It's just business
It's just business
Part 1
Often times we truckers forget that what we do is just business. We get wound up on personal issues instead of sticking to our numbers and profit margins. This is why we continue to get beaten at the game. To the shipper it is just business, to the broker it is just business. Why then do we not act the same?
When I was a builder and I got beat out on a bid, no big deal it was just business. I have the exact same concept with my trucking company. I used to hear my carpenters talk about getting jobs that would have cost the company more money to do than it would make. They used to tell me but boss it is work. That is a workers bee concept right there, not a business concept. I did not get into business to just get work, I got into business for the challenge of finding the right kind of work for the right kind of profit margins. This same concept applies no matter what widget you are involved with.
Each business needs to evaluate first their projected cost to operate. Once they have established that then they need to get a feel for the acceptable profit margin that their business model can generate. At this point you can run projections for the good times and the bad. The hardest part that I have found in trucking is the truckers themselves. I have no problem working with shippers or brokers on the it's just business level, they already understand this. The problem is the majority of my fellow truckers don't even understand the business basics that are required to run their own business. They are much like my carpenters used to be, they just seem to want work. Here is a news flash for those that are not really into the business side of this thing. You may survive as long as your truck and trailer continue to not give you any problems. As soon as your equipment fails you then the moment of truth will arrive that it's just business. You will be running around like a chicken with your head cut off. You may make it through one such time and possibly a second. You will fail to self evaluate what is going on because you are now desperate to get your drug fix by running down the road chasing the elusive magic rate per mile. You should be running your business on profit margins, it's just business.