uh being there with a smile, I know you're always walking around that conference with a big grin on your face, and it's such an inspiration. I'm I'm also I'm I've always been the same way. My parents have always taught me, you know, smiling is is the best medicine. And and a lot of people, um, even when you're just out and about, like when I'm in the airports, I'm smiling at random people and strangers because you might be the only person that smiles at them that day, and that might make their day, you know. And and I have a lot of people that come up to me at URG conference and say, Does your face hurt? Because you've been smiling a lot today. And it's true. I mean, it's fun, and and uh, and I am having a great time, but you know, a smile means so much, so much to a lot of people, and and I love that you said that too.
Conference Wisdom And Networking Tactics
SPEAKER_01What's nice at some of these conventions is that we have speakers. A good example, Amanda, is Dalen Zartman. Dalen Zartman, uh, and and this is a real gifted speaker. I met him at a toe show up in Ohio, small little toe show, maybe 1,400, 1,500 people, and he was just sitting there explaining his business. I went by, then Chuck Camp came with me go by, and we had seven minutes of him on a podcast. Then I called Don Porter, who was the executive director way back when, and Don Porter said, Well, let me learn a little bit about Dalen Zarman. When he learned a little bit about him, he brought him in to do a meeting, just a part breakout session, not to be a keynote speaker. The following year, he was the keynote speaker, and now people at URG said, When will Dalen Zardman be back to speak? Because he's so gifted, he's so gifted, Michael, that last year he spoke in Dubai for all of the people attending soccer for the World Cup. And so he was the speaker for the work of phenomenal.
SPEAKER_03Well, and I think you've had a you've had a big hand in in helping with a lot of the success that he's had, and like I said, you know everyone, DJ. I feel like you know you know someone that knows someone that knows that person.
SPEAKER_01Well, you're only seven people away now, you're only seven people away from knowing Donald Trump. Of course, we're we're closer now because my family works for Donald Trump.
SPEAKER_04Oh, good.
SPEAKER_01So now we're closer. Oh my goodness. We're only one person away from him. We'll call him John the phone, not Billy's.
SPEAKER_03Did and I I was doing a little, I did some research on you, DJ. I don't know if you there's there's quite a bit of information out here on here. Um, but you've trained and consulted for over a thousand privately owned businesses. Is that true?
SPEAKER_01Oh, yes, uh, way over that now.
SPEAKER_03Wow.
SPEAKER_01Because what happened with the PJA, which is amazing, by the way.
SPEAKER_03That's so cool. I've been to the masters, and like that was the coolest thing I've ever been able to do. And the fact that I know someone that spoke for the PGA, even cooler.
SPEAKER_01And I'm gonna tell you, my sister Patty, who raises money for the homeless in St. Petersburg, Florida, I called country clubs in the area and said, Would you make a little donation? Now, I thought they would give me a sleeve of golf balls or a shirt from the, you know. No, DJ, is this for your sister? Yes. And she's not a nun or nothing. No, no, no, she's not a nun. She's not that kind of sister of charity. No, she's not a nun. She is a regular businesswoman who is a probation officer in the state of Florida, but she does the fundraising for the poor. Outings, so you could bring a four different people, you could bring three people in yourself, they donated golf carts for everybody, they donated a sleeve of golf balls, they donated shirts, they donated$25 to be used in the gift shop, they gave them lunch. Wow. Eight different country clubs gave all that away, and you ought to sword the donations. It was half of the pot. Oh, I bet.
SPEAKER_03That would be incredible.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, because people down in Clearwater, yeah. And said, Holy moly, I'll bid on that. I want that. So they raised all this money for charity for the homeless from country clubs, and all I did was make a phone call and say, Would you give something to this? Never thinking they were going to be that generous. Yep. And when you talk about generosity, you talk about URG and the Scholarship Foundation.
SPEAKER_03You've done a ton of work for the URG Scholarship. And we want to thank you for that as well. You know, D, I don't know if your listeners know how much work behind the scenes DJ has done for the URG Scholarship Foundation and what he's done for individuals in the industry and you know their families to be able to go to school and trade school or whatever kind of school they want to go to. He's made thousands of phone calls and thousands of different interactions with so many different people, and and we want you to know that that's just been phenomenal, and we appreciate that so much as well.
