Know The Trucking Business
Taking a vacation is something many micro-motor carriers place on the back burner. The trucker either thinks he can’t afford it or his business will go down the tubes if he takes time off. On the contrary. As far-fetched as this may seem, a vacation is possible with a bit of planning and foresight.
As anyone who goes into business discovers, there are no guarantees when it comes to making money as an entrepreneur. It’s a learning process with each business. Learn from each business the skills that can be applied to the next one. Each enterprise develops a life pattern of its own.
Do you have the facts and figures which support what you’re doing according to your plan? This is how you determine if it’s working. Should you stay the course? If it’s not working, to what extent do you adjust the plan? Do you scrap the portion that isn’t achieving your goals, or make small changes? How do you know the best course of action?
“Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” You shouldn’t let a single customer represent any more than 20% to 25% of your total revenue or accounts receivable.
When any two units of the team are in conflict, the entire team suffers. If each team member is only interested in his or her own benefit without regard to the effect on the other members, the entire team’s efforts will fail. It’s important for all the units which make up the team to work together.
It doesn’t take a majority to make a rebellion; it takes only a few determined leaders and a sound cause. – H. L. Mencken
I’m not suggesting taking up arms to bring forward changes in the trucking industry. What I am recommending is taking a revolutionary approach to how you conduct your trucking business.
It’s not just a question of survival during these times of low freight volumes and freight rates. It’s time to take advantage of the many opportunities coming down the road. The last year was one the hardest on small motor carriers since the Great Recession of 2009 and 2010. But…
There’s a method used in real estate investing that also works well for owner operators and lease operators. When investing in real estate for the purpose of receiving the greatest return on the dollar invested – for renting it out, in other words (creating a sustainable, consistent income), purchase the house with the lowest price in a neighborhood. In so doing, you have far greater profitability by being able to charge a higher rent with lower costs. Yet the revenue (rent) necessary to support the expenses like loan payments, taxes and insurance can be lower than other houses in the area.