SPEAKER_01Well, Amanda, I learned so much by calling around and asking about because the as the first of the year, all the scholarships are available. So you think about around January 8th, you got to start thinking now. There you go.
SPEAKER_03There he goes again.
SPEAKER_01There we go.
SPEAKER_03No, I'm just beautiful.
SPEAKER_04Come on, DJ.
Scholarship Foundation Spotlight
SPEAKER_01January 8th and 9th. Keep looking at the website because it'll download the application for the URG Scholarship Foundation. And they are extremely generous, and it doesn't take much to fill one out either. And you just got to be attentive. And all of a sudden you sit there saying, you know what, I could go to trade school, or I could go to beautician school, or I could go to electrical engineering school. Whatever you're going, if if you're doing recycling, that's great, or you're coming to be a business person, that's wonderful. But if you want to be a you know an entrepreneur, we have a program for you. If you want to go to trade schools, we're there for you. And all you gotta do is fill out the application, it comes out right after the first. So uh since we're getting close to the first, get ready, guys. We're only 10 days away from a URG scholarship in your household.
SPEAKER_03Agreed, agreed. We love the promotion, DJ. We it's it's like you can't help yourself. You can't help yourself, but but talk about your passions, and we love how passionate you are.
SPEAKER_02I can replace DJ doing this on the podcast, but I can never refill his shoes. Uh rather, maybe I can fill his shoes, but I can't replace them. I don't know what the best way to say it is. He knows he's he knows so much more about this stuff than I currently do, it'll take me years to catch up.
SPEAKER_01No, it won't, Michael. Let me tell you, no, it won't. You have the spirit. See, it's it's nice. The reason why I thought you would be a great person for the job is you have a kind heart. And this job, if really, that's what you need. You need a passion to say, okay, how can I help the other guy? Because all we have is the time we have here now. You know, it's it's we don't know when we're gonna go, and we gotta sit here, and I want to tell the listeners, yeah, I got sick two years ago, and that's when I went to Amanda and said, Okay, Amanda, let me ask you about something. Would you consider helping with the podcast? Because two years ago I got what they call, you know, GBS, which is Guillaume Beret syndrome, and it's a tough thing to live with. And then three months ago I got the ugly stepsister, and I got now CIDP. So you go through this and you say, okay, what can I do? But I still can talk to people. Uh, my legs don't work too well, but I still can talk to people, and the nicest thing I spoke for Amazon, and Amazon, all of you know Amazon, and the guy said, You're the best speaker we've ever had. And I said, Yeah, for 35 minutes, I'm really good. But if I spoke for 90 minutes, I'm gonna tell you a 78-year-old person repeats himself, and he'll tell the second story in a 90-day, 90-minute program, and you'll say, didn't he tell that story earlier? Yeah, yeah, he did. But because I don't want to do that, I retired from speaking. So the Amazon guy goes, No, no, no, you gotta do it. You gotta come speak to our whole company. And I said, You don't understand. I'm just good for this event, and that's the reason why I'm happy to do podcasts, and I am so proud, Michael, that you will represent me and I you will be the best person. You and Amanda could make this thing really hum. You know, we did we did good, but you guys will do great.
SPEAKER_02Somebody's somebody's cutting onions in here, Amanda.
SPEAKER_01All right, go for your commercial break, and I'm ready for the final finale.
SPEAKER_03All right, like DJ said, we will take a quick commercial break and be right back with DJ Harrington, the one and only.
SPEAKER_00The URG Scholarship Foundation was founded in 2014 in honor of individuals who give their talent, time, and very often their own finances to ensure the growth and success of the automotive recycling industry. We understand college is not for everyone. So each year, the foundation offers substantial financial scholarships to auto-recycling employees and the children of employees that are attending four-year and technical or trade schools to assist with their education. Don't leave money on the table. If you have a child or if you're interested in attending continuing education, this money is available to you. Go to U-R-G dot com and click on the Scholarship Foundation tab. URG, keeping our industry strong through education.
SPEAKER_02Welcome back everybody to the URG on the go podcast. Um, my name is Michael. Uh joining me as well is Amanda. And Amanda, who is going to what's the best way to put this? Who's gonna he's gonna help us wrap up the podcast for the year, as well as his intro, as well as his um, gosh, as well as his presence. I mean, that's the only way you can really describe it. His presence on this podcast. Who do we have with us? Who are we wrapping up with?
SPEAKER_03We are wrapping up with DJ Harrington, the one only cardiologist in the automotive recycling industry, and who has represented this industry and himself so well, and also, you know, thought of this podcast. He came up with it. It's his vision, and it's it's been something that has been incredible to be a part of. And when he asked me, you know, we had been on a couple times as guests just just describing you know benefits and URG. Uh, and when he asked me to participate a little bit more heavily, I was I jumped at the opportunity just because I know what a fabulous mentor you are, DJ, and and a person that I want to talk to all the time. I, you know, I whenever I don't hear from you, I miss you. And so I have to give you a call. So don't worry, I'm not gonna I'm not gonna stop calling you. I'll probably still keep bugging in every every few weeks.
SPEAKER_01Hey, and then Amanda, when that baby's born, then you gotta really call Uncle DJ.
SPEAKER_03Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_01Say, okay, let me tell you what he did today.
SPEAKER_02You're gonna have to send her a little baby-sized uh doctor's coat. Yeah, oh yeah, that would be perfect.
SPEAKER_01A checkup from the neck up from a little guy.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, yeah, I love that. Yep, we'll send you lots of pictures and keep you updated with the with the little munchkin that's coming in April.
SPEAKER_01So well, we always tell people since this is the last one, Michael. I gotta tell you, we always ask the person. Now, this is the last segment. Is there anything you'd like to add, or is there anything you want to leave our audience with? Now that we have over 10,000 listeners.
SPEAKER_03Yes, there you go. Another teaching opportunity is always teaching, he's always teaching.
SPEAKER_02I I before we jumped on the call, I I asked Amanda, do we have a script? I I need a script.
SPEAKER_01Oh, don't worry, Michael. You will add to it and make it better and better.
SPEAKER_02I'll get it.
The Garden For Success Storytime
SPEAKER_01I'll get there. Oh, yeah. You'll you'll do a I tell you, I expect you to do a whole lot better than I did. So you you got a gift, and you this is something that you can share. So you know, in the Bible they say, you know, get it out from underneath the basket and let that light shine. Okay, here's one of I get more people to ask me, what's one of the funniest things that ever happened to you? I mean, I've done stupid stuff like I sprayed my hair on, and one time it snowed on my head, and all of my hair on my head came down on my eyes. I looked like this. It was terrible. That happened in Michigan with Barbara Utter, it was terrible. And oh, yeah, Barbara Utter who passed away recently. Yeah, and wonderful lady. But but here's the funniest thing. Now that was second funny. Uh, this is the funniest thing. I was speaking at a group in Oklahoma, and I wrote a thing called the Garden for Success. So I'm gonna read the Garden of Success and tell you what happened thereafter. I I wrote this thing called Garden for Success by DJ Harrington, and in the garden we plant seven rows apiece. So we have presence, promptness, prep uh, patience, preparation, perseverance, positive action, and prayer. Then we have eight rows of squash in our garden. We have squash gossip, squash indifference, squash the indecision, squash negativity, squash worry, squash envy, squash greed, and squash fear. Then we have nine rows of turnips. You get the trick here? Peas, squash, turnips. It's a garden for success. Next we have nine rows of turnips. Turn up for training, turn up on time, turn up with a smile, like we talked about, turn up with good thoughts, turn up with new prospects, turn up with excitement, turn up with a positive attitude, and turn up with determination, make everything count for the good and worthwhile. And no garden is complete without lettuce. You got it. Now we have lettuce. Let us be faithful to our duty, let us be honest with ourselves, let us be unselfish and loyal, let's be true to our obligations, let's have fun and enjoyment, let's obey the rules and regulations, let us love and help one another, and last but not least, let us ask for God's help. So I'm at this dealership, but the guy loved this. He thought it would be fantastic. So we I have a company policy. If the dealer invites me to lunch, I go. So if it's especially if it's free, it's for me. So I go to lunch with this guy. We're eating lunch, and his pastor comes by and says, Hey Fred, how are you? Now, if I told you his last name, he's one of the largest dealers in Oklahoma. So he goes, Hey Fred, how are you? He said, Oh, Pastor, come by here. I want to introduce you to DJ Harrington from Atlanta, Georgia. The pastor goes, DJ Harrington from Atlanta, Georgia. Have you ever spoken at Federal Express? Yes, sir, I have. He said, Do you do a program called the Checkup from the Neck Up? Yes, I do. He says, My daughter works for Federal Express and she bought one of your tapes. Oh, wow. Well, that's fantastic. I think it's wonderful. He said, I loved it. I said, Oh, you you listened to it? He said, Yeah. That checkup from the neck up. You you did a thing called Garden for Success. And of course, Fred goes, Yeah, he did it at my store this morning. And so the pastor goes, Well, this is wonderful meeting you. I have to tell my daughter I met you. Yeah, celebrity. Yeah, I felt like a celebrity. So then I go to my hotel room. I'm supposed to stay over because I'm doing more stores, but I'm doing recycling stores the next day in Oklahoma. So he says to me, the back the car dealer now says, Hey DJ, I have to talk to you. So I said, What happened? He said, You know the minister we met at lunch? I said, Yeah. He wants you to come to church with us on Sunday. I said, What? He said, Yeah, he said, now we go to Bible study in the morning and then we go to church right after. So can you come to Bible study with us? I said, Oh, yeah, and and church. So now I'm gonna get double dipped. So what happens is in Oklahoma City, it was amazing. So I go to Sunday school, and I the minister walks over to me in Sunday at right outside of Sunday school and says, Oh, it's so good to see you. I want to introduce you to my church. Wow. What? Oh I no, no, no, no, Pastor, listen, I do car dealerships, I do recyclers, I do, you know, PGA, I do, like you know, Federal Express, but I I really don't do churches. He said that Garden for Success, that would be perfect. So I oh my Lord. So thinking, so in Sunday school, now I am now writing a new Garden for Success. Oh yeah, prayers, providence, turn up for choir practice, turn up for Bible study, turn up with a good attitude, you know, and and last but not least, let's ask for God's help. So I go in there and he says, I want everyone to get together. I have this fantastic Catholic from Atlanta, Georgia, DJ Harrington. Now I go down to the, you know, and the the dealer's wife is telling me, go on up there. And I said, I know what to do. Thank you very much. So I go up where the pastor is, and he tells everybody I'm Roman Catholic. These people look like they eat their young. This is a very vicious group. Because they have never seen a Catholic, but maybe you know, Ted Kennedy, you know, with Mary Joe Capeckni. And it was one of those feelings. I felt terrible. So I start and I do this garden for success, and I put down turn up for choir practice, turn up for Bible study, and I rewrote the thing. The church loved it.
SPEAKER_04Oh, good.
Humor, Resilience, And Final Reflections
SPEAKER_01So then he says, I want all of you to come back tonight because Mr. Harrington will be speaking tonight. Oh my god. What you guys go to again at night? I've already done the Bible class, I've already come to church. Now they have church at night. So I go back home and I'm thinking, now what do I do? And I didn't know what to write. So this guy says to the church, how many of you love what Mr. Harrington said this morning? Well, Mr. Harrington, just give us how about four tips. So I got up and I told this Baptist church, and there's maybe that service had 480 good Baptist people in, and I told them all to drink, swear, steal, and lie. People up on the balcony were saying, I told the pastor not to have that Catholic speech, and he's telling all of us to drink, swear, steal, and lie. And this is the funniest thing to ever happen to me. This church was going crazy. And then I said, drink from the cup of success. You deserve it. You're here tonight. You were here this morning for Sunday school, hopefully. You were here for services, and then you came tonight. That's wonderful. You should really drink from the cup of success. I swear. I swear you're gonna tell everybody you love them. I swear you're gonna spend extra time studying the Bible. That's where you're gonna take extra time to help your neighbor. And you got drinks where still 15 minutes for self-improvement. I believe that the best thing to do is the B-I-B-L-E. That's the Bible. It's really uh it's called best information before leaving earth. So, and you're not gonna believe how many people wrote in the back of their Bible best information before leaving Earth is the Bible, and then drink, swear, steal, and lie when you Lie down tonight, thank God you're in America. Thank God we got the free enterprise system. Thank God we could worship today, and nobody's outside taking down license plate numbers. This is a fantastic America. And you know, a lot of times people forget that the I can is if you say you know the last four letters of the word American is I can. Right. So if we had an I can attitude, we'd be fine. So I sit down the church goes bananas, they love they love drink sweets. Yeah, and it worked out fine. I sit down and the pastor says to me, When will you be back again? I don't come back again for another year. So I'll keep you posted. But if you think about a day in a Baptist church, and and a lot of times people say, What was some of the funniest things happened? I think the hair was a funny story with Barbara Utter, because it happened with Barbara Utter, and she was just taken away. Because the first person who saw my hair melting was fourth to fifth row, and the sun, what happened is I went outside to get my props, and the snow melted my hair as I came in, and the chandelier lights melted the snow, who in turn melted my hair, and I didn't so it's coming down my face, and I had no clue, and the guy in the front row is going crazy. So I walk over and I said, What is wrong with you? He said, Your hair is melting, and I I run to the men's room, and the hair it is, it looks like mascara. I I look like this, I look like this, and down my face, and it was dark, and in my white collar, I wear blue shirts with white collars, and you know, I you know, I try to wear initials on my cuffs. Well, let me tell you, that shirt was ruined. It had black marks on it. The moral of the story is don't use bronto hair, uh spray on hair on your bolt spot.
SPEAKER_03I think that you know that's what makes you such a successful speaker, as well as being able to speak and and be prompted by, you know, and so quickly come up with and tailor your speeches to the people that you're speaking to. And and and that's incredible in itself, and why you've been such a good podcast host as well, you know, being able to come to each meeting and and know exactly who you're talking to and be well prepared, and and you're so uh so methodical about the thoughts that you have and and trying to make sure that the success is is led through the podcast as well as through your speaking and and through your engagements, and and we really appreciate it. And you're so funny, honestly. You're you're hilarious.
SPEAKER_01Very, very much for doing this, and Michael, thank you very much. And you guys will be I'm honored. Yeah, you guys will be very, very successful, and anytime Amanda, you want to you want to reminisce, or you want me to call somebody and say, hey, you gotta get on the podcast. Because there's one or two people that really in 2026 need to be on your podcast.
SPEAKER_03I'm so appreciative of everything you've done for us and and done for the podcast and just URG and URG Scholarship Foundation as well. You're such an advocate, clearly.
SPEAKER_01One final thing. I want all of our listeners to tell other people about the podcast so we can continue growing it. And that would be a real honor to have you one day say to me, Can you believe DJ, we're over 20,000 listeners? See, now that you have over 10,000, yeah, Spotify it and all those people will help promote it. Perfect. That's a nice thing.
SPEAKER_02That's the next big jump.
SPEAKER_01By you doing your monthly messages, I think you'll you know great people.
SPEAKER_03You'll try to grow it more and more. And you you've got us off to a great start. 10,000 is incredible, and and we we love you, DJ, and and appreciate everything you've done. Do you have any final tips for us? Anything you'd like to leave us?
SPEAKER_01The only thing I'm gonna tell you, I was honored to be part of URG. I mean, honored, and it's my part to say I thank you guys for helping me grow, because we together made it a better place, and that's what always the thing is. Could we leave this earth being a better person, being a better representative? And I think that's what you helped me do because I want to leave this earth knowing I did something to make it better. And you have helped me very much. And Amanda, I love you dearly, and Mike, don't worry, I love you too.
SPEAKER_02Well, now you've got my number, DJ. You you can you can be calling me for tech support when you need something. How about that?
SPEAKER_03You're a good guy to lean on, Mike. Mike is our guide.
SPEAKER_01Oh, yeah. Now you're not gonna charge me though, are you? No, I would, I would never. I'll just I'll just send the bill to Amanda. Yeah, if it's free, yeah. If it's free, it's for me. And if there's a charge, it's for thee.
Farewell, Gratitude, And Listener Challenge
SPEAKER_03Yes. Um, DJ, thank you so much. Thank you guys so much for listening today. Um listening to DJ Harrington's final podcast. Uh, we want to send you off with love and and love having you on the podcast, and and I'm sure we'll be seeing you and hearing from you here periodically as well. I might I might have to drag you back on here every once in a while. We appreciate you. Thank you so much. And thanks, Michael.
SPEAKER_02Of course, absolutely. Thank you, everyone, as well. Happy New Year.
SPEAKER_03Happy New Year. Yep, we'll see you in the new year. Keep listening to URG on the go podcast.